Unfortunately, wetlands were once considered wasteland and often drained or filled in to create farmland or suburbs. Agricultural expansion is responsible for 85 per cent of Canada’s wetland loss. In southern Ontario alone, more than 70 per cent of wetlands have disappeared, gobbled up by roads, farmland, housing and industry.

2. There are many different kinds of wetlands

‘Wetland’ refers to any land that is permanently or temporarily submerged in or permeated with water. By this definition, freshwater and saltwater marshes, wooded swamps, bogs, seasonally flooded forest, sloughs and peatlands are all considered wetland.

3. Canada is divided into seven wetland regions

These regions – arctic, subarctic, boreal, prairie, temperate, oceanic and mountain – describe broad climatic/vegetation zones that hew closely to Canada’s physical geography.

4. Canada has protected 13 million hectares of wetland

To date, Canada has designated 37 Ramsar sites, 17 of which are National Wildlife Areas or Migratory Bird Sanctuaries. 90 per cent of Canada’s protected wetland lies within National and Provincial parks and other federally-managed areas.

5. Wetlands are a critical part of the water cycle

Wetlands help moderate river flow, taking on excess water during floods and maintaining flow in dry years. Wetlands also recharge groundwater, and clean and remediate polluted water.

6. Animals rely on wetlands

From the tiniest zooplankton to massive mammals, wetlands are teeming with life. The water’s surface and the wetland bottom are covered with insect eggs, larvae, and nymphs, which are important parts of the food chain. Fish, amphibians, and reptiles all depend on the habitat provided by wetlands, and numerous birds and mammals make use of the water and shoreline.

7. So do humans