When one hears the word "wetland", one conjired up images of areas with tall reeds, open water and lush green vegetation. In some instances, this is true but only for the typical floodplain type wetlan. This, however, is just one of a variety of wetland types.  The term "wetland" is a generic term for all the different kinds of habitats where the land is wet for some period of time each year, but not necessarily permanently wet. 

Water in the form of precipitation or snow that falls in a drainage basin, and which is not lost to the atmosphere through evaporation or transpiration, moves through the drainage basin to the sea is one way to recognise a wetland. Wetlands are found where the topography or geology slows down or obstructs the movement of water through the drainage basin (for instance, where the landform is very flat), or where groundwater surfaces causing the surface soil layers in the area to be temporarily, seasonally or permanently wet. This provides an environment where particular plants (scientifically termed "hydrophytes" -that are adapted to wet conditions) to grow in abundance. The plants in turn affect the soil and hydrology, this is by further slowing down the movement of water and by producing organic matter that may accumulate in the soil.

 Many wetlands therefore occur in areas where surface water collects and/or where underground water (also referred to as groundwater or subsurface water) discharges to the surface (commonly referred to as seeps, springs or fountains), making the area wet for extended periods of time. Other wetlands occur along our coasts, such as estuaries and sometimes even coral reefs.  

Therefore, the term wetland refers to aquatic systems that can be permanently saturated, as well as areas that are rarely saturated. Because wetlands occur between these extremes, they are often viewed as ?transitional? ecosystems that share characteristics of both the wetland and non-wetland habitats. 

It can therefore be concluded that a wetland is "wet land". But, not all land that is wet is necessarily a wetland, and not all land that is not wet is necessarily non-wetland. Then one would beg the question: When is wet land a wetland?  For South Africa the definition of a wetland as defined by the South African Water Act is accepted and applied. The South African Water Act defines wetlands as: "land which is transitional between terrestrial and aquatic systems where the water table is usually at or near the surface, or the land is periodically covered with shallow water, and which in normal circumstances supports or would support vegetation typically adapted to life is saturated soil.? It is imperative to note from this definition that even drained wetlands of which the water table is no longer at, or near, the surface, or of which the land is no longer periodically covered with shallow water, are still considered to be wetlands.