Our magnificent wetlands
January 28, 2022
World Wetlands Day on 2 February celebrates wetlands and their incredible biodiversity.
In short, a wetland is simply where land meets water. They exist on highland and lowland, in hot places and in wet ones. They exist in the polar regions and also in the desert. After all, where there is water, life is not far behind.
These special habitats are vital for animals but also for humans, here is just a little bit of information about how important the wetlands of the South Downs National Park are…
The rivers and streams of the South Downs National Park create a range of wetland habitats that support a large number of different species. Wetland habitats found here include freshwater streams, floodplains, marshes, lakes, reedbeds, ponds, canals, wet woodland and wet grassland.
These habitats support a huge number of invertebrates, birds and also mammals such as water shrew, otter and water vole. The fish species in these rivers and streams include brown trout, bullhead, European eel and brook lamprey.
The Sussex Heritage Coast, now part of two Marine Conservation Zones, contains chalk reefs. The chalk reefs are home to a number of key species, including the short—snouted seahorse, one of only two species of seahorse found in UK waters.
As well as supporting an immense variety of wildlife, wetlands have an economic value – not only to the thousands of people who live on their edge, but also to communities living miles away.
They are important sources for food, fresh water and building materials, and also provide valuable services such as water purification, flood defense and erosion control.
The water stored beneath the chalk soil of the South Downs provides water for 1.2 million people in and around the Brighton area. Partnership projects like TAP are working with landowners and farmers to develop sustainable landscape management practices that protect the groundwater so many people rely on.