Today we have been celebrating Groundhog’s day. Did you know it is also World Wetland Day? This is the anniversary of the Ramsar Convention, an intergovernmental treaty signed to provide a framework for international action and cooperation for the conservation of wetlands. The treaty or Convention was signed this day in 1971 in Ramsar, Iran on the Caspian Sea. The Convention’s mission is to promote conservation and wise use of all wetlands. The Convention’s members are from every part of the planet and strives to protect all types of wetlands.
This year’s focus for World Wetlands Day is “Wetlands and Tourism” and points out how responsible management of wetland can contribute to better livelihoods for people and stronger economies for nations. I love to be a “tourist” at our local wetlands. Kitsap County has an abundance of wet places.
One of my favorite places is the coastal wetland near my home. The tide flows over this marsh leaving a sparkle of salt on the pickleweed and saltgrass that grow there. My favorite freshwater marsh is at Buck Lake Nature Preserve. Cattails and rushes poke up out of the still water. A whole world of insect larvae and other swimmy creatures live in the shallow water.
We are also lucky to have quite a few peat bogs in Kitsap. One such bog is behind Gordon Elementary School surrounding Carpenter Lake. Amazing plants grow here. Our own carnivorous plant grow here. Sundew grow in the layers and layers of peat moss that pile up and create the acidic peatland. A small low growing plant with tiny, sticky hairs, the Sundew traps and digest gnats and flies that dare to come near. This is a great adaptation for living in a habitat without regular nutrients from soil. Other acidic loving plants like Labrador Tea and Bog Laurel live here, too. This area is so sensitive that it is classified as a class 1 wetland. This means that walking on the squishy waterbed like bog is prohibited. Visitors must stay on the boardwalk and look over the wetland from the viewing platform. Peat bogs are found worldwide. I just learned of the International Peat Society that publishes a journal all about the wonders of bogs and peatlands.
Wetlands are not only fun to visit they serve us well in other ways, too. Wetlands help maintain the water cycle, replenish the soil and purify our water. They provide habitat for birds, animals and plants. Some of our food is even grown and raised in wetlands. In many cultures wetlands are also considered a sacred abode of supernatural beings.
As you are waiting to learn if, groundhog, Puxatony Phil sees his shadow on February 2, think about another symbolic mammal, a muskrat, Olentangy Olga. Ohio State’s Wetland Research Park introduced Olga as a reminder of the function and values of wetlands in North America. Muscrats, a native rodent, live in and play an important role in the wetland habitat. Celebrate World Wetland Day, tour a wetland!
