Wetlands Wildlife

“Wetlands, which include marshes and peatlands, are the unsung heroes of the climate crisis. They store more carbon than any other ecosystem, with peatlands alone storing twice as much as all the world’s forests. Inland wetland ecosystems also absorb excess water and help prevent floods and drought, widely seen as critical to helping communities adapt to a changing climate.” [UNEP]

Wetlands Are Important

When the glaciers receded after the last Ice Age, they left behind an array of shallow depressions providing the Prairie Pothole Region that stretches across southern Alberta, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan with a wealth of small wetlands storing water and providing habitat for a wide variety of plants and animals.

Wetlands act like a sponge. They soak up water, preventing flooding during rainstorms and release it slowly, preventing drought.

Wetlands are filters, removing contaminants from the water so it’s pure and clean for us to drink. They also store more carbon than any other ecosystem.

Wetlands support a wide array of wildlife, from cattails and insects to ducks and beavers. The insects pollinate the plants, while the birds and frogs eat the insects. By harvesting plants, muskrats create open water for birds and other wildlife. It’s a self-supporting circle of life.

Wetlands provide us with beauty and outdoor recreation opportunities. The song of a red-winged blackbird or the sound of a beaver slapping its tail against the water delights us.

Protecting Our Wetlands

Each of us has a role to play in protecting our water supply and our wetlands. We can:

Conserve water by installing a rain barrel to water our garden or by taking shorter showers and turning the tap off while we brush our teeth.

Reduce chemical pollution by preventing motor oil or leftover paint from entering our community’s storm drains.

Choose non-toxic household cleaning products.

Protect birds and insects by limiting our use of pesticides or fertilizers.

Plant a rain garden that will slow down and clean stormwater runoff from hard surface areas such as roofs, roads, and driveways.

Grow native plants that will support native wildlife.

Help wetland wildlife. Don’t kill insects unnecessarily. Watch out for turtles or other animals that may be crossing the road when driving.

Leave no trace when visiting wetlands by picking up waste and keeping dogs on a leash so they don’t disturb nesting birds or chase small animals.

Wetlands Wildlife

Wildlife gathers wherever there is water, whether it’s a small urban pond or a large rural marsh.

Start your exploration along the banks. Willows, with their long drooping branches, thrive in moist soil. Beavers enjoy eating the twigs, and the flowers are a source of nectar and pollen for bees. Cottonwoods are fast-growing trees that grow best in floodplains and beside lakes and rivers where there is plenty of water. The trees release so many fluffy white seeds in early summer that you may think it's snowing. Cattails play a useful role in purifying and removing pollutants from bodies of water. The entire plant is edible and is a traditional food source.

Spring brings colourful flowers to the banks of a pond or marshy area. Marsh Marigolds have shiny yellow, saucer-shaped flowers that resemble buttercups. The seed pods split open when ripe, and spongy tissue keeps the seeds afloat until they reach a location where they can grow. Northern Bog Violets have large blue-to-purple flowers on long stems well above the leaves.

Listen carefully. Male Red-winged Blackbirds sing to defend their territory. They spend up to one quarter of daylight hours chasing away rivals and predators. Boreal Chorus Frogs are hard to see but easy to hear. The chorus of high-pitched trills has been compared to a fingernail running along the edge of a plastic comb.

You may smell Wild Mint before you spot it, especially if you brush past the plants and bruise the leaves which have glands containing aromatic oils. Flies and wasps visit the flowers for nectar.

One of the best times of day to spot wildlife is at dusk. Little Brown Bats fly and forage close to the surface of the water and eat a great many aquatic insects. Chewed tree stumps along the shore are a good clue that Beavers live nearby. They are clumsy on land but graceful and strong in water. Their hind feet are webbed, and flaps over their nose and ears can be closed when they are underwater. Mature adult Mayflies live only 1-2 days and spend their entire adult life in flight looking for a mate. In the summer months, you may see large swarms of males performing a mating dance over the surface of the water at dawn or dusk.

What can you spot on or in the water? Water Striders can walk on water. They spread their weight evenly over hairy legs that repel water and trap air, helping to keep the entire body above water. The middle legs push them forward, while the back legs steer. They use their short front legs to sense movement and to grasp insects and small creatures that have fallen onto the water's surface. Water Boatmen are small flat, oval, brown or grey bugs with fine markings on their back. They trap air under their shell in order to breathe underwater and hook their legs on underwater plants and rocks to keep from floating to the surface.

Additional Resources

Nature Companion is a free app/website introducing many of the plants and animals found in Canada’s four western provinces [EcoFriendly West]

Notice Nature is a Saskatchewan community program created to encourage outdoor play through fun, nature-loving learning activities. EcoFriendly West has worked with Notice Nature to produce a series of guidebooks for Saskatchewan plants and animals. One of the most recent is an identification guide to wetlands wildlife [Notice Nature]

Cover photo credit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/apmckinlay/51288260989

EcoFriendly West informs and encourages initiatives that support Western Canada’s natural environment through its online publication and the Nature Companion website/app. Like us on Facebook, follow us on BlueSky, X, and Mastodon, or subscribe by email.