9460

• UCREFRP Catalog Number: 9460
• Author: Wentz, W. A.
• Title: Wetlands Values and Management.
• USFW Year: 1981.
• USFW - Doc Type: Washington, D.C.
• Copyright Material: NO

Wetland Management

Wetlands are a product of the surrounding
landscape. As that landscape changes,
the wetland itself will also change. Proper
management techniques can be used to
help maintain the "naturalness" of a wet-
land even when the surrounding land is
changed. With reasonable planning and
investment, management can also
enhance or improve the productivity of a
wetland.
Some wetlands are among the most
productive habitats in the world. An aver-
age marsh will usually produce an annual
biomass that is several times as great as
that of adjacent uplands or croplands. Of
course, much of this production is not
directly utilized by man, but the high pro-
ductivity does produce a variety of things
that humans use.
Wetlands are very diverse ecosys-
tems. They support many different kinds
of plants and animals. One of the reasons
for this diversity and overall high produc-
tivity is the fluctuating and dynamic nature

of most wetlands. Some wetland types,
such as prairie potholes, go through cyclic
changes from very wet to very dry
depending on the climate. Many wetlands
have annual drying cycles with periods of
high water levels followed by short- or
long-term drying cycles. These normal
water changes allow many different kinds
of plants and animals to find living space
in wetlands. These chang';ls in water lev-
els also make wetlands management a
real challenge since you can't always plan
for changes in climatic patterns.
One of the possible goals of manage-
ment might be to simulate such cycles by
water management. By modifying water
levels and providing a divElrsity of habitat
types you can increase th'9 natural pro-
ductivity of many wetlands. Fully under-
standing the results of such management
can allow you to produce an abundance
of one or more kinds of desirable animals,
such as ducks.

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