Wetland functions are the biophysical processes and interactions through which wetlands influence hydrological, biogeochemical, and ecological dynamics in a landscape. Key hydrological functions include water storage, flood attenuation, groundwater recharge or discharge, and modulation of surface runoff. Biogeochemical functions encompass nutrient retention and transformation (e.g., denitrification), carbon sequestration and storage, sediment trapping, and contaminant attenuation. Ecological functions involve providing habitat structure, supporting primary and secondary production, maintaining biodiversity, and sustaining food webs. These functions collectively regulate ecosystem services but are assessed scientifically in terms of process rates, fluxes, and system responses rather than societal benefits.
As global efforts intensify around restoring coastal wetlands to curb climate change, a new JCU-led study published in Reviews of Geophysics is the first to link wetland restoration and carbon cycling with groundwater dynamics, ...
Earth Sciences
Nov 20, 2025
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Beaver-created wetlands increase pollinator numbers, boosting biodiversity, according to new research by the University of Stirling.
Plants & Animals
Nov 13, 2025
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143
Wetlands are an important part of the ecological system, providing a myriad of benefits for people, wildlife, and the environment. They also serve as "nature's kidneys," filtering out pollutants from surface water. A new ...
Environment
Oct 28, 2025
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50
Wetlands act as nature's kidneys: They trap sediments, absorb excess nutrients and turn pollutants into less harmful substances. Now, the list of pollutants wetland plants can remove includes per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances ...
Environment
Oct 14, 2025
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139
Research has opened the door for coastal wetland restoration projects to potentially earn tradable biodiversity certificates.
Ecology
Sep 29, 2025
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17
A new study has revealed how tiny microbes in rivers and wetlands across China help clean up excess nitrogen pollution, offering fresh insights into the health of freshwater ecosystems and the global nitrogen cycle.
Ecology
Sep 25, 2025
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22
Wetland ecosystems play a crucial role in the global nitrogen cycle, helping to reduce nitrogen pollution. While plant diversity is known to influence ecosystem function, the exact mechanisms linking it to nitrogen retention ...
Plants & Animals
Sep 22, 2025
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33
Despite their importance to water security and their legal protection, diffuse seeps—which are primarily responsible for the formation of wetlands in Brazil's Cerrado savanna biome—continue to be systematically neglected ...
Ecology
Sep 9, 2025
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19
A more thorough way to estimate how much the world's boreal-Arctic wetlands and lakes contribute to current and future harmful methane emissions has been developed in part by University of Alberta researchers.
Earth Sciences
Aug 28, 2025
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33
Reviving floodplain wetlands slashes carbon emissions by 39% and restores critical ecosystem functions in one year—without the methane spike typically seen in restored peatlands, a new study has found.
Environment
Jul 16, 2025
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32
