What are wetlands, coral reefs and sea grass beds?

Many of us living in the Caribbean have often heard the terms wetland, coral reef and sea grass bed as they tend to thrive in tropical waters, which we in the Caribbean are surrounded by. But do we really know what these are, and how to identify them?

Wetlands

A wetland, according to Ralph W. Tiner, “is a general term used for all the different kinds of wet habitats--implying that it is land that is wet for some period of time, but not necessarily permanently wet.” They are transitional areas between terrestrial (on land) and aquatic environments, as they have characteristics of both types of environments. Wetlands are some of the most productive ecosystems, and include swamps, marshes, and bogs.

Coral reefs

Coral reefs are the most diverse and beautiful of all marine ecosystems. Because of their diversity, they are also the most productive. A coral reef is a marine ecosystem comprised of hard exoskeletal structures secreted from tiny animals called corals which secret calcium carbonate to form the structures, or from building sponges which secret silica.

There are a few different types of reefs, the three main ones being fringing, barrier and atoll.

Seagrass Beds

Seagrasses are flowering plants which grow in marine, saline environments. There ae about 58 different species of seagrasses. These marine plants are usually long and narrow, grow by rhizome extensions, and grow in large meadows also known as seagrass beds. Seagrasses photosynthesize like any autotrophic plant, so they need a good supply of sunlight, and hence, usually grow in shallow waters. These too are diverse and productive marine ecosystems.