In lies the Winton Wetlands (and nearby Green Swamp), a once-thriving 8,000 has grass wetlands surrounded by farmlands with a long of sheep and cattle grazing. The farmers were displaced, then the area was flooded to create Lake Mokona. This turned out to be an unmitigated disaster and was finally decommissioned.

It is an eerie site with thousands (if not tens of thousands) of tree stumps, telegraph poles and apparently remnants of some of the building in among the now dry landscape. The trees are the flooding of the area, which still remain as sentinels of the past.

Winton Wetlands Restoration

Since Lake Mokoan was established by a concerted effort has been put in restore the area to its former wetlands reserve. New trees have been planted as well as grasses to encourage bird and animal life to return.

Most of the water has since evaporated (part of the reason it was such a), leaving behind the trees that form much of the eerie vista. There are plenty of walking and cycling tracks throughout the parkland, and it has a and rest area as well, making it a lovely little spot for a day trip.

Major Wetlands the World:
South America –
The Orinoco River delta of Venezuela
• Covers 36,000 km2 and is dominated by brackish shoreline by mangrove forests.
• It enters the Caribbean The Llanos located on the western part of the Orinoco River found in western Venezuela and northern Colombia.
• Covers 450,000 km2 , it’s one of the largest inland wetland areas of South America
• Winter wet season with a summer dry season gives rise to yearly flooding.
• Dominated by savanna grasslands and scattered palms.
• Important wading-bird habitat and is rich with caiman and red piranha.
The Amazon River
• Covers 300,000 km2 , 3,000 km long, the river floods 5-15 meters high yearly.
• It’s considered the world’s single largest river, with a flow that results in about one-sixth to one-fifth of all the fresh water in the world. Cretes its own weather patterns.
The Pantonal
• One of the largest wetlands in world located in southwestern Brazil.
• Covers 140,000 km2 , four times the size of the Florida Everglades, with about 131,000 km2 of that area flooded annually.
• It’s a haven to 650 to 700 species of birds.
Europe:
1.Mediterranean Sea Deltas The Rhone River Delta created France’s most important wetland, the Camargue.
• Covers about 9,000 km2 Highly affected by a hot, dry summer and cool, wet winters.
• Home to one of the world’s 25 major flamingo nesting sites.

Wetlands are heaven for nature photography

This really is a nature photographer’s playground with birds and several other animals. I myself spent a good 10 minutes with this Superb Blue Fairy Wren and his harem of females, as well as a big mob of kangaroos.

What to take to Explore Winton Wetlands

We headed off in the car, and then by foot, so good sturdy walking boots. I also had my 70-300mm lens on one camera and my 16-35mm lens on my other camera. There are such large vistas to capture, but then you suddenly need a 300mm to capture a bird or animal.