Norcross Brook and wetlands, Maine, USA

© Aaron Black-Schmidt/Tandem Stills + Motio

Deep in the wetlands

Wetlands like those in our homepage image, near Moosehead Lake in the US state of Maine, are an often-underappreciated natural resource. They have a hugely important role to play, linking land and water and helping to protect healthy ecosystems. They provide a home for many species from frogs and insects to songbirds and moose. But they also filter drinking water, provide a natural buffer from storms, absorb flood waters and capture carbon from the atmosphere, helping to reduce the impact of climate change.

Some of the wetlands here around Moosehead Lake are also well-known moose-watching hotspots. The hulking animals of Maine's North Woods are so common they're said to outnumber residents three to one. Surely there's a moose or five down there among those trees…