Swamps are for draining--for converting into housing projects and farmland. Or at least that's been the theory ever since European settlers rolled across the continent a century ago.

We've drained a lot of swamps since then. Nationwide, we've "reclaimed" _____% of our wetlands. In Kansas, where we've been particularly diligent, only 4% of our original wetlands remain.

Now we realize we needed them. Wetlands, it turns out, are vital pieces of the unfathomable, intricate system that sustains life on earth.

Among the wetlands that remain, a few are outstanding for their size,...