Swamp

"Swampland" redirects here. For the theoretical-physics concept, see Swampland (physics). For other uses, see Swamp (disambiguation).
A freshwater swamp in Florida, United States

A swamp is a forested wetland.[1] Swamps are considered to be transition zones because both land and water play a role in creating this environment.[2] Swamps vary in size and are located all around the world. The water of a swamp may be fresh water, brackish water, or seawater. Freshwater swamps form along large rivers or lakes where they are critically dependent upon rainwater and seasonal flooding to maintain natural water level fluctuations.[2][3] Saltwater swamps are found along tropical and subtropical coastlines.[4] Some swamps have hammocks, or dry-land protrusions, covered by aquatic vegetation, or vegetation that tolerates periodic inundation[5] or soil saturation. The two main types of swamp are "true" or swamp forests and "transitional" or shrub swamps. In the boreal regions of Canada, the word swamp is colloquially used for what is more formally termed a bog, fen, or muskeg. Some of the world's largest swamps are found along major rivers such as the Amazon, the Mississippi, and the Congo.[6]

  1. ^ Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p.
  2. ^ a b "swamp". National Geographic Society. 2011-01-21. Archived from the original on 2021-03-03. Retrieved 2019-09-26.
  3. ^ Hughes, F.M.R. (ed.). 2003. The Flooded Forest: Guidance for policy makers and river managers in Europe on the restoration of floodplain forests. FLOBAR2, Department of Geography, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK. 96 p.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference :1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Swamp Archived 2007-06-10 at the Wayback Machine (from glossary web page of the United States Geological Survey)
  6. ^ Keddy, P.A., L.H. Fraser, A.I. Solomeshch, W.J. Junk, D.R. Campbell, M.T.K. Arroyo and C.J.R. Alho. 2009. Wet and wonderful: the world's largest wetlands are conservation priorities. BioScience 59: 39–51.