Essay On Louisiana Wetlands

Louisiana is the home of America’s wetlands. Louisiana’s coast can be defined in multiple ways. Gay Gomez, a resident of Louisiana, describes its coast as a place of interaction among land, people, and ideas rather than “just a place on the map” (Gomez x). While some view it as a twisting line of the shore, others view it as a large triangular coastal zone (Gomez x). The foundation of the wetlands was formed by the Mississippi River Basin sediments clay, silt, and sand which were carried and accumulated by the river (Dardis 3). Approximately every thousand years, the Mississippi River changes its course creating seven major deltas in central and eastern Louisiana (Dardis 3). Louisiana holds some of the largest wetlands throughout the nation such as the Atchafalaya Basin. It is the nation's largest river swamp and it contains almost one million acres of America's most significant bottomland hardwoods, swamps, bayous, and backwater lakes (“Atchafalaya Basin” 1). Louisiana’s wetlands make up an ecosystem which covers more than 10 thousand square miles and is home to various plants, animals, and insects (Jonas 1). The types of wetlands which are located in Louisiana are swamps, levees, beaches, estuaries, barrier islands, and a variety of marshes (“Types of Wetlands” 1). While Louisiana’s wetlands are extremely valuable, unfortunately, they are at risk. Louisiana’s land has been eroding and becoming smaller and smaller causing the plants, animals, and insects which call Louisiana’s wetlands home to become endangered, threatened, and even extinct. The loss of the land is not only
While swamps are a common type of wetland, they are not the only one. A variety of wetlands such as swamps, levees, beaches, estuaries, barrier islands, and a variation of marshes can be found in Louisiana. Although these vast lands are similar, they do have factors that make them different from each