Various wetland landscapes overlayed with various wetland species.
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May is American Wetlands Month—a time to celebrate one of nature’s most productive ecosystems! 

This year we are proud to celebrate the National Wetlands Inventory (NWI) Program’s 50th Anniversary. For the past 50 years, NWI has led the collection of scientific information necessary to strategically manage America’s wetland habitats and their associated ecosystem benefits - from detailed wetland maps to information on how wetlands are changing.

These data are relied on by thousands of government and private sector users each day to better understand, manage, and conserve wetlands. NWI maps enable the streamlining of infrastructure planning, permitting, and mitigation while conserving wetlands and their many benefits. Spanning 70 years, NWI’s congressionally mandated Wetlands Status and Trends reports provide decision-makers with the information they need to meet wetland management and policy goals that support the health and prosperity of American communities.

As we celebrate wetlands this May, please join us in learning more about these vital habitats, how they are changing, and how we can work together to better conserve wetlands and their benefits.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service works to protect and restore wetlands through a wide range of programs, in this way conserving wetlands and their benefits for future generations. The National Wetlands Inventory Program provides foundational wetland data necessary for the Service and all Americans to strategically manage our wetland habitats and associated ecosystem benefits.  The Service's National Wildlife Refuge System protects high quality wetland habitat within most of its 570 refuges spread across the United States. The Coastal Program promotes cooperative coastal wetland conservation so that wildlife and local communities thrive. The Migratory Birds Program works with partners to protect, restore, and conserve bird populations and their habitats for the benefit of future generations. 

Wetlands Stories

Follow our stories to learn more about these amazing habitats and the role the Service plays in conserving them.

An aerial view of a water trail on the Okefenokee Swamp National Wildlife Refuge.
Status and Trends of Wetlands 2009-2019
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently released 2009-2019 Wetlands Status and Trends Report. Learn more about the report and its implications.
Story
A large reddish wading bird with a long curved bill prowls a wetland, with tall grasses showing behind it.
Swamped: In a Good Way!
Wetlands – areas where water covers the soil – have long had a bad reputation. Presumed to be only a source of flooding and mosquitoes, wetlands have been drained, filled, or otherwise cleared for agriculture or settlement for centuries. Wetlands are, in fact, awesome and vital for our human,...
Story
An island with tall trees in the swamp.
For Peat's Sake
The Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge is a natural gem. Yet it’s what’s hidden below the water that’s perhaps its most impressive feature. There, at densities up to 15 feet, lie millennia worth of decayed vegetation, or peat. The peat contains millions of tons of carbon that, otherwise, would...
Story
Land Management
Two white thistle flowers in the foreground with a faded green forest background.
Service Provides Endangered Species Protections for the Wright’s Marsh Thistle
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has finalized regulations under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) to protect the Wright’s marsh thistle, a plant from the sunflower family that is endemic to New Mexico. The Wright’s marsh thistle will be protected as a threatened species with an ESA Section 4(d)...
Press Release
Two piping plover chicks walking on the beach
How Great Lakes communities are helping the endangered piping plover recover
As azure waves lap at a sandy beach at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, Gaby and Goo rest for a minute looking out over the water. They have been coming here every year of their adult lives. But they aren’t summer vacationers admiring Lake Michigan. Gaby and Goo are endangered piping plovers...
Story
Climate Change
Distant view of a river winding through prairie.
An Introduction to Wetland Classification
The Wetlands Data Layer maintained by the National Wetlands Inventory are classified as described in the Wetlands and Deepwater Habitats of the United States, also known as the Cowardin system. The Cowardin Classification System is used by the Federal government to identify and classify different...
Story
Sun rises over wetland with treeline silhouette in the distance.
5 Things You Need to Know About Wetlands
May is American Wetlands Month, yet every day is a great time to celebrate these diverse habitats. Wetlands support birds, fishes, amphibians, plants, and more. Discover the importance of wetlands to plants, wildlife, and people around the globe.
Story
Land Management
Sun peeks through orange and pink clouds over calm marsh.
Watching Out for Wetlands
You may not notice wetlands as you pass them, but chances are you’ve seen them, whether driving to the beach, near a forest stream, or even on a farm in the Dakotas. There’s great variation in the places we call wetlands, and they are worth a closer look.
Story
A stream winds through a headwater wetland.
Wetlands 101
May is American Wetlands Month! But how much do you know about these historically derided resources?
Story
View of freshwater marsh.
Advanced Water Mapping and Analytics
Federal partners are working to accelerate improvements to hydrographic data through the Advanced Water Mapping and Analytics Initiative. Learn more about this initiative.
Story

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