Wetlands - Then and Now

This instructional guide is designed to provide instructors with lecture materials and resources that describe the various ways that wetlands are classified, their current status and a historical perspective on wetlands.  Trajectories and drivers of wetland loss and degradation in the United States are emphasized. Current wetland issues including the loss of mangrove wetlands and the impacts of the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill are also examined. Student objectives, a general lecture outline and a more detailed PowerPoint presentation with instructor notes are provided. 

Instructors who are looking for videos or additional print and web-based resources on the topics covered here should consult the resources list provided at the end of this module where these resources are summarized and cited.

Module Objectives

Upon successful completion of this module students should be able to:

• Describe the various classification schemes used to categorize wetland types
• Describe changes in the human perception of wetlands
• Describe historical trends in the loss and degradation of wetlands with an emphasis on those in the United States
• Describe the primary drivers of wetland loss
• Evaluate the loss of mangrove wetlands and the impact of oil spills as examples of short-term and long-term impacts on wetlands

Lecture Outline

Sample PowerPoint Slide with instructor notes

Return to NCSR Wetlands Ecology and Management Description

Download PDF; Download PPT (28.2 MB)

Curriculum produced by NCSR. Funding Provided by the National Science Foundation