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Wetland

A wetland is a distinct semi-aquatic ecosystem whose groundcovers are flooded or saturated in water, either permanently, for years or decades, or only seasonally for a shorter periods. Flooding results in oxygen-poor (anoxic) processes taking place, especially in the soils. Wetlands form a transitional zone between waterbodies and dry lands, and are different from other terrestrial or aquatic ecosystems due to their vegetation's roots having adapted to oxygen-poor waterlogged soils. They are considered among the most biologically diverse of all ecosystems, serving as habitats to a wide range of aquatic and semi-aquatic plants and animals, with often improved water quality by the plants removing excess nutrients such as nitrates and phosphates.

Wetlands exist on every continent. The water in wetlands is either freshwater, brackish or saltwater. The main wetland types are classified based on the dominant plants and the source of the water. For example, marshes are wetlands dominated by emergent herbaceous vegetation such as reeds, cattails and sedges. Swamps are dominated by woody vegetation such as trees and shrubs (although reed swamps in Europe are dominated by reeds, not trees). Mangals are wetlands with halophytic woody plants known as mangroves, which have evolved to tolerate salty water.

Examples of wetlands classified by the sources of water include tidal wetlands (where the water source is ocean tides), estuaries (water source is mixed tidal and river waters), floodplains (water source is excess water from overflowed rivers or lakes), and bogs and vernal ponds (water source is rainfall or meltwater). Some wetlands have multiple types of plants and are fed by multiple sources of water, making them difficult to classify. The world's largest wetlands include the Amazon River basin, the West Siberian Plain, the Pantanal in South America, and the Sundarbans in the Ganges-Brahmaputra delta.

Wetlands contribute many functions that benefit people. These are called ecosystem services and include for example water purification, stabilization of shorelines, storm protection and flood control. In addition, wetlands also process and condense carbon (in processes called carbon fixation and sequestration), and other nutrients and water pollutants. Wetlands can act as a sink or a source of carbon, depending on the specific wetland. If they function as a carbon sink, they can help with climate change mitigation. However, wetlands can also be a significant source of methane emissions due to anaerobic decomposition of soaked detritus, and some are also emitters of nitrous oxide.

Methods exist for assessing wetland functions and wetland ecological health. These methods have contributed to wetland conservation by raising public awareness of the functions that wetlands can provide. Constructed wetlands are a type of wetland that can treat wastewater and stormwater runoff. They may also play a role in water-sensitive urban design. Environmental degradation threatens wetlands more than any other ecosystem on Earth, according to the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment from 2005.

Technical definitions
A simplified definition of wetland is "an area of land that is usually saturated with water". More precisely, wetlands are areas where "water covers the soil, or is present either at or near the surface of the soil all year or for varying periods of time during the year, including during the growing season". A patch of land that develops pools of water after a rain storm would not necessarily be considered a "wetland", even though the land is wet. Wetlands have unique characteristics: they are generally distinguished from other water bodies or landforms based on their water level and on the types of plants that live within them. Specifically, wetlands are characterized as having a water table that stands at or near the land surface for a long enough period each year to support aquatic plants.

A more concise definition is a community composed of hydric soil and hydrophytes.

Wetlands have also been described as ecotones, providing a transition between dry land and water bodies. Wetlands exist "...at the interface between truly terrestrial ecosystems and aquatic systems, making them inherently different from each other, yet highly dependent on both."

In environmental decision-making, there are subsets of definitions that are agreed upon to make regulatory and policy decisions.

Under the Ramsar international wetland conservation treaty, wetlands are defined as follows: An ecological definition of a wetland is "an ecosystem that arises when inundation by water produces soils dominated by anaerobic and aerobic processes, which, in turn, forces the biota, particularly rooted plants, to adapt to flooding".
 * Article 1.1: "...wetlands are areas of marsh, fen, peatland or water, whether natural or artificial, permanent or temporary, with water that is static or flowing, fresh, brackish or salt, including areas of marine water the depth of which at low tide does not exceed six meters."
 * Article 2.1: "[Wetlands] may incorporate riparian and coastal zones adjacent to the wetlands, and islands or bodies of marine water deeper than six meters at low tide lying within the wetlands."

Sometimes a precise legal definition of a wetland is required. The definition used for regulation by the United States government is: 'The term "wetlands" means those areas that are inundated or saturated by surface or ground water at a frequency and duration to support, and that under normal circumstances do support, a prevalence of vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions. Wetlands generally included swamps, marshes, bogs, and similar areas.'

For each of these definitions and others, regardless of the purpose, hydrology is emphasized (shallow waters, water-logged soils). The soil characteristics and the plants and animals controlled by the wetland hydrology are often additional components of the definitions.

Types

Wetlands can be tidal (inundated by tides) or non-tidal. The water in wetlands is either freshwater, brackish, saline, or alkaline. There are four main kinds of wetlands – marsh, swamp, bog, and fen (bogs and fens being types of peatlands or mires). Some experts also recognize wet meadows and aquatic ecosystems as additional wetland types. Sub-types include mangrove forests, carrs, pocosins, floodplains, peatlands, vernal pools, sinks, and many others.

The following three groups are used within Australia to classify wetland by type: Marine and coastal zone wetlands, inland wetlands and human-made wetlands. In the US, the best known classifications are the Cowardin classification system and the hydrogeomorphic (HGM) classification system. The Cowardin system includes five main types of wetlands: marine (ocean-associated), estuarine (mixed ocean- and river-associated), riverine (within river channels), lacustrine (lake-associated) and palustrine (inland nontidal habitats).

Peatlands
Peatlands are a unique kind of wetland where lush plant growth and slow decay of dead plants (under anoxic conditions) results in organic peat accumulating; bogs, fens, and mires are different names for peatlands.

Wetland names
Variations of names for wetland systems:

 * Bayou
 * Flooded grasslands and savannas
 * Marsh
 * Brackish marsh
 * Freshwater marsh
 * Mire
 * Fen
 * Bog
 * Riparian zone
 * Swamp
 * Freshwater swamp forest
 * Coniferous swamp
 * Peat swamp forest
 * Mangrove swamp
 * Vernal pool

Some wetlands have localized names unique to a region such as the prairie potholes of North America's northern plain, pocosins, Carolina bays and baygalls of the Southeastern US, mallines of Argentina, Mediterranean seasonal ponds of Europe and California, turloughs of Ireland, billabongs of Australia, among many others.

By temperature zone
Wetlands are found throughout the world in different climates. Temperatures vary greatly depending on the location of the wetland. Many of the world's wetlands are in the temperate zones, midway between the North or South Poles and the equator. In these zones, summers are warm and winters are cold, but temperatures are not extreme. In subtropical zone wetlands, such as along the Gulf of Mexico, average temperatures might be 11 C. Wetlands in the tropics are subjected to much higher temperatures for a large portion of the year. Temperatures for wetlands on the Arabian Peninsula can exceed 50 C and these habitats would therefore be subject to rapid evaporation. In northeastern Siberia, which has a polar climate, wetland temperatures can be as low as −50 C. Peatlands in arctic and subarctic regions insulate the permafrost, thus delaying or preventing its thawing during summer, as well as inducing its formation.

By precipitation amount
The amount of precipitation a wetland receives varies widely according to its area. Wetlands in Wales, Scotland, and western Ireland typically receive about 1500 mm per year. In some places in Southeast Asia, where heavy rains occur, they can receive up to 10000 mm. In some drier regions, wetlands exist where as little as 180 mm precipitation occurs each year.

Temporal variation: Surface flow may occur in some segments, with subsurface flow in other segments.
 * Perennial systems
 * Seasonal systems
 * Episodic (periodic or intermittent) systems
 * Ephemeral (short-lived) systems

Processes
Wetlands vary widely due to local and regional differences in topography, hydrology, vegetation, and other factors, including human involvement. Other important factors include fertility, natural disturbance, competition, herbivory, burial and salinity. When peat accumulates, bogs and fens arise.

Hydrology
The most important factor producing wetlands is hydrology, or flooding. The duration of flooding or prolonged soil saturation by groundwater determines whether the resulting wetland has aquatic, marsh or swamp vegetation. Other important factors include soil fertility, natural disturbance, competition, herbivory, burial, and salinity. When peat from dead plants accumulates, bogs and fens develop.

Wetland hydrology is associated with the spatial and temporal dispersion, flow, and physio-chemical attributes of surface and ground waters. Sources of hydrological flows into wetlands are predominantly precipitation, surface water (saltwater or freshwater), and groundwater. Water flows out of wetlands by evapotranspiration, surface flows and tides, and subsurface water outflow. Hydrodynamics (the movement of water through and from a wetland) affects hydro-periods (temporal fluctuations in water levels) by controlling the water balance and water storage within a wetland.

Landscape characteristics control wetland hydrology and water chemistry. The O2 and CO2 concentrations of water depend upon temperature, atmospheric pressure and mixing with the air (from winds or water flows). Water chemistry within wetlands is determined by the pH, salinity, nutrients, conductivity, soil composition, hardness, and the sources of water. Water chemistry varies across landscapes and climatic regions. Wetlands are generally minerotrophic (waters contain dissolved materials from soils) with the exception of ombrotrophic bogs that are fed only by water from precipitation.

Because bogs receive most of their water from precipitation and humidity from the atmosphere, their water usually has low mineral ionic composition. In contrast, wetlands fed by groundwater or tides have a higher concentration of dissolved nutrients and minerals.

Fen peatlands receive water both from precipitation and ground water in varying amounts so their water chemistry ranges from acidic with low levels of dissolved minerals to alkaline with high accumulation of calcium and magnesium.

Role of salinity
Salinity has a strong influence on wetland water chemistry, particularly in coastal wetlands and in arid and semiarid regions with large precipitation deficits. Natural salinity is regulated by interactions between ground and surface water, which may be influenced by human activity.

Soil
Carbon is the major nutrient cycled within wetlands. Most nutrients, such as sulfur, phosphorus, carbon, and nitrogen are found within the soil of wetlands. Anaerobic and aerobic respiration in the soil influences the nutrient cycling of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen, and the solubility of phosphorus thus contributing to the chemical variations in its water. Wetlands with low pH and saline conductivity may reflect the presence of acid sulfates and wetlands with average salinity levels can be heavily influenced by calcium or magnesium. Biogeochemical processes in wetlands are determined by soils with low redox potential. Wetland soils are identified by redoxymorphic mottles (often from iron oxide rust) or low chroma intensity, as determined by the Munsell Color System.

Water chemistry
Due to the low dissolved oxygen (DO) content, and relatively low nutrient balance of wetland environments, most wetlands are very susceptible to alterations in water chemistry. Key factors that are assessed to determine water quality include:
 * Major anion analysis: (HCO3−,Cl−,NO3−,SO42-)
 * Major cation analysis (Ca2+, Mg2+, Na+, K+)
 * pH
 * Conductivity – conductivity increases with more dissolved ions in the water
 * Turbidity
 * Dissolved oxygen
 * Temperature
 * Total dissolved solids
 * Gas emissions (carbon dioxide and methane; CO2 and CH4)

These chemical factors can be used to quantify wetland disturbances, and often provide information as to whether a wetland is fed by precipitation, surface water or groundwater, due to the different ion characteristics of the different water sources. Wetlands are adept at impacting the water chemistry of streams or water bodies that interact with them, and can process ions that result from water pollution such as acid mine drainage or urban runoff.,

Biota
The biota of a wetland system includes its plants (flora) and animals (fauna) and microbes (bacteria, fungi). The most important factor affecting the biota is the hydroperiod, or the duration of flooding. Other important factors include fertility and salinity of the water or soils. The chemistry of water flowing into wetlands depends on the source of water, the geological material that it flows through and the nutrients discharged from organic matter in the soils and plants at higher elevations. Biota may vary within a wetland seasonally or in response to flood regimes.

Flora

There are four main groups of hydrophytes that are found in wetland systems throughout the world.

Submerged wetland vegetation can grow in saline and fresh-water conditions. Some species have underwater flowers, while others have long stems to allow the flowers to reach the surface. Submerged species provide a food source for native fauna, habitat for invertebrates, and also possess filtration capabilities. Examples include seagrasses and eelgrass.

Floating water plants or floating vegetation are usually small, like those in the Lemnoideae subfamily (duckweeds). Emergent vegetation like the cattails (Typha spp.), sedges (Carex spp.) and arrow arum (Peltandra virginica) rise above the surface of the water.

When trees and shrubs comprise much of the plant cover in saturated soils, those areas in most cases are called swamps. The upland boundary of swamps is determined partly by water levels. This can be affected by dams Some swamps can be dominated by a single species, such as silver maple swamps around the Great Lakes. Others, like those of the Amazon basin, have large numbers of different tree species. Other examples include cypress (Taxodium) and mangrove swamps.

Fauna
Many species of fish are highly dependent on wetland ecosystems. Seventy-five percent of the United States' commercial fish and shellfish stocks depend solely on estuaries to survive. Tropical fish species need mangroves for critical hatchery and nursery grounds and the coral reef system for food.

Amphibians such as frogs and salamanders need both terrestrial and aquatic habitats in which to reproduce and feed. Because amphibians often inhabit depressional wetlands like prairie potholes and Carolina bays, the connectivity among these isolated wetlands is an important control of regional populations. While tadpoles feed on algae, adult frogs forage on insects. Frogs are sometimes used as an indicator of ecosystem health because their thin skin permits absorption of nutrients and toxins from the surrounding environment resulting in increased extinction rates in unfavorable and polluted environmental conditions.

Reptiles such as snakes, lizards, turtles, alligators and crocodiles are common in wetlands of some regions. In freshwater wetlands of the Southeastern US, alligators are common and a freshwater species of crocodile occurs in South Florida. The Florida Everglades is the only place in the world where both crocodiles and alligators coexist. The saltwater crocodile inhabits estuaries and mangroves and can be seen along the Eastern coastline of Australia. Snapping turtles are one of the many kinds of turtles found in wetlands.

Birds, particularly waterfowl and wading birds, use wetlands extensively.

Mammals of wetlands include numerous small and medium-sized species such as voles, bats, muskrats and platypus in addition to large herbivorous and apex predator species such as the beaver, coypu, swamp rabbit, Florida panther, and moose. Wetlands attract many mammals due to abundant seeds, berries, and other vegetation as food for herbivores, as well as abundant populations of invertebrates, small reptiles and amphibians as prey for predators.

Invertebrates of wetlands include aquatic insects (such as dragonflies, aquatic bugs and beetles, midges, mosquitoes), crustaceans (such as crabs, crayfish, shrimps, microcrustaceans), mollusks (such as clams, mussels, snails), and worms (such as polychaetes, oligochaetes, leeches), among others. Invertebrates comprise more than half of the known animal species in wetlands, and are considered the primary food web link between plants and higher animals (such as fish and birds). The low oxygen conditions in wetland water and their frequent flooding and drying (daily in tidal wetlands, seasonally in temporary ponds and floodplains) prevent many invertebrates from inhabiting wetlands, and thus the invertebrate fauna of wetlands is often less diverse than some other kinds of habitat (such as streams, coral reefs, and forests). Some wetland invertebrates thrive in habitats that lack predatory fish. Many insects only inhabit wetlands as aquatic immatures (nymphs, larvae) and the flying adults inhabit upland habitats, returning to the wetlands to lay eggs. For instance, a common hoverfly, Syritta pipiens, inhabits wetlands as larvae (maggots), living in wet, rotting organic matter; these insects then visit terrestrial flowers as adult flies.

Algae
Algae are diverse plant-like organisms that can vary in size, color, and shape. Algae occur naturally in habitats such as inland lakes, inter-tidal zones, and damp soil and provide a food source for many animals, including some invertebrates, fish, turtles, and frogs. There are several groups of algae:
 * Phytoplankton are microscopic, free-floating algae. These algae are so tiny that on average, 50 of these lined up end-to-end would only measure one millimeter. Phytoplankton are the basis of the food web in many water bodies being responsible for much of the primary production using photosynthesis to fix carbon. Filamentous algae are long strands of algal cells that can form floating mats. Periphyton (or epiphyton) are algae that grow as surface biofilms on plants, wood, and other substrates.
 * Chara and Nitella algae are upright algae that look like a submerged plants with roots.

Disturbances and human impacts
Wetlands, the functions and services they provide as well as their flora and fauna, can be affected by several types of disturbances. The disturbances (sometimes termed stressors or alterations) can be human-associated or natural, direct or indirect, reversible or not, and isolated or cumulative. Disturbances exceed the levels or patterns normally found within wetlands of a particular class in a particular region. Predominant disturbances of wetlands include:

 * Enrichment/eutrophication
 * Organic loading and reduced dissolved oxygen
 * Contaminant toxicity
 * Acidification
 * Salinization
 * Sedimentation
 * Altered solar input (turbidity/shade)
 * Vegetation removal
 * Thermal alteration
 * Drying/aridification
 * Inundation/flooding
 * Habitat fragmentation
 * Other human impacts

Disturbances can be further categorized as follows:
 * Minor disturbance: Stress that maintains ecosystem integrity.
 * Moderate disturbance: Ecosystem integrity is damaged but can recover in time without assistance.
 * Impairment or severe disturbance: Human intervention may be needed in order for ecosystem to recover.

Just a few of the many sources of these disturbances include: They can be manifested partly as: Biodiversity loss occurs in wetland systems through land use changes, habitat destruction, pollution, exploitation of resources, and invasive species. Vulnerable, threatened, and endangered species include 17% of waterfowl, 38% of fresh-water dependent mammals, 33% of freshwater fish, 26% of freshwater amphibians, 72% of freshwater turtles, 86% of marine turtles, 43% of crocodilians and 27% of coral reef-building species. Introduced aquatic plants in different wetland systems can have large impacts. The introduction of water hyacinth, a native plant of South America into Lake Victoria in East Africa as well as duckweed into non-native areas of Queensland, Australia, have overtaken entire wetland systems overwhelming the habitats and reducing the diversity of native plants and animals. This is largely due to the phenomenal growth rates of the plants and their ability to float and grow across the entire surface of the water.
 * Drainage
 * Development
 * Over-grazing
 * Mining
 * Unsustainable water use
 * Nutrient pollution (anthropogenic nitrogen inputs to aquatic systems have drastically effected the dissolved nitrogen content of wetlands, introducing higher nutrient availability which leads to eutrophication. )
 * Water pollution
 * Water scarcity
 * Impacts to endangered species
 * Disruption of wildlife breeding grounds
 * Imbalance in sediment load and nutrient filtration

Conversion to dry land
To increase economic productivity, wetlands are often converted into dry land with dykes and drains and used for agricultural purposes. The construction of dykes, and dams, has negative consequences for individual wetlands and entire watersheds. Their proximity to lakes and rivers means that they are often developed for human settlement. Once settlements are constructed and protected by dykes, the settlements then become vulnerable to land subsidence and ever increasing risk of flooding. The Mississippi River Delta around New Orleans, Louisiana is a well-known example; the Danube Delta in Europe is another.

Ecosystem services
Depending on a wetland's geographic and topographic location, the functions it performs can support multiple ecosystem services, values, or benefits. United Nations Millennium Ecosystem Assessment and Ramsar Convention described wetlands as a whole to be of biosphere significance and societal importance in the following areas:
 * Water storage (flood control)
 * Groundwater replenishment
 * Shoreline stabilization and storm protection
 * Water purification
 * Wastewater treatment (in constructed wetlands)
 * Reservoirs of biodiversity
 * Pollination
 * Wetland products
 * Cultural values
 * Recreation and tourism
 * Climate change mitigation and adaptation

According to the Ramsar Convention:

"The economic worth of the ecosystem services provided to society by intact, naturally functioning wetlands is frequently much greater than the perceived benefits of converting them to 'more valuable' intensive land use – particularly as the profits from unsustainable use often go to relatively few individuals or corporations, rather than being shared by society as a whole."

Unless otherwise cited, ecosystem services information is based on the following series of references.

To replace these wetland ecosystem services, enormous amounts of money would need to be spent on water purification plants, dams, levees, and other hard infrastructure, and many of the services are impossible to replace.

Storage reservoirs and flood protection
Floodplains and closed-depression wetlands can provide the functions of storage reservoirs and flood protection.

The wetland system of floodplains is formed from major rivers downstream from their headwaters. "The floodplains of major rivers act as natural storage reservoirs, enabling excess water to spread out over a wide area, which reduces its depth and speed. Wetlands close to the headwaters of streams and rivers can slow down rainwater runoff and spring snowmelt so that it does not run straight off the land into water courses. This can help prevent sudden, damaging floods downstream." Notable river systems that produce wide floodplains include the Nile River, the Niger river inland delta, the Zambezi River flood plain, the Okavango River inland delta, the Kafue River flood plain, the Lake Bangweulu flood plain (Africa), Mississippi River (US), Amazon River (South America), Yangtze River (China), Danube River (Central Europe) and Murray-Darling River (Australia).

Drainage of floodplains or development activities that narrow floodplain corridors (such as the construction of levees) reduces the ability of coupled river-floodplain systems to control flood damage. That is because modified and less expansive systems must still manage the same amount of precipitation, causing flood peaks to be higher or deeper and floodwaters to travel faster.

Water management engineering developments in the past century have degraded floodplain wetlands through the construction of artificial embankments such as dykes, bunds, levees, weirs, barrages and dams. All concentrate water into a main channel and waters that historically spread slowly over a large, shallow area are concentrated. Loss of wetland floodplains results in more severe and damaging flooding. Catastrophic human impact in the Mississippi River floodplains was seen in death of several hundred individuals during a levee breach in New Orleans caused by Hurricane Katrina. Human-made embankments along the Yangtze River floodplains have caused the main channel of the river to become prone to more frequent and damaging flooding. Some of these events include the loss of riparian vegetation, a 30% loss of the vegetation cover throughout the river's basin, a doubling of the percentage of the land affected by soil erosion, and a reduction in reservoir capacity through siltation build-up in floodplain lakes.

Groundwater replenishment
Groundwater replenishment can be achieved for example by marsh, swamp, and subterranean karst and cave hydrological systems.

The surface water visibly seen in wetlands only represents a portion of the overall water cycle, which also includes atmospheric water (precipitation) and groundwater. Many wetlands are directly linked to groundwater and they can be a crucial regulator of both the quantity and quality of water found below the ground. Wetlands that have permeable substrates like limestone or occur in areas with highly variable and fluctuating water tables have especially important roles in groundwater replenishment or water recharge. Substrates that are porous allow water to filter down through the soil and underlying rock into aquifers which are the source of much of the world's drinking water. Wetlands can also act as recharge areas when the surrounding water table is low and as a discharge zone when it is high. Karst (cave) systems are a unique example of this system and can be a connection of underground rivers influenced by rain and other forms of precipitation to the surface.

Shoreline stabilization and storm protection
Mangroves, coral reefs, salt marsh can help with shoreline stabilization and storm protection.

Tidal and inter-tidal wetland systems protect and stabilize coastal zones. Coral reefs provide a protective barrier to coastal shoreline. Mangroves stabilize the coastal zone from the interior and will migrate with the shoreline to remain adjacent to the boundary of the water. The main conservation benefit these systems have against storms and storm surges is the ability to reduce the speed and height of waves and floodwaters.

The number of people who live and work near the coast is expected to grow immensely over the next fifty years. From an estimated 200 million people that currently live in low-lying coastal regions, the development of urban coastal centers is projected to increase the population by fivefold within 50 years. The United Kingdom has begun the concept of managed coastal realignment. This management technique provides shoreline protection through restoration of natural wetlands rather than through applied engineering. In East Asia, reclamation of coastal wetlands has resulted in widespread transformation of the coastal zone, and up to 65% of coastal wetlands have been destroyed by coastal development. One analysis using the impact of hurricanes versus storm protection provided naturally by wetlands projected the value of this service at US$33,000/hectare/year.

Water purification
Water purification can be provided by floodplains, closed-depression wetlands, mudflat, freshwater marsh, salt marsh, mangroves.

Nutrient retention: Wetlands cycle both sediments and nutrients, sometimes serving as buffers between terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. A natural function of wetland vegetation is the up-take, storage, and (for nitrate) the removal of nutrients found in runoff water from the surrounding landscapes. In many wetlands, microbial processes convert soluble nutrients to a gaseous form, such as denitrification of nitrate, which then moves the nitrate to the atmosphere mostly as harmless nitrogen gas.

Sediment and heavy metal traps: Precipitation and surface runoff induces soil erosion, transporting sediment in suspension into and through waterways. These sediments move towards larger and more sizable waterways through a natural process that moves water towards oceans. All types of sediments whether composed of clay, silt, sand or gravel and rock can be carried into wetland systems through erosion. Wetland vegetation acts as a physical barrier to slow water flow and then trap sediment for both short or long periods of time. Suspended sediment can contain heavy metals that are also retained when wetlands trap the sediment. In some cases, certain metals are taken up through wetland plant stems, roots, and leaves. For example, many floating plant species such as water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes), duckweed (Lemna) and water fern (Azolla) store iron and copper found in wastewater; these plants also extract pathogens. Fast-growing plants rooted in the soils of wetlands such as cattail (Typha) and reed (Phragmites) also contribute to heavy metal up-take. Animals such as the oyster can filter more than 200 L of water per day while grazing for food, removing nutrients, suspended sediments, and chemical contaminants in the process. On the other hand, some types of wetlands facilitate the mobilization and bioavailability of mercury (another heavy metal), which in its methyl mercury form increases the risk of bioaccumulation in fish important to animal food webs and harvested for human consumption.

Capacity: The ability of wetland systems to store or remove nutrients and trap sediment and associated metals is highly efficient and effective but each system has a threshold. An overabundance of nutrient input from fertilizer run-off, sewage effluent, or non-point pollution will cause eutrophication. Upstream erosion from deforestation can overwhelm wetlands making them shrink in size and cause dramatic biodiversity loss through excessive sedimentation load. Retaining high levels of metals in sediments is problematic if the sediments become resuspended or oxygen and pH levels change at a future time. The capacity of wetland vegetation to store heavy metals depends on the particular metal, oxygen and pH status of wetland sediments and overlying water, water flow rate (detention time), wetland size, season, climate, type of plant, and other factors.

The capacity of a wetland to store sediment, nutrients, and metals can be diminished if sediments are compacted such as by vehicles or heavy equipment, or are regularly tilled. Unnatural changes in water levels and water sources also can affect the water purification function. If water purification functions are impaired, excessive loads of nutrients enter waterways and cause eutrophication. This is of particular concern in temperate coastal systems. The main sources of coastal eutrophication are industrially made nitrogen, which is used as fertilizer in agricultural practices, as well as septic waste runoff. Nitrogen is the limiting nutrient for photosynthetic processes in saline systems, however in excess, it can lead to an overproduction of organic matter that then leads to hypoxic and anoxic zones within the water column. Without oxygen, other organisms cannot survive, including economically important finfish and shellfish species.

Wastewater treatment
Constructed wetlands are built for wastewater treatment.An example of how a natural wetland is used to provide some degree of sewage treatment is the East Kolkata Wetlands in Kolkata, India. The wetlands cover 125 km2, and are used to treat Kolkata's sewage. The nutrients contained in the wastewater sustain fish farms and agriculture.

Reservoirs of biodiversity
Wetland systems' rich biodiversity has become a focal point catalysed by the Ramsar Convention and World Wildlife Fund. The impact of maintaining biodiversity is seen at the local level through job creation, sustainability, and community productivity. A good example is the Lower Mekong basin which runs through Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam, supporting over 55 million people.

Biodiverse river basins: The Amazon holds more than 3,000 species of freshwater fish species within the boundaries of its basin. Fishes consuming fallen fruit, e.g., the large-bodied characid, Colossoma macropomum, enter the Amazonian floodplains during annual floods egesting viable seeds thus acting as an important agent of dispersal. A key species which is overfished, the Piramutaba catfish, Brachyplatystoma vaillantii, migrates more than 3300 km from its nursery grounds near the mouth of the Amazon River to its spawning grounds in Andean tributaries, 400 m above sea level, distributing plant seeds along the route.

Productive intertidal zones: Intertidal mudflats have a level of productivity similar to that of some wetlands even while possessing a low number of species. The abundant invertebrates found within the mud are a food source for migratory waterfowl.

Critical life-stage habitat: Mudflats, saltmarshes, mangroves, and seagrass beds have high levels of both species richness and productivity, and are home to important nursery areas for many commercial fish stocks.

Genetic diversity: Populations of many species are confined geographically to only one or a few wetland systems, often due to the long period of time that the wetlands have been physically isolated from other aquatic sources. For example, the number of endemic species in the Selenga River Delta of Lake Baikal in Russia classifies it as a hotspot for biodiversity and one of the most biodiverse wetlands in the entire world.

Wetland products

Wetland productivity is linked to the climate, wetland type, and nutrient availability. Low water and occasional drying of the wetland bottom during droughts (dry marsh phase) stimulates plant recruitment from a diverse seed bank and increases productivity by mobilizing nutrients. In contrast, high water during deluges (lake marsh phase) causes turnover in plant populations and increases open water, but lowers overall productivity. From open water to complete vegetation cover, annual net primary productivity may vary 20-fold. The grasses of fertile floodplains such as the Nile can be highly productive, especially plants such as Arundo donax (giant reed), Cyperus papyrus (papyrus), Phragmites (reed) and Typha (cattail).

Wetlands naturally produce an array of vegetation and other ecological products that can be harvested for personal and commercial use. Many fishes have all or part of their life-cycle occurring within a wetland system. Fresh and saltwater fish are the main source of protein for about one billion people and comprise 15% of an additional 3.5 billion people's protein intake. Another food staple found in wetland systems is rice, a popular grain that is consumed at the rate of one fifth of the total global calorie count. In Bangladesh, Cambodia and Vietnam, where rice paddies are predominant on the landscape, rice consumption reach 70%. Some native wetland plants in the Caribbean and Australia are harvested sustainably for medicinal compounds; these include the red mangrove (Rhizophora mangle) which possesses antibacterial, wound-healing, anti-ulcer effects, and antioxidant properties.

The nipa palm of Asia (sugar, vinegar, alcohol, and fodder) and honey collection from mangroves contribute to human diets and people's income. Coastal Thailand villages earn the key portion of their income from sugar production while Cuba relocates thousands of beehives each year to track the seasonal flowering of the mangrove Avicennia. Other mangrove-derived products include fuelwood, salt (produced by evaporating seawater), animal fodder, traditional medicines (e.g. from mangrove bark), fibers for textiles and dyes and tannins.

Over-fishing is a major problem for sustainable use of wetlands. Concerns are developing over certain aspects of farm fishing, which uses natural wetlands and waterways to harvest fish for human consumption. Aquaculture is continuing to develop rapidly throughout the Asia-Pacific region especially in China where 90% of the total number of aquaculture farms occur, contributing 80% of global value. Some aquaculture has eliminated massive areas of wetland through practices such as the shrimp farming industry's destruction of mangroves. Even though the damaging impact of large-scale shrimp farming on the coastal ecosystem in many Asian countries has been widely recognized for quite some time now, it has proved difficult to mitigate since other employment avenues for people are lacking. Also burgeoning demand for shrimp globally has provided a large and ready market.

Additional services and uses of wetlands
Some types of wetlands can serve as fire breaks that help slow the spread of minor wildfires. Larger wetland systems can influence local precipitation patterns. Some boreal wetland systems in catchment headwaters may help extend the period of flow and maintain water temperature in connected downstream waters. Pollination services are supported by many wetlands which may provide the only suitable habitat for pollinating insects, birds, and mammals in highly developed areas.

Conservation
Wetlands have historically subjected to large draining efforts for development (real estate or agriculture), and flooding to create recreational lakes or generate hydropower. Some of the world's most important agricultural areas were wetlands that have been converted to farmland. Since the 1970s, more focus has been put on preserving wetlands for their natural functions. Since 1900, 65–70% of the world's wetlands have been lost. In order to maintain wetlands and sustain their functions, alterations and disturbances that are outside the normal range of variation should be minimized.

Balancing wetland conservation with the needs of people
Wetlands are vital ecosystems that enhance the livelihoods for the millions of people who live in and around them. The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) called for different sectors to join forces to secure wetland environments in the context of sustainable development and improving human wellbeing. Studies have shown that it is possible to conserve wetlands while improving the livelihoods of people living among them. Case studies conducted in Malawi and Zambia looked at how dambos – wet, grassy valleys or depressions where water seeps to the surface – can be farmed sustainably. Project outcomes included a high yield of crops, development of sustainable farming techniques, and water management strategies that generate enough water for irrigation.

Ramsar Convention
The Convention on Wetlands of International Importance, especially as Waterfowl Habitat, or Ramsar Convention, is an international treaty designed to address global concerns regarding wetland loss and degradation. The primary purposes of the treaty are to list wetlands of international importance and to promote their wise use, with the ultimate goal of preserving the world's wetlands. Methods include restricting access to some wetland areas, as well as educating the public to combat the misconception that wetlands are wastelands. The Convention works closely with five International Organisation Partners (IOPs). These are: Birdlife International, the IUCN, the International Water Management Institute, Wetlands International and the World Wide Fund for Nature. The partners provide technical expertise, help conduct or facilitate field studies and provide financial support. The IOPs also participate regularly as observers in all meetings of the Conference of the Parties and the Standing Committee and as full members of the Scientific and Technical Review Panel.

Restoration
Restoration and restoration ecologists intend to return wetlands to their natural trajectory by aiding directly with the natural processes of the ecosystem. These direct methods vary with respect to the degree of physical manipulation of the natural environment and each are associated with different levels of restoration. Restoration is needed after disturbance or perturbation of a wetland. Disturbances include exogenous factors such as flooding or drought. Other external damage may be anthropogenic disturbance caused by clear-cut harvesting of trees, oil and gas extraction, poorly defined infrastructure installation, over grazing of livestock, ill-considered recreational activities, alteration of wetlands including dredging, draining, and filling, and other negative human impacts. Disturbance puts different levels of stress on an environment depending on the type and duration of disturbance. There is no one way to restore a wetland and the level of restoration required will be based on the level of disturbance although, each method of restoration does require preparation and administration.

Levels of restoration
Factors influencing selected approach may include budget, time scale limitations, project goals, level of disturbance, landscape and ecological constraints, political and administrative agendas and socioeconomic priorities.

Prescribed natural or assisted regeneration
For this strategy, there is no biophysical manipulation and the ecosystem is left to recover based on the process of succession alone. The focus is to eliminate and prevent further disturbance from occurring and for this type of restoration requires prior research to understand the probability that the wetland will recover naturally. This is likely to be the first method of approach since it is the least intrusive and least expensive although some biophysical non-intrusive manipulation may be required to enhance the rate of succession to an acceptable level. Example methods include prescribed burns to small areas, promotion of site specific soil microbiota and plant growth using nucleation planting whereby plants radiate from an initial planting site, and promotion of niche diversity or increasing the range of niches to promote use by a variety of different species. These methods can make it easier for the natural species to flourish by removing environmental impediments and can speed up the process of succession.

Partial reconstruction
For this strategy, a mixture of natural regeneration and manipulated environmental control is used. This may require some engineering, and more intensive biophysical manipulations including ripping of subsoil, agrichemical applications of herbicides or insecticides, laying of mulch, mechanical seed dispersal, and tree planting on a large scale. In these circumstances the wetland is impaired and without human assistance it would not recover within an acceptable period of time as determined by ecologists. Methods of restoration used will have to be determined on a site by site basis as each location will require a different approach based on levels of disturbance and the local ecosystem dynamics.

Complete reconstruction
This most expensive and intrusive method of reconstruction requires engineering and ground up reconstruction. Because there is a redesign of the entire ecosystem it is important that the natural trajectory of the ecosystem be considered and that the plant species promoted will eventually return the ecosystem towards its natural trajectory.

In many cases constructed wetlands are often designed to treat stormwater/wastewater runoff. They can be used in developments as part of water-sensitive urban design systems and have benefits such as flood mitigation, removing pollutants, carbon sequestration, providing habitat for wildlife and biodiversity in often highly urbanised and fragmented landscapes.

Traditional knowledge
Traditional ecological knowledge or local ecological knowledge is a detailed knowledge of the interactions between the environment that has been accumulated by generations of indigenous or local peoples who have shared a direct relationship with the environment. This includes expertise on flora, fauna, and natural phenomena, as well as the development of technologies needed for survival such as fishing, agriculture, and forestry. The ideas from traditional ecological knowledge can be applied as a holistic approach to the restoration of wetlands. These ideas focus more on responding to the observations detected from the environment considering that each part of a wetland ecosystem is interconnected. Applying these practices on specific locations of wetlands increase productivity, biodiversity, and improve its resilience. These practices include monitoring wetland resources, planting propagules, and addition of key species in order to create a self-sustaining wetland ecosystem. A community of wetland plant harvesters in the Pátzcuaro wetlands used local ecological knowledge to control invasive species and protect native species present in this wetland.

Greenhouse gas emissions
In Southeast Asia, peat swamp forests and soils are being drained, burnt, mined, and overgrazed, contributing to climate change. As a result of peat drainage, the organic carbon that had built up over thousands of years and is normally under water is suddenly exposed to the air. The peat decomposes and is converted into carbon dioxide (CO2), which is then released into the atmosphere. Peat fires cause the same process to occur rapidly and in addition create enormous clouds of smoke that cross international borders, which now happens almost yearly in Southeast Asia. While peatlands constitute only 3% of the world's land area, their degradation produces 7% of all CO2 emissions.

Climate change mitigation
Studies have favorably identified the potential for coastal wetlands (also called blue carbon ecosystems) to provide some degree of climate change mitigation in two ways: by conservation, reducing the greenhouse gas emissions arising from the loss and degradation of such habitats, and by restoration, to increase carbon dioxide drawdown and its long-term storage. However, CO2 removal using coastal blue carbon restoration has questionable cost-effectiveness when considered only as a climate mitigation action, either for carbon-offsetting or for inclusion in Nationally Determined Contributions.

When wetlands are restored they have mitigation effects through their ability to sink carbon, converting a greenhouse gas (carbon dioxide) to solid plant material through the process of photosynthesis, and also through their ability to store and regulate water.

Wetlands store approximately 44.6 million tonnes of carbon per year globally (estimate from 2003). In salt marshes and mangrove swamps in particular, the average carbon sequestration rate is 210 g CO2 m−2 y−1 while peatlands sequester approximately 20–30 g CO2 m−2 y−1.

Coastal wetlands, such as tropical mangroves and some temperate salt marshes, are known to be sinks for carbon that otherwise contribute to climate change in its gaseous forms (carbon dioxide and methane). The ability of many tidal wetlands to store carbon and minimize methane flux from tidal sediments has led to sponsorship of blue carbon initiatives that are intended to enhance those processes.

Climate change adaptation
The restoration of coastal blue carbon ecosystems is highly advantageous for climate change adaptation, coastal protection, food provision and biodiversity conservation.

Since the middle of the 20th century, human-caused climate change has resulted in observable changes in the global water cycle. A warming climate makes extremely wet and very dry occurrences more severe, causing more severe floods and droughts. For this reason, some of the ecosystem services that wetlands provide (e.g. water storage and flood control, groundwater replenishment, shoreline stabilization and storm protection) are important for climate change adaptation measures. In most parts of the world and under all emission scenarios, water cycle variability and accompanying extremes are anticipated to rise more quickly than the changes of average values.

Valuation
The value of a wetland to local communities typically involves first mapping a region's wetlands, then assessing the functions and ecosystem services the wetlands provide individually and cumulatively, and finally evaluating that information to prioritize or rank individual wetlands or wetland types for conservation, management, restoration, or development. Over the longer term, it requires keeping inventories of known wetlands and monitoring a representative sample of the wetlands to determine changes due to both natural and human factors.

Assessment
Rapid assessment methods are used to score, rank, rate, or categorize various functions, ecosystem services, species, communities, levels of disturbance, and/or ecological health of a wetland or group of wetlands. This is often done to prioritize particular wetlands for conservation (avoidance) or to determine the degree to which loss or alteration of wetland functions should be compensated, such as by restoring degraded wetlands elsewhere or providing additional protections to existing wetlands. Rapid assessment methods are also applied before and after a wetland has been restored or altered, to help monitor or predict the effects of those actions on various wetland functions and the services they provide. Assessments are typically considered to be "rapid" when they require only a single visit to the wetland lasting less than one day, which in some cases may include interpretation of aerial imagery and geographic information system (GIS) analyses of existing spatial data, but not detailed post-visit laboratory analyses of water or biological samples.

To achieve consistency among persons doing the assessment, rapid methods present indicator variables as questions or checklists on standardized data forms, and most methods standardize the scoring or rating procedure that is used to combine question responses into estimates of the levels of specified functions relative to the levels estimated in other wetlands ("calibration sites") assessed previously in a region. Rapid assessment methods, partly because they often use dozens of indicators pertaining to conditions surrounding a wetland as well as within the wetland itself, aim to provide estimates of wetland functions and services that are more accurate and repeatable than simply describing a wetland's class type. A need for wetland assessments to be rapid arises mostly when government agencies set deadlines for decisions affecting a wetland, or when the number of wetlands needing information on their functions or condition is large.

Inventory
Although developing a global inventory of wetlands has proven to be a large and difficult undertaking, many efforts at more local scales have been successful. Current efforts are based on available data, but both classification and spatial resolution have sometimes proven to be inadequate for regional or site-specific environmental management decision making. It is difficult to identify small, long, and narrow wetlands within the landscape. Many of today's remote sensing satellites do not have sufficient spatial and spectral resolution to monitor wetland conditions, although multispectral IKONOS and QuickBird data may offer improved spatial resolutions once it is 4 m or higher. Majority of the pixels are just mixtures of several plant species or vegetation types and are difficult to isolate which translates into an inability to classify the vegetation that defines the wetland. The growing availability of 3D vegetation and topography data from LiDAR has partially addressed the limitation of traditional multispectral imagery, as demonstrated in some case studies across the world.

Monitoring and mapping
A wetland needs to be monitored over time to assess whether it is functioning at an ecologically sustainable level or whether it is becoming degraded. Degraded wetlands will suffer a loss in water quality, loss of sensitive species, and aberrant functioning of soil geochemical processes.

Practically, many natural wetlands are difficult to monitor from the ground as they quite often are difficult to access and may require exposure to dangerous plants and animals as well as diseases borne by insects or other invertebrates. Remote sensing such as aerial imagery and satellite imaging provides effective tools to map and monitor wetlands across large geographic regions and over time. Many remote sensing methods can be used to map wetlands. The integration of multi-sourced data such as LiDAR and aerial photos proves more effective at mapping wetlands than the use of aerial photos alone, especially with the aid of modern machine learning methods (e.g., deep learning). Overall, using digital data provides a standardized data-collection procedure and an opportunity for data integration within a geographic information system.

United States
Each country and region tends to have its own definition of wetlands for legal purposes. In the United States, wetlands are defined as "those areas that are inundated or saturated by surface or groundwater at a frequency and duration sufficient to support, and that under normal circumstances do support, a prevalence of vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions. Wetlands generally include swamps, marshes, bogs and similar areas". This definition has been used in the enforcement of the Clean Water Act. Some US states, such as Massachusetts and New York, have separate definitions that may differ from the federal government's.

In the United States Code, the term wetland is defined "as land that (A) has a predominance of hydric soils, (B) is inundated or saturated by surface or groundwater at a frequency and duration sufficient to support a prevalence of hydrophytic vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions and (C) under normal circumstances supports a prevalence of such vegetation." Related to these legal definitions, "normal circumstances" are expected to occur during the wet portion of the growing season under normal climatic conditions (not unusually dry or unusually wet), and in the absence of significant disturbance. It is not uncommon for a wetland to be dry for long portions of the growing season but under normal environmental conditions, the soils will be saturated to the surface or inundated creating anaerobic conditions persisting through the wet portion of the growing season.

Canada

 * The Federal Policy on Wetland Conservation
 * Other Individual Provincial and Territorial Based Policies

Examples
The world's largest wetlands include the swamp forests of the Amazon River basin, the peatlands of the West Siberian Plain, the Pantanal in South America, and the Sundarbans in the Ganges-Brahmaputra delta.

title: Wetland


text:
Mount Richmond National Park

The Mount Richmond National Park is a national park located in the Barwon South West region of Victoria, Australia. The 1733 ha national park is situated approximately 313 km west of Melbourne and 18 km west of. Part of the route of the Great South West Walk is located within the park.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Mount Richmond National Park


text:
That Thing You Do!

That Thing You Do! is a 1996 American musical comedy-drama film written and directed by Tom Hanks, in his feature writing and directorial debut.

The film is set in 1960s rock and roll culture. It tells the story of the rise and fall of a fictional one-hit wonder pop band, and stars Tom Everett Scott, Liv Tyler, Johnathon Schaech, Steve Zahn, Ethan Embry, and Hanks. Its production and music are key to its narrative, with original scores by a collaboration of artists including Hanks, Adam Schlesinger, and Howard Shore. The soundtrack peaked at #21 on the Billboard 200 albums chart, featuring a mix of diegetic and non-diegetic tracks. The cast practiced for weeks to perform convincingly on camera, blurring the lines between reality and fiction.

The film was well-received by critics, and received several accolades. The film resulted in a musical hit with the titular song of the same title, which was nominated for an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song.

Plot
In 1964, Guy Patterson, an aspiring jazz drummer, is working in his family's appliance store in Erie, Pennsylvania, when he is asked by friends Jimmy and Lenny to perform a song Jimmy wrote at a talent show with their band to cover for their regular drummer Chad, who broke his arm. Prior to the talent show, they rehearse the song, a slow-tempo ballad called "That Thing You Do!", in Jimmy's garage. Needing a name for the band, Jimmy's girlfriend Faye proposes "The Oneders", a play on the Beatles.

At the talent show, Guy launches the song, but at a much faster tempo than what they did in the garage. Despite Jimmy telling Guy to slow down, he and Lenny adapt and they win the competition, much to Jimmy's chagrin.

They win a paying gig at Villapiano's, a local pizza parlor. When a fan asks for a record, they decide to record the song and sell 45s of it, through the help of Guy's Uncle Bob. Local talent promoter Phil Horace notices the band, promising to get them on the radio within ten days. Lenny convinces the band to sign with him.

Phil gets the song played on Pennsylvania radio, and books them at a rock & roll showcase concert in Pittsburgh. Because of technical difficulties, and their lack of stagecraft, they are booed off the stage. Afterward, Phil brings a dispirited Guy to meet with Mr. White, an A&R representative for Play-Tone Records, who offers the band a contract and becomes their manager. He renames the band "the Wonders" (as many people had mispronounced "Oneders" as "Oh-nee-ders"), offers them advice on style and presentation (including insisting that the group all wear matching suits and Guy always wear sunglasses), asks them to join the Play-Tone tour of Midwestern state fairs, and suggests Jimmy's girlfriend Faye join the tour maintaining their wardrobe.

During the tour, the Wonders meet other acts, learn about the business, and become better performers. Jimmy spends time with a singer, Diane, while the bassist, T.B., falls for a member of a girl group, the Chantrellines. "That Thing You Do!" garners national radio airplay and the band's popularity soars. Jimmy is itching to return to the studio.

When "That Thing You Do!" reaches number 7 on the Billboard charts, Mr. White sends them to Los Angeles to do publicity, including radio and film appearances. On the day of their appearance on The Hollywood Television Showcase, a nationally televised live variety show, T.B., the bassist, is nowhere to be found, so Mr. White replaces him with Scott Pell, an older, experienced session bassist known as "Wolfman". Guy is hungover after meeting his idol, jazz pianist Del Paxton; Jimmy is vomiting due to nerves; Lenny is preoccupied with his new girlfriend. Still, the Wonders manage to cooperate for a successful television appearance. When television captions display the members of the band, Jimmy's caption reads "Careful, girls, he's engaged!" Jimmy sees this on a live stage monitor as he is playing and is visibly angered by it.

After the performance, Jimmy lashes out at Faye in the dressing room, insinuating that she was responsible for the "engaged" caption (although White implies that it was him). Jimmy insists that he and Faye are not engaged and that he has no intention of proposing. Faye, already disillusioned with Jimmy's growing preoccupation with the band's success, breaks up with him. The next day, at a scheduled recording session at Play-Tone's studio, the bassist is still nowhere to be found. As he has made a prior commitment to join the Marine Corps, his departure from the band is hastened. Lenny is out in Las Vegas, having eloped with his new girlfriend. Mr. White has provided new material for Jimmy and Guy to record, but Jimmy insists on only recording his original songs, or nothing at all. When Mr. White reminds him that the terms of their contract allow Play-Tone to dictate their material, Jimmy quits on the spot. Guy is now the only remaining Wonder; Mr. White reassures him that short-lived one-hit wonders are common in the music industry. Mr. White allows Guy to stay in the recording studio for a while, and when Del Paxton stops by, he sees Guy drumming and is impressed. The two improvise a jazz song called "I Am Spartacus" after Guy's catchphrase.

Guy returns to the hotel to check out. He tells a dejected Faye that he plans to stay in Los Angeles, while she says she will return to Erie. Faye goes to call a cab, but Guy chases after her and they kiss, finally admitting their long-hidden feelings for one another.

An epilogue reveals that Jimmy became a successful record producer; Lenny is single again and a hotel and casino manager in Nevada; bassist T.B. served in Vietnam with the Marines and earned a Purple Heart, then worked in construction in Orlando, Florida; Guy and Faye are married with four children and living in Bainbridge Island, Washington, where Guy teaches jazz composition at their own music conservatory.

Production and music
The film features original music by Tom Hanks, Adam Schlesinger, Rick Elias, Scott Rogness, Mike Piccirillo, Gary Goetzman and Howard Shore. In the film, the Wonders' rise to brief stardom on the strength of "That Thing You Do", a song written as a wistful ballad but which becomes an uptempo rocker during the band's first performance at a talent show. Written and composed for the film by Adam Schlesinger, bassist for Fountains of Wayne and Ivy and released on the film's soundtrack, the song became a genuine hit for the Wonders in 1996 (the song peaked at number 41 on the Billboard Hot 100, number 22 on the Adult Contemporary charts, number 18 on the Adult Top 40, and number 24 on the Top 40 Mainstream charts). The track was nominated for a 1996 Golden Globe Award as well as a 1996 Academy Award for Best Original Song. Mike Viola of the Candy Butchers provided the lead vocals for the Wonders.

In the film, the title song is referenced with "All My Only Dreams" as the B-side. The actual 45 rpm single, released to record stores in North America, features "Dance with Me Tonight" as its B-side. The song has since been recorded by the Knack, Billie Joe Armstrong, and Bubblegum Lemonade. The Wonders are also seen playing the song "Little Wild One". This was written by the band Gigolo Aunts as a "faux-Beatles"-style tune at the request of their record label to be submitted for consideration for inclusion in the film.

To perform the Wonders' songs convincingly on-camera, Scott, Schaech, Zahn and Embry took several weeks of individual lessons, followed by daily practice as a group. Of the four, only Zahn and Embry had any prior experience of playing their assigned instruments. They eventually honed their performance to the point where extras on the set thought they were actually playing the songs, when in reality they were miming along to recordings by professional musicians.

The song that plays during the film's opening credits, "Lovin' You Lots and Lots", is credited to the fictitious Norm Wooster Singers and was actually written by Hanks. This song is a send-up of Ray Conniff, Mitch Miller, and other practitioners of the "beautiful music" or proto-Muzak formats that were a staple of adult radio during the early 1960s such as on KPOL (AM) 1540 in Los Angeles. Hanks also composed Guy's jazzy signature drum solo, "I Am Spartacus".

The Wonders' bassist (played by Ethan Embry) is unnamed in the film; in the end credits, he is credited as "T.B. Player". This is short for "the Bass Player", and is a joke based on the perception that bass players are often unknown and unappreciated. Embry later provided his own take on the character's real name: "I just said my name was Tobias, because he's such a Tobias. You just take the vowels out [and it's T.B.] His nickname was Toby, but his mom calls him Tobias. And his last name actually was Player, because he was a player, dude! That carousel ride with the Chantrellines? Total player."

The real Wonders
There were at least two real groups named the Wonders who made the record charts at various radio stations in the early 1960s. One was a soul group who had a record called "Please Don't Cry" (b/w "With These Hands"; Bamboo 523) that was cited in the September 1, 1962, issue of Billboard as having "moderate sales potential", but it was not successful. (The flip, however, was played by KCRG in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, in the fall of 1962.)

The other Wonders had a regional hit record called "Say There" (b/w "Marilyn"; Colpix 699), released in August 1963. A mixed race doo wop group from New York City, they also recorded as the Satans Four [sic]. "Say There" hit the Top 20 at WCOL in Columbus, Ohio, and made the top 30 at KQV in Pittsburgh. In addition, the tune made the radio publication The Gavin Report as a regional hit in their August 16, 1963, issue.

Soundtrack
The soundtrack album (released under the Playtone name in conjunction with Epic Records) was also a hit, peaking at #21 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. The CD artwork is a replica of the fictional Playtone label used in the movie, and the liner notes are done in a mockumentary style, as if the Wonders had been a real group and the events of the film had actually happened. Hanks later used the success of That Thing You Do! as a springboard to launch the actual Playtone Records label, through which the soundtracks of all his subsequent films, as well as other films such as Bring It On and television programs such as The Sopranos, were released as albums.

Box office
The film grossed $25.9 million domestically and $8.7 million internationally for a total worldwide gross of $34.6 million. The film debuted at No. 3.

Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 94% based on reviews from 62 critics, with an average rating of 7.30/10. The site's consensus reads, "A light, sweet, and thoroughly entertaining debut for director Tom Hanks, That Thing You Do! makes up in charm what it lacks in complexity". On Metacritic, the film has a score of 71 out of 100 based on reviews from 22 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

Emanuel Levy of Variety called it "A top-notch production, exuberant period music and Hanks the actor in an important role cunningly disguised a rather slight and inconsequential narrative." Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave it 3 out of 4 and wrote: "The movie may be inconsequential, but in some ways that's a strength. Without hauling in a lot of deep meanings, it remembers with great warmth a time and a place."

Reunion
The Erie SeaWolves hosted Wonders Night on September 4, 2021, at UPMC Park. Cast members Johnathon Schaech, Tom Everett Scott, and Steve Zahn traveled to Erie for the occasion and participated in a panel discussion, autograph session, and elements of the ballgame presentation. Cast member Ethan Embry joined the panel discussion virtually. As a result of funds collected from VIP experiences as well as memorabilia and jersey auctions, the 25th anniversary event raised $25,500 for Notice Ability, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping students with dyslexia. Additional donations were made to Notice Ability, bringing the total sum raised to nearly a quarter of a million dollars. Wonders Night also earned the SeaWolves Promotion of the Year recognition by Ballpark Digest.

Initial release
That Thing You Do! was first released in mid-1997 on VHS and Laserdisc. In 1998, the film became available in the DIVX format (as with all 20th Century Fox films), rather than DVD.

First DVD
After DIVX failed, the film was released on DVD on June 5, 2001. It included the featurette "The Making of That Thing You Do!", and two music videos.

Extended Edition DVD
On May 8, 2007, Tom Hanks' Extended Edition was released on DVD. The film's theatrical cut and an extended cut with 39 additional minutes of deleted scenes are included.

Many of the deleted scenes are devoted to character development. A tastefully steamy look at Guy's "make-out" session with Tina at his apartment is included. The extended version also goes more in-depth with Guy's developing relationship with Faye (via mild flirting) and his deteriorating relationship with Tina, as well as Tina's budding relationship with her dentist, Dr. Collins. It also suggests that the character portrayed by Tom Hanks (Mr. White) is not only gay but in a relationship with a man played by former NFL defensive lineman Howie Long.

More camera time is also devoted to the tryst between the bass player and one of the singers of the Chantrellines. In the theatrical cut, this romance was depicted mainly as an unrequited crush on the part of the bass player; in the extended cut it is clearly shown that his efforts were successful.

At the end of the Extended Edition, rather than becoming a studio drummer on the recommendation of Del Paxton, Guy becomes a disc jockey for the jazz station KJZZ and records a documentary series of interviews with legendary jazz musicians.

2007 DVD repackage re-release
That Thing You Do! was packaged with Bachelor Party and The Man with One Red Shoe in the Tom Hanks Triple Feature DVD anthology set. The actual DVD appears to be the original 2001 disc, with the featurette and music videos.

Blu-ray release
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment released the film on Blu-ray on April 2, 2013. The Blu-ray includes the Theatrical and Extended cuts as well as all of the bonus features found on the two-disc DVD.

title: That Thing You Do!


text:
Talk:Lindow Man

"Critics have complained"
Apparently, "critics" have complained that Lindow Man is being objectified rather than treated with the respect due the dead. This is, apparently, "part of a wider discussion about the scientific treatment of human remains". However, we are told nothing about who these critics are, or how significant they are. Nor are we told what (they think) "the respect due the dead" should be. And we are told nothing about this wider discussion of the scientific treatment of human remains. The only source cited is a 2007 news article from Culture24 that no longer exists at the link given (and searching for "Lindow Man" on their website turns up nothing). Are these complaints actually significant? If so, I think more information (and a valid source) need to be given. If not, do we even need this paragraph? Iapetus (talk) 09:23, 1 August 2022 (UTC)

title: Talk:Lindow Man


text:
Talk:Motorola 6809

SIMM, DIMM?
what do simm dimm stand for. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 196.4.80.2 (talk) 08:31, 10 October 2002 (UTC)
 * Single inline memory module, and dual inline memory odule respectively. Why the question here, rather than the reference desk? ww 04:09, 13 May 2006 (UTC)

650x comparisons
Sure, the processors came out in roughly the same time period, had several designers in common, and similar design criteria - but the 650x is hardly a clone of the 6809. They're useful to compare and contrast, but they're hardly identical. What's the fascination with clamining one's a clone of the other? --moof 04:58, 16 November 2005 (UTC)

 * The 6502 was an outgrowth of the earlier 6800. Chuck Peddle and people eventually ended up at MOS Technology, and their first effort the 6500 was deemed too close to the 6800 and an infringement on Motorola's design. It actually had little to do with the 6809, whose design was influenced by an analysis of large amounts of 6800 assembly code. The 6502 was used in many of the early machines (the KIM-1 (and other trainers), various Commodores, the Ataris, Apple I and II, ...) not for its great virtues as an architecture (quite limited, really), but because it was priced much lower than the somewhat comparable competition. As near as I could tell at the time, no such fascination was justified. ww 04:07, 13 May 2006 (UTC)

8MHz 68B09??
I´ve found a MC68B09P connected to a 7.3728 chrystal on an old circuitboard! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.228.208.41 (talk) 09:02, 23 October 2007 (UTC)

The internal clock is the crystal frequency divided by 4, so that 68B09P is running at 1.8432MHz. --Lamune (talk) 06:50, 3 January 2008 (UTC)

 * Check the data sheets. Motorola uses a divide-by-four circuit when connecting a crystal directly to a CPU that can generate it's own clock. Even the external clock generators tend to divide down from a clock 4 times as fast as the clocks fed to the CPU. It makes getting a clean clock easier, and, in the case of the 6809, it makes it fairly simple to derive the quadrature clock.
 * Looking at this in the converse, the CPU clock is usually the same as the memory system clock and the clock provided to the peripheral parts, so a 2 MHz 6809 usually runs 2 MHz memory clock, which means comparing the clock speed to other CPUs requires knowing a little about how the memory for the other CPU derives its clock. Often, a 2 MHz 6809 is processing instructions faster than a 6 MHz Z80. 60.130.192.5 (talk) 09:18, 26 November 2022 (UTC)

Performance?
How does the 6809 compare to other CPUs of the time in terms of real-world performance per MHz? Please add this info if you have it. -- 92.229.88.194 (talk) 14:30, 25 March 2010 (UTC)
 * Because of Motorola's choices on the relation between memory cycles and the CPU clock, other CPUs of the time had higher clocks (Z80 got up to 6MHz, IIRC) which made the 6800 and 6809 CPUs seem slow. However, each memory cycle in the Intel style processors (8080, 8085, z-80 etc) took many clock cycles. depending on the instruction. In addition, 6809 instructions were relatively more useful on a stand alone basis; the equivalent in other CPUs was often needing two or three instructions.
 * So the answer to your question is not easy to discern. the 68xx 8-bit ships were much faster than people expected from clock speeds alone, but also gained relative speed for more obscure reasons. The answer is fast, faster than many competitors, even at the lower clock rate.
 * Byte did an article which attempted to address this by creating a VAX-11 equivalent rating. They attempted ot normalize various differences, in a fuzzy atricle -- common in most of these benchmarking disputes. IIRC, the 6809 placed high, but not at the very top of the pile.
 * The 40MHz 6809 emulator running on x86 is likely faster than anything of the period, by an order of magnitude or two. ww (talk) 06:05, 26 March 2010 (UTC)

 * What was the title and author of that Byte article?
 * Are you perhaps alluding to the VAX unit of performance (VUP)? --DavidCary (talk) 17:13, 26 December 2014 (UTC)

Heavy stress on position independant code
I can't see where the heavy stress on position independant code comes from. The 6809 and the 8086 both have relative branches and relative 16 bit calls. In fact with the use of segment registers reposition code is easier on the 8086 or even unnecessary. These were at the time competitors as were os9 and MS-DOS. I feel uncomfortable rephrasing this, but it doesn't feel right. (Of course OS9 did accommodate p.i.c.) 80.100.243.19 (talk) 21:42, 17 January 2015 (UTC)

 * True PIC is more than just relative branches. It means the OS loader doesn't have to do fix-up, period. Code modules written appropriately can be delivered as ROMs and plugged in anywhere in the memory map where they don't conflict with I/O devices or interrupt vectors. Or, if you have virtual memory, you can have library functions loaded once in memory, and various processes can map that one instance to the addresses that fit with whatever else the process is using.
 * Code for the 68000 and 6809 can be written that way.
 * Code for the 8086, not really, especially if you are trying to use long pointers. MS-DOS required a relocating loader.
 * Truth told, OS-9 sometimes required relocation tables for data because their entry-level tools did not handle self-referential data well, but that was a tools problem, not a CPU architecture problem.
 * And you could, of course, write non-relocatable code for both the 68000 and the 6809. 60.130.192.5 (talk) 10:16, 26 November 2022 (UTC)

Please fix reference
I have added the official Motorola programming manual as reference. This should be moved from Further reading to (preferably the first) reference, because it is *the* primordial source on the 6809 instruction set. It is also referenced where I mention the assis09. Please help, because I don't know how to do that. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.100.243.19 (talk) 22:18, 17 January 2015 (UTC)

version numbers of processors conflict with what they can do more or less
if you have a 6809 E processor you have a processor brand say 6809 and the E stands for External Clock.

if you have a 6203 processor it is supposed to be an earlier processor. So it's instruction set could be less complicated.

It's a FACT processors which have a higher number are supposed to be more intelligent. Because why should you add the higher number without upgrades to the processor possibilities. The article is riddled with wrong processor numbers who would be perform less than the higher version ones. It would be good this should be repaired in this article. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.145.0.77 (talk) 19:00, 8 March 2017 (UTC)

External links modified (February 2018)
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Example code
It would be nice to add an example subroutine, such as the  example used for some of the other microprocessors (e.g., 6502, 80386, 68000, etc.). — Loadmaster (talk) 17:39, 22 May 2018 (UTC)

One of the first with a multiply instruction?
The TMS9900 (1975) and 8086 (1976) both had multiply instructions before the 6809. Heck, those two processors also had divide instructions as well. I believe even the 68000 came out before the 6809. Now, if you say "first 8 bit processor with a multiply instruction," sure. All the others I just mentioned were 16 bit CPUs. Being 4th, when the others beat you by years, stretches the title "one of the first." — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2620:15C:2C0:4:41E6:D39C:32A0:34EC (talk) 21:53, 24 May 2018 (UTC)

 * FWIW, the article is misleading about the debut of the 6809. It debuted in 1978. The 68000 was developed concurrently with the 6809, but debuted a bit later.
 * The 8086 started development in 1976, also debuting in 1978. 60.130.192.5 (talk) 09:39, 26 November 2022 (UTC)

Use in Data General peripherals
I worked at DG in 1987 to 1991 in the terminals group (Durham NH and then Westborough MA - “Webo”).

The Dasher series of character cell terminals were built around the 6809, including the D210-D213, D217, D410-D413, D460-D463, and D578E “security terminal.” Also the Panther series of dot matrix printers were built on the 6809.

In the terminals, the 68B09E was connected to a standard cell custom graphics chip called “HILT” (high integration level terminal), 8KB OTP PROM, 16KB SRAM, and 256KB DRAM that was used for video generation. The HILT did cycle-stealing to fetch the characters and attributes from SRAM, and did a look-up in DRAM to generate video. DRAM with the character bit patterns (or graphics) were loaded using a window mapped by HILT registers.

(Numbers above varied by model and are to the best of my recollection 30+ years later. :->) James.d.carlson (talk) 11:45, 9 September 2022 (UTC)

68C11 is not a variation of the 6809
Motorola did an analysis of code written for the 6800 and other 8-bit microprocessors, looking for bottlenecks and other places they could improve things, and the 68000 and 6809 projects were started on two independent concurrent tracks using what they learned from that analysis.

Motorola wanted a CPU to use as a core in SOCs, and the 6809 would have too many transistors for SOCs of the time frame, so they made some smaller improvements in the 6800 to make the 6801. (Fixed compare X, added 16-bit add, subtract, and shift, also added push and pop X -- small but really significant improvements.) The 6801 actually came out after the 6809, by a few months.

Even though the 6801 core did not use that many more transistors than the 6800, the customer wanted even less, so they could have more built-in peripherals -- advanced timers and such, so Motorola really pared things down and gave them the 6805, which started a really successful line in SOC/embedded. The 6805 removed the B accumulator and cut the index register in half, making it less of a pointer and more of an index register.

The 68HC11 simply extended the 6801 by adding a Y index register. Since it has none of the advanced addressing modes of the 6809, it really should not be presented as a variation of the 6809, or even a stripped-down 6809. It's a simple extension of the 6801, designed to keep the transistor count down to leave transistors available for built-in peripherals like those in the 6805.

These facts can be confirmed quickly be reference to the data sheets. 60.130.192.5 (talk) 10:04, 26 November 2022 (UTC)

title: Talk:Motorola 6809


text:
Cottbus

Cottbus or Chóśebuz     is a university city and the second-largest city in the German state of Brandenburg after the state capital of Potsdam. With around 98,000 inhabitants, it is the most populous city in Lusatia. Cottbus lies in the Sorbian settlement area (Serbski sedleński rum) of Lower Lusatia, and is the second-largest city on the River Spree after Berlin, which is situated around 125 km upstream. The city is located on the shores of Cottbus Eastern Lake (Chóśebuski pódzajtšny jazor), which will be Germany's largest artificial lake by surface area when flooding is completed.

Cottbus is considered the political and cultural center of the Lower Sorbian-speaking Sorbs (in Lower Lusatia also called the Wends), while the overall center of all Sorbs (Lower and Upper) is Bautzen. Cottbus is the largest bilingual city in Germany. Signage is mostly in German and Lower Sorbian. The city is the seat of several Lower Sorbian institutions like the Lower Sorbian version of the Sorbian Broadcasting (Serbski rozgłos/Bramborske Serbske Radijo), the Lower Sorbian Gymnasium, and the Wendish Museum (Serbski muzej). The use of the Lower Sorbian language, however, is more widespread in the surrounding villages than in the city itself. Cottbus is a major railway junction with extensive sidings/depots.

In the 10th century, the Wends constructed the largest Slavic castle of Lower Lusatia, a gord, on a Spree island. This former gord is considered the nucleus of the city. On it rises the massive 13th century Castle Tower (grodojski torm) with its blue clock.

Cottbus is the seat of the Brandenburg University of Technology (Brandenburgische Technische Universität Cottbus–Senftenberg, Bramborska techniska uniwersita Chóśebuz–Zły Komorow). Due to this, the city has the official names Universitätsstadt Cottbus/Uniwersitne město Chóśebuz ('University City Cottbus'). Branitz Castle, built in 1770–71, in the southeast of the city, was a residence of the Prince of Pückler-Muskau. The prince, who also created Muskau Park, designed the extensive Branitz Park on the shores of the Spree, with its two grass pyramids. Cottbus State Theater (Statne źiwadło Chóśebuz) is the only state theater in Brandenburg. The Wendish Quarter is a part of the city supposed to resemble the traditional Sorbian architectural style, constructed of prefabricated concrete slabs in East Germany between 1984 and 1989.

Spelling
Until the beginning of the 20th century, the spelling of the city's name was disputed. In Berlin, the spelling "Kottbus" was preferred, and it is still used for the capital's Kottbusser Tor ("Cottbus Gate"). Locally the traditional spelling "Cottbus" (which defies standard German-language rules) was preferred, and it is now used in most circumstances. Because the official spelling used locally before the spelling reforms of 1996 had contravened even the standardized spelling rules already in place, the Standing Committee for Geographical Names (Ständiger Ausschuss für geographische Namen) stress their urgent recommendation that geographical names should respect the national spelling standards. A citizen of the city may be identified as either a "Cottbuser" or a "Cottbusser".

Names in different languages:
 * Chotěbuz
 * Cottbus
 * Cotbusium
 * Chociebuż
 * Chóśebuz
 * Choćebuz
 * קוטבוס

History
The settlement was established in the tenth century, when Sorbs erected a castle on a sandy island in the River Spree. It was captured by the March of Lusatia in 965, then it passed to Poland under Bolesław I the Brave in 1002, and back to the March of Lusatia in 1032. The first recorded mention of the town's name was in 1156. In the 13th century German settlers came to the town and thereafter lived side by side with the Sorbs.

In the Middle Ages Cottbus was known for wool, and the town's drapery was exported throughout Brandenburg, Bohemia and Saxony. It was also located on an important trade route, called the "Salt Road", which was used to transport salt from Halle to Lusatia and further east to Poland. It was part of the Margraviate of Lusatia and later Lower Lusatia, which was held by the House of Wettin until it became a Bohemian Crown Land in 1367.

In 1445 Cottbus was acquired by the Margraviate of Brandenburg from Bohemia. It was an exclave almost completely surrounded by Bohemian Lower Lusatia (with a short border with the Electorate of Saxony to the south-west). In 1514 Jan Rak founded the Universitas Serborum, a Sorbian gymnasium, in the city. In 1635 Lower Lusatia was ceded by Bohemia to Saxony, thereby making Cottbus an enclave of Saxony. In 1701 Brandenburg-Prussia became the Kingdom of Prussia.

In 1807, following the War of the Fourth Coalition, Cottbus was ceded by Prussia to the Kingdom of Saxony by the Treaty of Tilsit, reuniting it with Lower Lusatia. Cottbus was returned to Prussia by the Congress of Vienna in 1815 after the Napoleonic wars. Lower Lusatia was also ceded to Prussia and both became part of the Prussian Province of Brandenburg (and Regierungsbezirk Frankfurt), where they remained until 1947. In the 19th century, the Bramborski Serbski Casnik Sorbian newspaper was published in the city, and in 1880, the first Lower Lusatian department of the Maćica Serbska organization was established there.

In 1871 Prussia, and therefore Cottbus, became part of the German Empire. According to the Prussian census of 1905, the city of Cottbus had a population of 46,270, of which 97% were Germans, 2% were Sorbs and 1% were Poles.

In interwar Germany, the town was the site of a concentration camp for unwanted Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe.

During World War II, a Nazi prison for women was operated in the city with multiple forced labour subcamps located both in the city and other places in the region. Polish actor Władysław Hańcza was imprisoned in a forced labour camp in the city in 1944–1945. In the final weeks of the war, Cottbus was taken by the Red Army on 22 April 1945. In January 1946, Cottbus issued 34 semi-postal postage stamps to help finance rebuilding the city. From 1949 until German reunification in 1990, Cottbus was part of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany). From 1952 to 1990, Cottbus was the administrative seat of Bezirk Cottbus.

Climate
Cottbus has an oceanic climate (Köppen Cfb) in spite of being far inland on a relatively high latitude. Summers are very warm for being so far north, while winters are often mild due to prevailing trade winds from the Atlantic Ocean facing little natural obstacles on the way to the area. When wind directions come from elsewhere, hard freezes occasionally take place. As a result, the annual temperature amplitude is quite high for an oceanic climate, ranging from 35 C in summer to -15 C in winter. Precipitation is frequent, although usually light in accumulation. Snowfall is a regular occurrence with 36 days of snow cover annually, but Cottbus remains mild enough that it usually thaws quickly. Most of the year is gloomy, with a notable exception in late spring.

Culture and education
Cottbus is the cultural centre of the Lower Sorbian minority. Many signs in the town are bilingual, and there is a Lower Sorbian-medium Gymnasium and a Sorbian Quarter, but Sorbian is rarely spoken on the streets.

Next to Cottbus is the famous Branitz Park, created by Prince Hermann von Pückler-Muskau after 1845. Schloss Branitz (Branitz Castle) was rebuilt by Gottfried Semper in a late Baroque style between 1846 and 1852, and the gardens Prince Hermann laid feature two pyramids. One of these, the Seepyramide, is in the middle of an artificial lake and serves as his mausoleum.

Cottbus is also home to the Brandenburg University of Technology (BTU) and the maths/science-oriented Max-Steenbeck-Gymnasium, named after the physicist Max Steenbeck.

Every year Cottbus hosts the East Europe International Film Festival.

Cottbus has a football team, Energie Cottbus, that plays in the Regionalliga Nordost as of the 2021–2022 season. Their home matches are played at the city's Stadion der Freundschaft.

Transportation
Cottbus is served by Cottbus Hauptbahnhof main railway station.

Two airports serve the city: Cottbus-Drewitz Airport (approximately 25 kilometres (16 mi) north-east of Cottbus), and Cottbus-Neuhausen Airport (approximately 10 km (6.2 miles) south-east of Cottbus).

Local public transport is served by trams and buses operated by Cottbusverkehr GmbH and DB Regio Bus Ost GmbH, both of which are members of the Verkehrsverbund Berlin-Brandenburg (VBB).

Power generation
There are several lignite-fired power stations in the area around Cottbus (Lausitz) fed through local open pit mining. The biggest stations are "Schwarze Pumpe" (1600 MW), "Boxberg" (1900 MW) and "Jänschwalde" (3000 MW). Some of the open-pit mines have already been shut down with the former Cottbus-Nord opencast mine being converted into an artificial lake with 19 km2 surface area called Cottbuser Ostsee (Cottbus eastern lake).

Twin towns – sister cities
Cottbus is twinned with:

 * 🇫🇷 Montreuil, France (1959)
 * 🇮🇹 Grosseto, Italy (1967)
 * 🇷🇺 Lipetsk, Russia (1974)
 * 🇵🇱 Zielona Góra, Poland (1975)
 * 🇧🇬 Targovishte, Bulgaria (1975)
 * 🇸🇰 Košice, Slovakia (1978)
 * 🇩🇪 Saarbrücken, Germany (1987)
 * 🇩🇪 Gelsenkirchen, Germany (1995)
 * 🏴 Nuneaton and Bedworth, England, United Kingdom (1999)

Notable people

 * Janice Behrendt (born 1983), beauty queen and model
 * Carl Blechen (1798–1840), landscape painter
 * Kurt Demmler (1943–2009), songwriter; accused of sexual abuse, he hanged himself in his jail cell.
 * Rudi Fink (born 1958), amateur boxer and boxing coach
 * Gustav Theodor Fritsch (1838–1927), anatomist, anthropologist and physiologist
 * Marco Geisler (born 1974), rower
 * Otto Hugo Paul Grottkau (1846–1898), socialist and trade unionist and American journalist
 * Robert Harting (born 1984), discus thrower
 * Martha Israel (1905–c. 1967), politician
 * Tony Martin (born 1985), cyclist
 * Jens Melzig (born 1965), footballer
 * Daniel Musiol (born 1983), cyclist
 * Reinhold Platz (1886–1966), aircraft designer and manufacturer at Fokker
 * Gabriele Reinsch (born 1963), world record holder discus throwing
 * Viktoria Schmidt-Linsenhoff (1944–2013), art historian and professor
 * Heiko Schwarz (born 1989), footballer

title: Cottbus