With a wide array of flora and fauna species, including both aquatic and terrestrial life, wetlands are capable of being just as diverse as the tropical rainforest and coral reefs. Wetlands can be defined as an area with a presence of water, hydric soils, and hydric plants, but within that is great variation. They may be saturated or covered with water, may permanently hold water or be only seasonally wet, and can span a broad range of salinity, vegetation, soils, topography, and water chemistry.

The United States has a wide diversity of wetland ecosystems—flooded swamps, wet prairies, fens and seeps, bogs, saltwater marshes, bayous, mangrove swamps, flood plains, and more. Wetlands provide us with countless ecosystem services such as flood mitigation, water infiltration, erosion control, recreation, and wildlife habitat. Despite these valuable services, wetlands are at risk everywhere. It is estimated we have lost 54–57% of wetland ecosystems worldwide (although it might be as high as 87% for the loss of natural wetlands since the 1700s). Wetlands face a variety of threats including drainage for agricultural production or urban development, invasion by exotic species, channelization, and climate change.

Waterfowl, shorebirds, and fish may be what first comes to mind when you think about wildlife in wetland ecosystems. These areas, however, can also be critical pollinator habitat. Pollinators are facing a barrage of threats like habitat loss, pesticide exposure, and climate change, and preserving and managing existing wetlands, in addition to restoring degraded or lost areas, will provide important habitat for pollinators. Many flowering plants pollinators rely on can be found in wetland ecosystems. Some flowering plants like irises, pickerel weed, and bladderworts are able to tolerate some degree of standing water. Other native plants flourish in transitional zones and/or uplands associated with wetlands. Flowering species like mountain mints, asters, and sunflowers are genera with many species that thrive in moist conditions. To identify wetland plants for your region, you can use the wetland search function on USDA PLANTS website or explore the information found on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers National Wetland Plant List website. Focusing on native flowering plants as well as native grasses, rushes, and sedges for your region will best serve pollinators on your wetland.

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