In a wetland you'll find water, plants, soil and animals. The depth of the water doesn't exceed six meters. Whether it's a marsh, fen, peat land, or even a place that floods after rain, they are all wetlands.

The elements of a wetland are water, plants and soil. Because animals come of their own accord and are not brought there, we only need to consider these three factors. When a place has these 3 elements, a wetland will appear and animals will naturally enter it.

1. Wetland environments are formed because the water from ground water, rain water, lakes and ponds is unable to disappear.

2. Wetlands won't necessarily always be there. Sometimes they are formed because of flooding and when the waters recede, the wetland disappears. Also, litter from people accumulates in wetlands and that can cause the wetland to disappear too.

3. Taiwan's wetlands can be classified as;(1)Coastal wetlands (Example: Mangrove) (2)Inland wetlands (Examples: manmade wetlands and paddy fields) The Yung Ho Community University Eco-park is an example of an inland wetland.

1. Replenishing groundwater and preventing flooding: Wetlands are just like sponges. If there's too much water, they slowly soak it up and collect it at the bottom of the wetland. When there is a shortage of water, the water from the bottom of the wetland rises up to replenish the land, regulating the problem of excessive water.
2. Removing Poisons: After being filtered and purified by a wetland, the water becomes cleaner.
3. A place for researchers and visitors: Wetlands can serve as a teaching resource or can be used by the public as a place to enjoy nature and learn about the environment.
 4. Diverse animal life: The insects, fish, dragonflies, frogs and birds that live in wetland together form a food chain.
5. Providing cash crops: The aquatic plants (rice, water chestnuts, wild rice, water cabbage etc.) that we often eat are all grown in wetlands.
6. Regulating climate: Water has the ability to absorb heat so wetlands can help to regulate climate.

If the endemic species of Taiwan disappear, we’ll only be able to see them in pictures or books. Therefore we can help to restore these endangered plants in wetlands such as the Yung Ho Community University Eco-park. It is our goal to restore these plants and to provide our school with an outdoor classroom as well as preserving the environment of the Xindian River.

For a long time wetlands have been faced with accumulating amounts of debris, dust, food, etc. However this process is sped up by people filling in wetlands, throwing away rubbish, dead animals etc. Also the concept of us only having one Earth and our economic needs have often been in conflict and we need to find a way to balance these needs so that mankind can live in harmony with the environment.

Taiwan has an area of about 36000 square kilometers, but there are some 23 million people who live here. Because of development, our natural environment has been destroyed. Like when a typhoon arrives and causes landslides, the natural path of the mud has been blocked and this has led to the destruction of the natural environment for many of Taiwan indigenous plants.

In a wetland you can see many different types of aquatic plants, amphibians, reptiles (such as frogs or snakes) and insects (such as dragonflies and damselflies)

In ponds you can see dragonfly nymphs and dragonfly larvae. However they are more easily spotted at night. Most animals will appear before dawn because they are less likely to be attacked by enemies and they can move around more safely at night. Also in the wetlands you can see many kinds of frogs but they too are most easily seen at night. There are so many people around during the day, so the frogs will choose a safe place to hide away in.

Apple snails, freshwater snappers, crayfish and water hyacinth are all alien species. They all reproduce very quickly and have no natural enemies. They have adapted to this environment very fast and have occupied the environment that once belonged to Taiwan's native species. Sometimes they will dominate the native species and this is a big threat.

Rana catesbeiana (bullfrog) is originally from America. The environment is Taiwan is very suitable for them and they grow well here. They can grow to the size of a small hen! So you can imagine that they need to eat a lot and Taiwan's native frogs have become the bullfrog's food. Even more surprising is that when the bullfrog is a tadpole it will eat other tadpoles and then after growing up, it will continue to eat even more. This means that lots of Taiwan's native species have been eaten by the bullfrog.