Table 1.

Description of Wetland Types^a

Wetland Type	Description	Area (km2)
Swamps	Forested freshwater wetlands on waterlogged or inundated soils where little or no peat accumulation takes place. For this review we have limited data to forested system.	230,000
Peatlands	Peat producing wetlands in moist climates where organic materials have accumulated over long periods.	441,000
Floodplains	Periodically follower areas along rivers or lakes showing considerable variation in vegetation cover. In the Amazon flood plain two separate systems are defined Varzea forests which are feb by muddy rivers and Igapo forests located in blackwater and clearwater tributaries	715,000

^aFor this review we have limited data to forested systems.