Othello Park Westlands

Othello Park Westlands. Come Explore Our Beautiful Park and Natural Landscapes. , Wetlands are areas that are wet significant periods of time and provide a unique ecosystem for plant and wildlife. You will usually find them anywhere water accumulates at a rate faster than it drains away. Some are inundates year-round, while others only hold water for brief periods in the spring. Most wetlands are covered with water for less than a month during the summer., Wetlands are vital to ensuring clean water supply by acting as a filtration system for water flowing through the space before it passes into other bodies of water., History of Wetlands , Historically, wetlands were viewed as unappealing, useless, disease ridden places. As a result of this perception, many wetlands were drained, cleared and put into crop production. , In urban areas, other wetlands were filled for houses, industrial facilities, office buildings, and sanitary landfills., Early farming practices throughout Maryland often disturbed wetlands, lowering the state's total percentage of wetlands by 45-65% over time. Modern agricultural practices lend themselves to ensuring preservation of Maryland's wetland resources., The Chesapeake Bay watershed alone experienced substantial between the mid 1950's and the late 1970's with average losses of over 2,800 acres a year., Growing understanding of the importance of wetlands to our healthy water supply has led to modern agricultural practices that ensure preservation of Maryland's wetland resources., Wetlands of the Piedmont , This wetland space serves as a filter for water flowing into the Potomac River, and then into the Chesapeake Bay. In total, Frederick County contains approximately 420,000 acres of wetland providing water filtration, as well as habitat for a variety of birds, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians. The biodiversity of wetlands also offers people opportunities for recreational activities such as hunting, fishing, or birdwatching., Wetlands also provide rich habitat for animals and plants. Wetlands add to the open space aesthetic and enhance the health and vitality of the whole landscape., Plants that grow in wetlands are known as hydrophiles. Maryland has 1,655 species of wetland plants. Plants that are native to Maryland wetlands are skunk cabbage, jewelweed, arrow arum, spatterdock, reeds, broadleaf, arrowhead, cowslip, cardinal flower, blue iris, royal fern, cattails, and swamp rose., In addition to filtering water, providing animal habitats, and serving as a food source for various wildlife, some of these plants have been harvested for humans for various uses. Native Americans harvested broadleaf arrowhead, also known as wapato, for its tubers, which can be cooked or roasted much as one would cook a potato., Other useful plants used by both Native Americans and early settlers to the Middletown Valley were reeds, which could be used for thatching in early homes, as well as in the making of household goods such as baskets. Jewelweed was valued for its medicinal benefit to relieve skin irritations., Ecosystem Services Wetlands Provide , Wetlands play an essential role in maintaining, clean, healthy waterways by moderating, the overland flow of water to streams, thus reducing runoff, pollution, and erosion. Wetlands sequester pollutants, keeping them out of streams and rivers and allowing them to biodegrade when possible., By absorbing water from heavy rainfall, wetlands reduce property damages from storms and floods. Wetlands also trap water and allow it to seep slowly into the earth and recharge ground water supplies. Wetlands, therefore, allow a landscape to absorb and recycle water, reducing the likelihood and severity of droughts., How Can I Identify a Wetland? , The first step in wetlands protection is identifying areas to protect. Three attributes are used to determine if a site is a wetland: 1) the hydrology of the region is such that the area is saturated at some point during the growing season; 2) the soil is classified as hydric soils, which means water is present long enough during the growing season to create low oxygen conditions; and 3) the land supports predominately hydrophytes, which are water-loving vegetation.