Freshwater swamp forest
Encyclopedia
Freshwater swamp forests, or flooded forests, are forest
s which are inundated with freshwater
, either permanently or seasonally. They normally occur along the lower reaches of river
s and around freshwater lake
s. Freshwater swamp forests are found in a range of climate zones, from boreal
through temperate
and subtropical to tropical.
In the Amazon Basin
of Brazil
, a seasonally flooded forest is known as a várzea, a use that now is becoming more widespread for this type of forest in the Amazon
(though generally spelled varzea when used in English
). Igapó, another word used in Brazil for flooded Amazonian forests, is also sometimes used in English. Specifically, varzea refers to whitewater
-inundated forest, and igapo to blackwater
-inundated forest.
Peat swamp forest
s are swamp forests where waterlogged soils prevent woody debris from fully decomposing, which over time creates a thick layer of acidic peat
.
Forest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...
s which are inundated with freshwater
Freshwater
Fresh water is naturally occurring water on the Earth's surface in ice sheets, ice caps, glaciers, bogs, ponds, lakes, rivers and streams, and underground as groundwater in aquifers and underground streams. Fresh water is generally characterized by having low concentrations of dissolved salts and...
, either permanently or seasonally. They normally occur along the lower reaches of river
River
A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...
s and around freshwater lake
Lake
A lake is a body of relatively still fresh or salt water of considerable size, localized in a basin, that is surrounded by land. Lakes are inland and not part of the ocean and therefore are distinct from lagoons, and are larger and deeper than ponds. Lakes can be contrasted with rivers or streams,...
s. Freshwater swamp forests are found in a range of climate zones, from boreal
Boreal ecosystem
The term boreal is usually applied to ecosystems localized in subarctic and subantarctic zones, although Austral is also used for the latter....
through temperate
Temperate
In geography, temperate or tepid latitudes of the globe lie between the tropics and the polar circles. The changes in these regions between summer and winter are generally relatively moderate, rather than extreme hot or cold...
and subtropical to tropical.
In the Amazon Basin
Amazon Basin
The Amazon Basin is the part of South America drained by the Amazon River and its tributaries that drains an area of about , or roughly 40 percent of South America. The basin is located in the countries of Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru, and Venezuela...
of Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, a seasonally flooded forest is known as a várzea, a use that now is becoming more widespread for this type of forest in the Amazon
Amazon Rainforest
The Amazon Rainforest , also known in English as Amazonia or the Amazon Jungle, is a moist broadleaf forest that covers most of the Amazon Basin of South America...
(though generally spelled varzea when used in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
). Igapó, another word used in Brazil for flooded Amazonian forests, is also sometimes used in English. Specifically, varzea refers to whitewater
Whitewater
Whitewater is formed in a rapid, when a river's gradient increases enough to disturb its laminar flow and create turbulence, i.e. form a bubbly, or aerated and unstable current; the frothy water appears white...
-inundated forest, and igapo to blackwater
Blackwater river
A blackwater river is a river with a deep, slow-moving channel that flows through forested swamps and wetlands. As vegetation decays in the water, tannins are leached out, resulting in transparent, acidic water that is darkly stained, resembling tea or coffee. Most major blackwater rivers are in...
-inundated forest.
Peat swamp forest
Peat swamp forest
Peat swamp forests are tropical moist forests where waterlogged soils prevent dead leaves and wood from fully decomposing, which over time creates a thick layer of acidic peat...
s are swamp forests where waterlogged soils prevent woody debris from fully decomposing, which over time creates a thick layer of acidic peat
Peat
Peat is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation matter or histosol. Peat forms in wetland bogs, moors, muskegs, pocosins, mires, and peat swamp forests. Peat is harvested as an important source of fuel in certain parts of the world...
.
Afrotropic
- Eastern Congolian swamp forests (Democratic Republic of the CongoDemocratic Republic of the CongoThe Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...
) - Niger Delta swamp forests (NigeriaNigeriaNigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
) - Western Congolian swamp forestsWestern Congolian swamp forestsThe Western Congolian swamp forests are an ecoregion of the Republic of the Congo and Democratic Republic of the Congo. Together with the adjacent Eastern Congolian swamp forests, it forms one of the largest continuous areas of freshwater swamp forest in the world. It is a flooded forest with a...
(Republic of the CongoRepublic of the CongoThe Republic of the Congo , sometimes known locally as Congo-Brazzaville, is a state in Central Africa. It is bordered by Gabon, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo , the Angolan exclave province of Cabinda, and the Gulf of Guinea.The region was dominated by...
, Democratic Republic of the Congo).
Australasia
- Northern New Guinea lowland rain and freshwater swamp forestsNorthern New Guinea lowland rain and freshwater swamp forestsThe Northern New Guinea lowland rain and freshwater swamp forests is a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion of northern New Guinea.-Setting:...
(IndonesiaIndonesiaIndonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, Papua New GuineaPapua New GuineaPapua New Guinea , officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands...
) - Southern New Guinea freshwater swamp forests (Indonesia, Papua New Guinea)
Indomalaya
- Borneo peat swamp forestsBorneo peat swamp forestsThe Borneo peat swamp forests ecoregion, within the Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests Biome, are on the island of Borneo, which is divided between Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia.-Location and description:...
(BruneiBruneiBrunei , officially the State of Brunei Darussalam or the Nation of Brunei, the Abode of Peace , is a sovereign state located on the north coast of the island of Borneo, in Southeast Asia...
, Indonesia, Malaysia) - Chao Phraya freshwater swamp forests (ThailandThailandThailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
) - Irrawaddy freshwater swamp forests (MyanmarMyanmarBurma , officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar , is a country in Southeast Asia. Burma is bordered by China on the northeast, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west, India on the northwest, the Bay of Bengal to the southwest, and the Andaman Sea on the south....
) - Peninsular Malaysian peat swamp forestsPeninsular Malaysian peat swamp forestsThe Peninsular Malaysian peat swamp forests ecoregion, in the Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests Biome, are of the Malay Peninsula, which includes portions of Malaysia and southern Thailand.-Setting:...
(Malaysia, Thailand) - Red River freshwater swamp forests (VietnamVietnamVietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
) - Southwest Borneo freshwater swamp forests (Indonesia)
- Sundarbans freshwater swamp forests (Bangladesh)
- Tonle Sap-Mekong peat swamp forests (Cambodia, Vietnam)
Neotropic
- Cantão igapó forestCantãoCantão is a tropical forest ecosystem located in the central Araguaia river basin, the southeastern edge of the Amazon biome, in the Brazilian state of Tocantins...
(BrazilBrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
) - Gurupa varzea (Brazil)
- Iquitos varzea (BoliviaBoliviaBolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
, Brazil, PeruPeruPeru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
) - Marajó varzea (Brazil)
- Monte Alegre varzea (Brazil)
- Orinoco Delta swamp forests (GuyanaGuyanaGuyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...
, VenezuelaVenezuelaVenezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
) - Pantanos de CentlaPantanos de CentlaThe Pantanos de Centla is a tropical moist forest ecoregion in southern Mexico, which includes seasonally flooded forests and wetlands.-Setting:The ecoregion covers an area of in the states of Tabasco and Campeche...
(MexicoMexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
) - Paramaribo swamp forests (Guyana, SurinameSurinameSuriname , officially the Republic of Suriname , is a country in northern South America. It borders French Guiana to the east, Guyana to the west, Brazil to the south, and on the north by the Atlantic Ocean. Suriname was a former colony of the British and of the Dutch, and was previously known as...
) - Purus varzea (Brazil)
See also
- Coniferous swamp forestConiferous swampConiferous swamps are forested wetlands in which the dominant trees are lowland conifers such as northern white cedar . The soil in these swamp areas are typically saturated for most of the growing season and are occasionally inundated by seasonal storms or winter snow melt.The substrate is usually...
- Peat swamp forestPeat swamp forestPeat swamp forests are tropical moist forests where waterlogged soils prevent dead leaves and wood from fully decomposing, which over time creates a thick layer of acidic peat...
- SwampSwampA swamp is a wetland with some flooding of large areas of land by shallow bodies of water. A swamp generally has a large number of hammocks, or dry-land protrusions, covered by aquatic vegetation, or vegetation that tolerates periodical inundation. The two main types of swamp are "true" or swamp...