Ohio's Wetlands - Term Paper Example

Some of the swamps of Ohio are the Slate Run Metropark, Wilson Swamp, and, the Scofield Swamp that is well-known for its seasonal flora like “white water-cup” and “pigweed” which are scientifically known as “Ranunculus longirostris Godron” and “Amaranthus hybridus” respectively growing in winter and summer. The bogs of Ohio are swallow wetlands that are comparatively cold than other swamps and have a number of water-weeds like “floating sphagnum mat, swamp loosestrife…leatherleaf…and tamarack” (EPA, n.d.).

Ohio’s most famous bog is “Triangle Lake Bog”. The Sheldons Marsh in Ohio is a “lagoon wetland and swamp forest that has developed behind a narrow barrier beach” and it is enriched with a number of fauna such as “waterfowl and migratory songbird habitat during the spring and fall migrations” (EPA). Ohio’s vernal pools are wetlands, small in size, that are located in the “Drew woods” and “Gahanna Woods”. It is reported in a fact sheet, prepared by the “State of Ohio Environmental Protection Agency” (2007), that the wetlands of Ohio “provide a haven for rare and endangered plants, and one-third of the all endangered species depend on wetlands for survival.

Many wetlands are important fish spawning and nursery areas, as well as nesting, resting and feeding areas for waterfowl.” (p.1) The wetlands and the Marshes of Ohio have a long history and have undergone significant changes due to the hostility of men. It has affected the environment of the area while destroying the reserve of flora and fauna. Indeed majority of the wetlands of the Ohio State “were drained and filled to make way for farms, roadways, houses and other development” (ONDR, n.d.).

With the progress of industrial civilizations, a large portion of the wetlands in the state has disappeared. The Ohio Department of Natural Resource reports that “nearly