Wetlands are becoming increasingly utilized to mitigate runoff as water quality issues from excess nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment continue to exacerbate eutrophication. This study focuses on long term nutrient and hydrologic data from the Grand Lake St. Marys (Ohio) Watershed where harmful algal blooms have proliferated for decades as a result of a combination of natural...
In the semiarid western United States, annual variability of mountain snowmelt has long prompted construction of small reservoirs to sustain irrigation through the summer and among years. With relatively consistent, prolonged flooding, these small reservoirs commonly support tall emergent vegetation that is otherwise often limiting to diverse breeding waterbirds. However...
In Mexico, “petenes” are permanent aquatic systems sustained by aquifer discharges. They are encircled by tree vegetation and are prevalent in the coastal wetlands of the Yucatan Peninsula. Owing to the karstic nature of the substratum, these floodable systems exhibit a diverse range of dynamics, primarily influenced by precipitation, the extent of swamps and marshes, and sea...
Seedling recruitment is an important mode of establishment utilized by many invasive plants. In widespread invasive plants, regional variation in the rates of seedling recruitment can contribute to differences in invasion intensity across regions. In this study, we examined regional variation in reproductive traits and seedling performance in a cosmopolitan invasive wetland grass...
There is an ongoing demand for region-specific soil organic carbon estimates to support sustainable land management and inform carbon credit programs. The Prairie Pothole Region is prominent agricultural area that extends through Canada and the United States, and features a significant number of wetlands commonly referred to as prairie potholes. The contribution of these wetlands...
Despite the incontrovertible importance of wetland ecosystems, our understanding of the causes underlying the spatial heterogeneity of their attributes is still insufficient. Here, we assess the spatial variation of the floristics (species composition and their relative abundances) and quantitative structure (vegetation cover) of the San Pedro Mártir River riparian herbaceous...
Mangroves are ecologically important and highly productive intertidal plants that thrive in saline to brackish environments in tropical and subtropical shallow-water habitats. Avicennia marina is the only mangrove species found in the Arabian Gulf (hereafter the ‘Gulf’) coastal region, marking the northernmost boundary of mangroves in the Indo-Pacific region. This species...
There are increasing global efforts and initiatives aiming to tackle climate change and mitigate its impacts via natural climate solutions (NCS). Wetlands have been considered effective NCS given their capacity to sequester and retain atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) while also providing a myriad of other ecosystem functions that can assist in mitigating the impacts of climate...
Globally scarce and ecologically valuable, the lowland chalk streams of southern and eastern England experience extensive eutrophication pressures arising from intensive agriculture. Mitigation measures are required to restore natural chalk stream functioning and the reintroduction of the Eurasian beaver (Castor fiber) could provide a solution. Here, we investigated the impact...
When municipal effluent is discharged into swamps, baldcypress trees (Taxodium distichum) generally respond with increased growth. This growth increase may be associated with increased transpiration (E), but if functional traits are also affected, they may modulate the response of E to environmental conditions such as atmospheric vapor pressure deficit (VPD). We measured tree...
Rising anthropogenic-induced nutrient enrichment of surface waters is of great concern globally as it jeopardizes the ecological integrity and functioning of freshwater ecosystems. Floating wetlands have been successfully used to treat nutrient enriched wastewater in developing nations, and provide additional co-benefits. We aimed to quantify the nutrient removal efficiency of...
Many freshwater wetlands and riparian systems are protected within agricultural landscapes. Yet, pollinator ecosystem services are seldom considered key ecosystem services provided by these conservation easements. The purpose of this study is to explore the extent of protected aquatic lands to provide pollination ecosystem services by assessing pollinator abundances, crop yield...
Fringing mangrove forests are likely to experience increasingly severe weather events under climate change, including an increased frequency of tropical storms that may lead to mangrove mortality. Mangrove mortality can result in soil surface elevation loss through the death and compaction of roots, which can in turn alter the hydrology of the ecosystem and reduce its resilience...
The soil redox potential in wetlands such as peatlands or salt marshes exerts a strong control over microbial decomposition processes and consequently soil carbon cycling. Wetland plants can influence redox by supplying both terminal electron acceptors (i.e. oxygen) and electron donors (i.e. organic matter) to the soil system. However, quantitative insight into the importance of...
To conserve or restore juvenile fish habitat, resource managers, restoration practitioners, and engineers need fine-scale information to understand what conditions they need to preserve or what specifications are needed to create new habitat. The objective of this study was to develop statistical models using a dataset of 18 coastal ponds in Southwest Florida, USA, to predict the...
The effects of grazing and browsing by terrestrial vertebrates are poorly understood for southern hemisphere saltmarshes, many of which are recovering from stock grazing. We investigated whether the native late-successional shrub, Tecticornia arbuscula, regenerating several years after the cessation of stock grazing, was grazed by wild herbivorous mammals to the degree of...
Elephant Marsh is among the Ramsar sites in Africa that exist in complex conditions where its ecosystem services and functions (ESFs) have changed in time and space. The past 24 years have seen it being exposed to various threats instigated by land use/land cover changes (LULCC). Assessing its vulnerabilities under LULCC scenarios is essential in understanding the trajectory of...
Wetlands, as vital components of urban ecological infrastructure, provide essential ecosystem services. However, they face increasing risks of degradation and loss due to their vulnerability, environmental changes, and human activities. Therefore, effective restoration efforts are urgently needed. This study adopts a novel approach by considering the urban–rural gradient and...
Temporary wetlands have mostly been disregarded in freshwater habitat regulation (with noticeable exceptions such as turloughs) leading to their global degradation despite their high value in terms of diverse ecosystem services. Wetland creation may be used to mitigate this habitat loss. In this review, we compiled information on the ecological features of temporary wetlands...