Geographic distribution of wetlands
- Related Topics:
- bog
- swamp
- marsh
- salt marsh
- banto faros
- On the Web:
- Dartmoor National Park Authority - Bogs and Wetlands (Dec. 12, 2024)
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Wetlands are found all over the world in every biome, or major life zone. Some wetlands, such as tidal marshes, fit the definition of a transitional zone because they occur where open water and land meet. Others, such as prairie potholes of central North America and Carolina bays (elliptical depressions) of the Atlantic Coastal Plain, are fed mostly by precipitation or groundwater and are not associated with a distinct body of water. Still others, such as the bog-and-fen mosaic of the taiga (boreal forest), are dominant features of the regional landscape.
Wetlands are most abundant in boreal and tropical regions, though a wide variety of inland and coastal wetlands are also found in temperate regions. This distribution is generally due to conditions that promote an abundance of water. For example, the peatlands of Borneo and the Peruvian Amazon occur within the tropical rainforest biome. In the treeless tundra of Alaska and Canada, saturated and flooded wetlands are underlain by permafrost. There, many parts of the landscape are made up of peatlands composed of black spruce (Picea mariana) and white spruce (P. glauca), which are sustained by rainfall or melting snow. Wetlands are also found in the hot desert biome—for example, the Mesopotamian marshlands found at the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. In temperate regions, wetlands typically are found near coastlines, rivers, lakes, or other locations where local water input exceeds output.