JacksonMarshes

What is a Marsh? A Marsh is a low lying are area of that that is almost always flooded. They are home to many different species of animals because it is such a unique habitat. A marsh is often known as a swamp but the difference between the two is that marshes don't have trees and are made up of lots of grasses and weeds. There are two different kinds of marshes. There are freshwater marshes that can occur any where but most are located near other large bodies of water lie like rivers, lakes and ponds. The other kind of marshes are coastal marshes which consist of brackish water.



Animals that live in marshes
-phytoplankton -zooplankton - bluegill - alligators -Catfish -crayfish - cattail - spike rush
 * Microscopic organisms**
 * Free swimming organisms**
 * Benthic organisms**
 * plants that live in marshes**



Marshes usually are in low areas of land that are close to bodies of water like oceans, lakes and rivers. In the United States most of the marshes are on the coast in the Gulf of Mexico. There are also many marshes that are mixed in with swamps in the Everglades and along the Mississippi River. There are also marshes like the Mentor marsh that is in Ohio that is next to the great lakes. Marshes can also just be in random locations if the ground level is low enough. For example in Wisconsin the largest cattail marsh, Horicon Marsh, isn't located near a large body of water but the ground level is low enough to create a build up of water. THE VALUE OF MARSHES Marshes are great environments for animals because of the abundant amounts of plants that are producers of food. There are lots of plants because the soil in marshes is mineral rich. The plants allow consumers to come to the marshes to live and when the consumers come the carnivores follow and that is what makes marshes such a successful environment. Marshes also serve humans beacuse the provide a great place for animals to caught and they also serve as a buffer zone from hurricanes.

Endangered Species
-Panther -Sea turtles -Copperhead -Rattlesnakes



Threats to Marshes -oil spill - development of coast

Works Cited

Robins, Erica. “Plants and Animals of the Everglades.” Everglades Plan. N.p., 1 Sept. 2010. Web. 6 Sept. 2010. . Various Authors. “Fresh water marshes.” Enchanted Learning. N.p., 5 Sept. 2010. Web. 4 Sept. 2010. . Various Authors. “Wetland Plants.” Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center. N.p., n.d. Web. 5 Sept. 2010. .