riverodder

Latest Posts by riverodder

Okay, so, wetlands. I love 'em. I do. There fucking amazing. You know what else they are? Total bad boys. You think they give a damn about our labels? You thought there were only 3, 4, or maybe 6 different types of wetlands, didn't you? Cowards! There are so, so many more. The most popular 4 to introduce are the swamp, bog, marsh, and fen but HOO BOY. That's just where wetlands get started! Most wetlands can't even fit in just one of those categories! I just talked about vernal pools in my first post. Those don't even come close to fitting into any of those four.

Speaking of vernal pools, my first post really only talked about the US. You know why? Vernal pools is really only the accepted vernacular for those types of wetlands IN THE US. Any place in the world that had receding glaciers has a probability of hosting vernal pools, but they'll call them something wildly different! We can't even agree on names for these guys! But I really want to talk about the DEFINITION of wetlands.

Did you know scientists can't even really, truly agree on one solid definition of a wetland? Yeah! They're still debating it! There are some widely accepted definitions, sure, but these wetlands out here are still stumping everyone. And as they keep trying and trying, the definition just keeps getting longer and longer. You know why? Because you can't pin the wetlands, baaabbyyy! They're not gonna let you just slap a label on them like that! They're their own biome! There's so much complexity and so much that goes into being a wetland! You can't just hold them down like that. How dare they even try.

All that to say maybe go give your local wetland some lovin'? I'm sure it could use it. Wetlands are so underappreciated, and they do a lot for us and your local biodiversity. Maybe go check up on it? Say hi? Pick up that wrapper? No, the Snickers wrapper, but that one probably shouldn't be there either. Thanks!

Hey, guess what? There's this really cool type of wetland. Like, really cool. It's called a vernal pool. You know what makes them different from other wetlands? They'll DRY UP during the summer and fill up again with snow melt and spring rains. A lot of really cool species of animals, like frogs, salamanders, and shrimp, need this type of wetland to survive and reproduce as they need waters that don't have fish in them. We call them obligate species. You know what vernal pools don't have? Fish. You know why? Because they dry up! Ain't that cool?

But you wanna know the sad thing about vernal pools? Some of them are big, but most of them are really small. Some of them can be so small that you can't even tell if they're a vernal pool or just a really big puddle. So they end up getting destroyed really easily. You know why else they get destroyed easily? Even if they are big, if they're not in a database as a vernal pool and they're all dried up, it's really hard to tell that there's a vernal pool right there. California's already lost 90% of it's vernal pools. Not sure about New England and the Midwest, but those three areas are the only places you'll find them in the US. At least in large quantities.

Did you know those obligate species, the amphibians, anyway, have to return to their original pool to reproduce? A lot of them will hazard any trouble just to get back, including roads. Did you know that the destruction of vernal pools not only destroys the pool but also the biodiversity and food source of the surrounding terrestrial habitat?

Just some cool things to think about! If you know of a vernal pool in your area, maybe try and make sure it has its proper protections? Your state's DEP should have a list, hopefully. Your local biodiversity and amphibian friends will thank you!