What is a marsh or swamp?

A marsh or swamp is a low, spongy wetland covered with thick, healthy growths of tall grasses and reeds. These areas are important because they naturally filter and clean the water supply. Urban sprawl, or the building of houses and city areas threaten swamps and marshes filling these with dirt and drying out the marshes and swamps to build on them. Hundreds of species of birds, fish, amphibians, insects and animals are inhabitants of the swamps and marshes.

A swamp landform has 4 main characteristics

1.Area of land

2.Damp all the Time

3. Low and wet

4. Supports grass and trees

  The Everglades is a vast area of marshes, sloughs, and swamps in southern Florida. 

  It is the largest remaining subtropical wilderness in the continental U.S.  It is actually a slow moving river home to thousands of species of plants and animals.  It is one of the most imperiled ecosystems in the world and is the only place to see alligators and crocodiles in the same habitat. Endangered species such as the Florida Panther, West Indian Manatee and Snail Kite live within the confines of the Everglades.

  Everglades National Park, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979, only protects about 20 percent of the Everglades. The entire system has been negatively impacted by water pollution and population growth.

Examples of Swamp Landforms:

The Florida Everglades
Okefenokee Swamp

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