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Bog

A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials – often mosses, typically sphagnum moss.[1] It is one of the four main types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, mosses, quagmire, and muskeg; alkaline mires are called fens.[clarification needed] A baygall is another type of bog found in the forest of the Gulf Coast states in the United States.[2][3] They are often covered in heath or heather shrubs rooted in the sphagnum moss and peat. The gradual accumulation of decayed plant material in a bog functions as a carbon sink.[4][5]

A bog in Lauhanvuori National Park, Isojoki, Finland
Tourbière du Lac-à-la-Tortue (fr), ombrotrophic, Quebec, Canada
Peat bog and peat to dry, L'Isle-aux-Coudres, Quebec, Canada, 1976
Drone video of Kakerdaja bog in Estonia (September 2021)
Precipitation accumulates in many bogs, forming bog pools, such as Koitjärve bog in Estonia.
A raised bog in Ķemeri National Park, Jūrmala, Latvia, formed approximately 10,000 years ago in the postglacial period and now a tourist attraction

Bogs occur where the water at the ground surface is acidic and low in nutrients. A bog usually is found at a freshwater soft spongy ground that is made up of decayed plant matter which is known as peat. They are generally found in cooler northern climates and are formed in poorly draining lake basins.[6] In contrast to fens, they derive most of their water from precipitation rather than mineral-rich ground or surface water.[7] Water flowing out of bogs has a characteristic brown colour, which comes from dissolved peat tannins. In general, the low fertility and cool climate result in relatively slow plant growth, but decay is even slower due to low oxygen levels in saturated bog soils. Hence, peat accumulates. Large areas of the landscape can be covered many meters deep in peat.[1][8]

Bogs have distinctive assemblages of animal, fungal, and plant species, and are of high importance for biodiversity, particularly in landscapes that are otherwise settled and farmed.

Distribution and extent edit

 
Carnivorous plants, such as this Sarracenia purpurea pitcher plant of the eastern seaboard of North America, are often found in bogs. Capturing insects provides nitrogen and phosphorus, which are usually scarce in such conditions.

Bogs are widely distributed in cold, temperate climes, mostly in boreal ecosystems in the Northern Hemisphere. The world's largest wetland is the peat bogs of the Western Siberian Lowlands in Russia, which cover more than a million square kilometres.[9] Large peat bogs also occur in North America, particularly the Hudson Bay Lowland and the Mackenzie River Basin.[9] They are less common in the Southern Hemisphere, with the largest being the Magellanic moorland, comprising some 44,000 square kilometres (17,000 sq mi) in southern South America. Sphagnum bogs were widespread in northern Europe[10] but have often been cleared and drained for agriculture. A paper led by Graeme T. Swindles in 2019 showed that peatlands across Europe have undergone rapid drying in recent centuries owing to human impacts including drainage, peat cutting and burning.[11] A 2014 expedition leaving from Itanga village, Republic of the Congo, discovered a peat bog "as big as England" which stretches into neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo.[12]

Definition edit

Like all wetlands, it is difficult to rigidly define bogs for a number of reasons, including variations between bogs, the in-between nature of wetlands as an intermediate between terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, and varying definitions between wetland classification systems.[13][14] However, there are characteristics common to all bogs that provide a broad definition:[7]

  1. Peat is present, usually thicker than 30 cm.
  2. The wetland receives most of its water and nutrients from precipitation (ombrotrophic) rather than surface or groundwater (minerotrophic).
  3. The wetland is nutrient-poor (oligotrophic).
  4. The wetland is strongly acidic (bogs near coastal areas may be less acidic due to sea spray).

Because all bogs have peat, they are a type of peatland. As a peat-producing ecosystem, they are also classified as mires, along with fens. Bogs differ from fens in that fens receive water and nutrients from mineral-rich surface or groundwater, while bogs receive water and nutrients from precipitation.[7] Because fens are supplied with mineral-rich water, they tend to be slightly acidic to slightly basic, while bogs are always acidic because precipitation is mineral-poor.[7]

Ecology and protection edit

 
An expanse of wet Sphagnum bog in Frontenac National Park, Quebec, Canada. Spruce trees can be seen on a forested ridge in the background.

There are many highly specialized animals, fungi, and plants associated with bog habitat. Most are capable of tolerating the combination of low nutrient levels and waterlogging.[1]: chapter 3  Sphagnum is generally abundant, along with ericaceous shrubs.[15] The shrubs are often evergreen, which may assist in conservation of nutrients.[16] In drier locations, evergreen trees can occur, in which case the bog blends into the surrounding expanses of boreal evergreen forest.[17] Sedges are one of the more common herbaceous species. Carnivorous plants such as sundews (Drosera) and pitcher plants (for example Sarracenia purpurea) have adapted to the low-nutrient conditions by using invertebrates as a nutrient source. Orchids have adapted to these conditions through the use of mycorrhizal fungi to extract nutrients.[1]: 88  Some shrubs such as Myrica gale (bog myrtle) have root nodules in which nitrogen fixation occurs, thereby providing another supplemental source of nitrogen.[18]

 
Many species of evergreen shrub are found in bogs, such as Labrador tea.

Bogs are recognized as a significant/specific habitat type by a number of governmental and conservation agencies. They can provide habitat for mammals, such as caribou, moose, and beavers, as well as for species of nesting shorebirds, such as Siberian cranes and yellowlegs. Bogs contain species of vulnerable reptilians such as the bog turtle.[19] Bogs even have distinctive insects; English bogs give a home to a yellow fly called the hairy canary fly (Phaonia jaroschewskii), and bogs in North America are habitat for a butterfly called the bog copper (Lycaena epixanthe). In Ireland, the viviparous lizard, the only known reptile in the country, dwells in bogland.[20]

The United Kingdom in its Biodiversity Action Plan establishes bog habitats as a priority for conservation. Russia has a large reserve system in the West Siberian Lowland.[21] The highest protected status occurs in Zapovedniks (IUCN category IV); Gydansky[22] and Yugansky are two prominent examples.[citation needed]

Bogs are fragile ecosystems, and have been deteriorating quickly, as archaeologists and scientists have been recently finding. Bone material found in bogs has had accelerated deterioration from first analyses in the 1940s.[23] This has been found to be from fluctuations in ground water and increase in acidity[24] in lower areas of bogs that is affecting the rich organic material. Many of these areas have been permeated to the lowest levels with oxygen, which dries and cracks layers. There have been some temporary solutions to try and fix these issues, such as adding soil to the tops of threatened areas, yet they do not work in the long-term.[25] Extreme weather like dry summers are likely the cause, as they lower precipitation and the groundwater table. It is speculated that these issues will only increase with a rise in global temperature and climate change. Since bogs take thousands of years to form and create the rich peat that is used as a resource, once they are gone they are extremely hard to recover. Arctic and sub-Arctic circles where many bogs are warming at 0.6 °C per decade, an amount twice as large as the global average. Because bogs and other peatlands are carbon sinks, they are releasing large amounts of greenhouse gases as they warm up.[26] These changes have resulted in a severe decline of biodiversity and species populations of peatlands throughout Northern Europe.[27]

Types edit

Bog habitats may develop in various situations, depending on the climate and topography[28] (see also hydrosere succession).

By location and water source edit

Bogs may be classified on their topography, proximity to water, method of recharge, and nutrient accumulation .[29]

Valley bog edit

 
Aerial image of Carbajal Valley peat bogs, Tierra del Fuego Province, Argentina

These develop in gently sloping valleys or hollows. A layer of peat fills the deepest part of the valley, and a stream may run through the surface of the bog. Valley bogs may develop in relatively dry and warm climates, but because they rely on ground or surface water, they only occur on acidic substrates.[citation needed][clarification needed]

Raised bog edit

 
Viru Bog in Lahemaa National Park, Estonia, which is rich in raised bogs

These develop from a lake or flat marshy area, over either non-acidic or acidic substrates. Over centuries there is a progression from open lake, to a marsh, to a fen (or, on acidic substrates, valley bog), to a carr, as silt or peat accumulates within the lake. Eventually, peat builds up to a level where the land surface is too flat for ground or surface water to reach the center of the wetland. This part, therefore, becomes wholly rain-fed (ombrotrophic), and the resulting acidic conditions allow the development of bog (even if the substrate is non-acidic). The bog continues to form peat, and over time a shallow dome of bog peat develops into a raised bog. The dome is typically a few meters high in the center and is often surrounded by strips of fen or other wetland vegetation at the edges or along streamsides where groundwater can percolate into the wetland.

The various types of raised bog may be divided into:

Blanket bog edit

 
Sphagnum moss and sedges can produce floating bog mats along the shores of small lakes. This bog in Duck Lake, Oregon also supports a carnivorous plant, sundew.
 
Blanket bog in Connemara, Ireland

In cool climates with consistently high rainfall (on more than c. 235 days a year), the ground surface may remain waterlogged for much of the time, providing conditions for the development of bog vegetation. In these circumstances, bog develops as a layer "blanketing" much of the land, including hilltops and slopes.[30] Although a blanket bog is more common on acidic substrates, under some conditions it may also develop on neutral or even alkaline ones, if abundant acidic rainwater predominates over the groundwater. A blanket bog can occur in drier or warmer climates, because under those conditions hilltops and sloping ground dry out too often for peat to form – in intermediate climates a blanket bog may be limited to areas which are shaded from direct sunshine. In periglacial climates a patterned form of blanket bog may occur, known as a string bog. In Europe, these mostly very thin peat layers without significant surface structures are distributed over the hills and valleys of Ireland, Scotland, England, and Norway. In North America, blanket bogs occur predominantly in Canada east of Hudson Bay. These bogs are often still under the influence of mineral soil water (groundwater). Blanket bogs do not occur north of the 65th latitude in the northern hemisphere.[14]

Quaking bog edit

A quaking bog, schwingmoor, or swingmoor is a form of floating bog occurring in wetter parts of valley bogs and raised bogs and sometimes around the edges of acidic lakes. The bog vegetation, mostly sphagnum moss anchored by sedges (such as Carex lasiocarpa), forms a floating mat approximately half a meter thick on the surface of water or above very wet peat. White spruce (Picea glauca) may grow in this bog regime. Walking on the surface causes it to move – larger movements may cause visible ripples on the surface, or they may even make trees sway. The bog mat may eventually spread across the water surface to cover bays or even entire small lakes. Bogs at the edges of lakes may become detached and form floating islands.[31]

Cataract bog edit

A cataract bog is a rare ecological community formed where a permanent stream flows over a granite outcropping. The sheeting of water keeps the edges of the rock wet without eroding the soil, but in this precarious location, no tree or large shrub can maintain a roothold. The result is a narrow, permanently wet habitat.[14]

Uses edit

Industrial uses edit

 
The Sitniki peat bog in Russia recultivated after industrial use

After drying, peat is used as a fuel, and it has been used that way for centuries. More than 20% of home heat in Ireland comes from peat, and it is also used for fuel in Finland, Scotland, Germany, and Russia. Russia is the leading exporter of peat for fuel, at more than 90 million metric tons per year. Ireland's Bord na Móna ("peat board") was one of the first companies to mechanically harvest peat, which is being phased out.[32]

The other major use of dried peat is as a soil amendment (sold as moss peat or sphagnum peat) to increase the soil's capacity to retain moisture and enrich the soil.[4] It is also used as a mulch. Some distilleries, notably in the Islay whisky-producing region, use the smoke from peat fires to dry the barley used in making Scotch whisky.[citation needed]

Once the peat has been extracted it can be difficult to restore the wetland, since peat accumulation is a slow process.[4][33][34] More than 90% of the bogs in England have been damaged or destroyed.[35][36] In 2011 plans for the elimination of peat in gardening products were announced by the UK government.[4]

Other uses edit

The peat in bogs is an important place for the storage of carbon. If the peat decays, carbon dioxide would be released to the atmosphere, contributing to global warming. Undisturbed, bogs function as a carbon sink.[4][37][38] As one example, the peatlands of the former Soviet Union were calculated to be removing 52 Tg of carbon per year from the atmosphere.[21]: 41  Therefore, the rewetting of drained peatlands may be one of the most cost-effective ways to mitigate climate change.[39]

Peat bogs are also important in storing fresh water, particularly in the headwaters of large rivers. Even the enormous Yangtze River arises in the Ruoergai peatland near its headwaters in Tibet.[1]: fig. 13.8 

Blueberries, cranberries, cloudberries, huckleberries, and lingonberries are harvested from the wild in bogs. Bog oak, wood that has been partially preserved by bogs, has been used in the manufacture of furniture.[citation needed]

Sphagnum bogs are also used for outdoor recreation, with activities including ecotourism and hunting. For example, many popular canoe routes in northern Canada include areas of peatland. Some other activities, such as all-terrain vehicle use, are especially damaging to bogs.[citation needed][40]

Archaeology edit

The anaerobic environment and presence of tannic acids within bogs can result in the remarkable preservation of organic material. Finds of such material have been made in Slovenia, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Russia, and the United Kingdom. Some bogs have preserved bog-wood such as ancient oak logs useful in dendrochronology, and they have yielded extremely well-preserved bog bodies, with hair, organs, and skin intact, buried there thousands of years ago after apparent Germanic and Celtic human sacrifice. Excellent examples of such human specimens include the Haraldskær Woman and Tollund Man in Denmark,[41] and Lindow man found at Lindow Common in England. The Tollund Man was so well preserved that when the body was discovered in 1950, the discoverers thought it was a recent murder victim[42] and researchers were even able to tell the last meal that the Tollund Man ate before he died: porridge and fish.[43] This process happens because of the low oxygen levels of bogs in combination with the high acidity. These anaerobic conditions lead to some of the best preserved mummies and offer a lot of archeological insight on society as far as 8,000 years back.[44] Céide Fields in County Mayo in Ireland, a 5,000-year-old neolithic farming landscape has been found preserved under a blanket bog, complete with field walls and hut sites. One ancient artifact found in various bogs is bog butter, large masses of fat, usually in wooden containers. These are thought to have been food stores, of both butter and tallow.[45]

Image gallery edit

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e Keddy, P.A. (2010). Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0521739672.
  2. ^ Watson, Geraldine Ellis (2000) Big Thicket Plant Ecology: An Introduction, Third Edition (Temple Big Thicket Series #5). University of North Texas Press. Denton, Texas. 152 pp. ISBN 978-1574412147
  3. ^ Texas Parks and Wildlife. Ecological Mapping Systems of Texas: "West Gulf Coastal Plain Seepage Swamp and Baygall". Retrieved 7 July 2020
  4. ^ a b c d e Rosenthal, Elisabeth (6 October 2012). "British Soil Is Battlefield Over Peat, for Bogs' Sake". The New York Times. from the original on 7 October 2012. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  5. ^ "Peatlands and climate change". IUCN. 6 November 2017. Retrieved 15 August 2019.
  6. ^ "Bog". Education | National Geographic Society. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
  7. ^ a b c d Rydin, Håkan; Jeglum, J. K. (2013). The Biology of Peatlands (Second ed.). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press Oxford. ISBN 978-0-19-150828-8. OCLC 861559248.
  8. ^ Gorham, E. (1957). "The development of peatlands". Quarterly Review of Biology. 32 (2): 145–66. doi:10.1086/401755. S2CID 129085635.
  9. ^ a b Fraser, L.H.; Keddy, P.A., eds. (2005). The World's Largest Wetlands: Ecology and Conservation. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521834049.
  10. ^ Adamovich, Alexander (2005). . Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Archived from the original on 11 August 2017. Retrieved 23 April 2010.
  11. ^ Swindles, Graeme T.; Morris, Paul J.; Mullan, Donal J.; Payne, Richard J.; Roland, Thomas P.; Amesbury, Matthew J.; Lamentowicz, Mariusz; Turner, T. Edward; Gallego-Sala, Angela; Sim, Thomas; Barr, Iestyn D. (21 October 2019). "Widespread drying of European peatlands in recent centuries". Nature Geoscience. 12 (11): 922–928. Bibcode:2019NatGe..12..922S. doi:10.1038/s41561-019-0462-z. ISSN 1752-0908. S2CID 202908362. Alt URL
  12. ^ Smith, David (27 May 2014). "Peat bog as big as England found in Congo". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 May 2014.
  13. ^ Mitsch, William J. (2007). Wetlands. James G. Gosselink (4th ed.). Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley. ISBN 978-0-471-69967-5. OCLC 78893363.
  14. ^ a b c Keddy, Paul A. (2010). Wetland ecology: principles and conservation (2nd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-139-22365-2. OCLC 801405617.
  15. ^ "Home Organization Selection". docs.shib.ncsu.edu. doi:10.1046/j.1365-2699.2000.00458.x. S2CID 84241035. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
  16. ^ Keddy, P.A. (2007). Plants and Vegetation: Origins, Processes, Consequences. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0521864800.
  17. ^ Archibold, O.W. (1995). Ecology of World Vegetation. London: Chapman and Hall. ISBN 978-0-412-44290-2.
  18. ^ Bond, G. (1985). Salisbury, F.B.; Ross, C.W. (eds.). Plant Physiology (Wadsworth biology series) (3rd ed.). Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole. p. 254. ISBN 0534044824. See figure 13.3.
  19. ^ Tutterow, Annalee M.; Graeter, Gabrielle J.; Pittman, Shannon E. (June 2017). "Bog Turtle Demographics within the Southern Population". Ichthyology & Herpetology. 105 (2): 293–300. doi:10.1643/CH-16-478. ISSN 2766-1512. S2CID 90491294.
  20. ^ Farren, Aodan; Prodöhl, Paulo; Laming, Peter; Reid, Neil (1 January 2010). "Distribution of the common lizard (Zootoca vivipara) and landscape favourability for the species in Northern Ireland". Amphibia-Reptilia. 31 (3): 387–394. doi:10.1163/156853810791769428. ISSN 1568-5381.
  21. ^ a b Solomeshch, A.I. (2005). "The West Siberian Lowland". In Fraser, L.H.; Keddy, P.A. (eds.). The World's Largest Wetlands: Ecology and Conservation. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. pp. 11–62. ISBN 9780521834049.
  22. ^ "Russian Zapovedniks and National Parks". Russian Nature. from the original on 11 March 2018. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
  23. ^ Boethius, Adam; Kjällquist, Mathilda; Magnell, Ola; Apel, Jan (29 July 2020). "Human encroachment, climate change and the loss of our archaeological organic cultural heritage: Accelerated bone deterioration at Ageröd, a revisited Scandinavian Mesolithic key-site in despair". PLOS ONE. 15 (7): e0236105. Bibcode:2020PLoSO..1536105B. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0236105. PMC 7390309. PMID 32726345.
  24. ^ Sperle, Thomas; Bruelheide, Helge (25 October 2020). "Climate change aggravates bog species extinctions in the Black Forest (Germany)". Diversity and Distributions. 27 (2): 282–295. doi:10.1111/ddi.13184.
  25. ^ Boethius, Adam; Kjällquist, Mathilda; Magnell, Ola; Apel, Jan (29 July 2020). "Human encroachment, climate change and the loss of our archaeological organic cultural heritage: Accelerated bone deterioration at Ageröd, a revisited Scandinavian Mesolithic key-site in despair". PLOS ONE. 15 (7): e0236105. Bibcode:2020PLoSO..1536105B. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0236105. PMC 7390309. PMID 32726345.
  26. ^ Schuur, E. A. G.; McGuire, A.; Schadel, C. (9 April 2015). "Climate change and the permafrost carbon feedback". Nature. 520 (7546): 171–179. Bibcode:2015Natur.520..171S. doi:10.1038/nature14338. PMID 25855454. S2CID 4460926.
  27. ^ Boethius, Adam; Kjällquist, Mathilda; Magnell, Ola; Apel, Jan (29 July 2020). "Human encroachment, climate change and the loss of our archaeological organic cultural heritage: Accelerated bone deterioration at Ageröd, a revisited Scandinavian Mesolithic key-site in despair". PLOS ONE. 15 (7): e0236105. Bibcode:2020PLoSO..1536105B. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0236105. PMC 7390309. PMID 32726345.
  28. ^ Glaser, P.H. (1992). "Raised bogs in eastern North America: regional controls for species richness and floristic assemblages". Journal of Ecology. 80 (3): 535–54. doi:10.2307/2260697. JSTOR 2260697.
  29. ^ Damman, A.W.H. (1986). "Hydrology, development, and biogeochemistry of ombrogenous bogs with special reference to nutrient relocation in a western Newfoundland bog". Canadian Journal of Botany. 64: 384–94. doi:10.1139/b86-055.
  30. ^ van Breeman, N. (1995). "How Sphagnum bogs down [sic] other plants". Trends in Ecology and Evolution. 10 (7): 270–275. doi:10.1016/0169-5347(95)90007-1. PMID 21237035.
  31. ^ Appleton, Andrea (6 March 2018). "How Do You Solve a Problem Like a Giant Floating Bog?". Atlas Obscura. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
  32. ^ de Róiste, Daithí (5 October 2015). "Bord na Móna announces biggest change of land use in modern Irish history". Bord na Móna. from the original on 7 October 2015. Retrieved 18 October 2021.
  33. ^ Campbell, D.R.; Rochefort, L. (2003). "Germination and seedling growth of bog plants in relation to the recolonization of milled peatlands". Plant Ecology. 169: 71–84. doi:10.1023/A:1026258114901. S2CID 42590665.
  34. ^ Cobbaert, D.; Rochefort, L.; Price, J.S. (2004). "Experimental restoration of a fen plant community after peat mining". Applied Vegetation Science. 7 (2): 209–20. doi:10.1111/j.1654-109X.2004.tb00612.x.
  35. ^ "Insight into threatened peat bogs". BBC News. 31 July 2004. from the original on 24 October 2007. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
  36. ^ . RSPB. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007.
  37. ^ Gorham, E. (1991). "Northern peatlands role in the carbon cycle and probable responses to climatic warming". Ecological Applications. 1 (2): 182–95. doi:10.2307/1941811. JSTOR 1941811. PMID 27755660. S2CID 2701885.
  38. ^ Loisel, Julie; Gallego-Sala, Angela (21 December 2020). "Guest post: How human activity threatens the world's carbon-rich peatlands". Carbon Brief. from the original on 21 December 2020. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
  39. ^ Mandel, Martti (10 November 2018). "Interview: Rewetting Peatlands to Cut Emissions". EUKI. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
  40. ^ Taylor, Richard B, "THE EFFECTS OF OFF-ROAD VEHICLES ON ECOSYSTEMS," 2001.
  41. ^ Glob, P.V. (2011). The Bog People: Iron Age Man Preserved. Faber and Faber. ISBN 978-0571270903.
  42. ^ "Welcome to the story of the Tollundman". Silkeborg Museum.
  43. ^ Nielsen, N.; Henriksen, P.; Enevold, R.; Mortensen, M; Scavenius, C.; Enghild, J. (2021). "The last meal of Tollund Man: New analyses of his gut content". Antiquity. 95 (383): 1195–1212. doi:10.15184/aqy.2021.98. S2CID 238030730.
  44. ^ "Welcome to the story of the Tollundman". Silkeborg Museum.
  45. ^ Earwood, Caroline (1997). "Bog Butter: A Two Thousand Year History". The Journal of Irish Archaeology. 8: 25–42. ISSN 0268-537X. JSTOR 30001649.

Bibliography edit

  • Aiton, William (1811). General View of The Agriculture of the County of Ayr; observations on the means of its improvement; drawn up for the consideration of the Board of Agriculture, and Internal Improvements, with Beautiful Engravings. Glasgow.

External links edit

this, article, about, type, wetland, other, uses, disambiguation, bogland, wetland, that, accumulates, peat, deposit, dead, plant, materials, often, mosses, typically, sphagnum, moss, four, main, types, wetlands, other, names, bogs, include, mire, mosses, quag. This article is about the type of wetland For other uses see Bog disambiguation A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials often mosses typically sphagnum moss 1 It is one of the four main types of wetlands Other names for bogs include mire mosses quagmire and muskeg alkaline mires are called fens clarification needed A baygall is another type of bog found in the forest of the Gulf Coast states in the United States 2 3 They are often covered in heath or heather shrubs rooted in the sphagnum moss and peat The gradual accumulation of decayed plant material in a bog functions as a carbon sink 4 5 A bog in Lauhanvuori National Park Isojoki FinlandTourbiere du Lac a la Tortue fr ombrotrophic Quebec CanadaPeat bog and peat to dry L Isle aux Coudres Quebec Canada 1976 source source source source source source source source source Drone video of Kakerdaja bog in Estonia September 2021 Precipitation accumulates in many bogs forming bog pools such as Koitjarve bog in Estonia A raised bog in kemeri National Park Jurmala Latvia formed approximately 10 000 years ago in the postglacial period and now a tourist attractionBogs occur where the water at the ground surface is acidic and low in nutrients A bog usually is found at a freshwater soft spongy ground that is made up of decayed plant matter which is known as peat They are generally found in cooler northern climates and are formed in poorly draining lake basins 6 In contrast to fens they derive most of their water from precipitation rather than mineral rich ground or surface water 7 Water flowing out of bogs has a characteristic brown colour which comes from dissolved peat tannins In general the low fertility and cool climate result in relatively slow plant growth but decay is even slower due to low oxygen levels in saturated bog soils Hence peat accumulates Large areas of the landscape can be covered many meters deep in peat 1 8 Bogs have distinctive assemblages of animal fungal and plant species and are of high importance for biodiversity particularly in landscapes that are otherwise settled and farmed Contents 1 Distribution and extent 2 Definition 3 Ecology and protection 4 Types 4 1 By location and water source 4 1 1 Valley bog 4 1 2 Raised bog 4 1 3 Blanket bog 4 1 4 Quaking bog 4 1 5 Cataract bog 5 Uses 5 1 Industrial uses 5 2 Other uses 6 Archaeology 7 Image gallery 8 See also 9 References 10 Bibliography 11 External linksDistribution and extent edit nbsp Carnivorous plants such as this Sarracenia purpurea pitcher plant of the eastern seaboard of North America are often found in bogs Capturing insects provides nitrogen and phosphorus which are usually scarce in such conditions Bogs are widely distributed in cold temperate climes mostly in boreal ecosystems in the Northern Hemisphere The world s largest wetland is the peat bogs of the Western Siberian Lowlands in Russia which cover more than a million square kilometres 9 Large peat bogs also occur in North America particularly the Hudson Bay Lowland and the Mackenzie River Basin 9 They are less common in the Southern Hemisphere with the largest being the Magellanic moorland comprising some 44 000 square kilometres 17 000 sq mi in southern South America Sphagnum bogs were widespread in northern Europe 10 but have often been cleared and drained for agriculture A paper led by Graeme T Swindles in 2019 showed that peatlands across Europe have undergone rapid drying in recent centuries owing to human impacts including drainage peat cutting and burning 11 A 2014 expedition leaving from Itanga village Republic of the Congo discovered a peat bog as big as England which stretches into neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo 12 Definition editLike all wetlands it is difficult to rigidly define bogs for a number of reasons including variations between bogs the in between nature of wetlands as an intermediate between terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems and varying definitions between wetland classification systems 13 14 However there are characteristics common to all bogs that provide a broad definition 7 Peat is present usually thicker than 30 cm The wetland receives most of its water and nutrients from precipitation ombrotrophic rather than surface or groundwater minerotrophic The wetland is nutrient poor oligotrophic The wetland is strongly acidic bogs near coastal areas may be less acidic due to sea spray Because all bogs have peat they are a type of peatland As a peat producing ecosystem they are also classified as mires along with fens Bogs differ from fens in that fens receive water and nutrients from mineral rich surface or groundwater while bogs receive water and nutrients from precipitation 7 Because fens are supplied with mineral rich water they tend to be slightly acidic to slightly basic while bogs are always acidic because precipitation is mineral poor 7 Ecology and protection edit nbsp An expanse of wet Sphagnum bog in Frontenac National Park Quebec Canada Spruce trees can be seen on a forested ridge in the background There are many highly specialized animals fungi and plants associated with bog habitat Most are capable of tolerating the combination of low nutrient levels and waterlogging 1 chapter 3 Sphagnum is generally abundant along with ericaceous shrubs 15 The shrubs are often evergreen which may assist in conservation of nutrients 16 In drier locations evergreen trees can occur in which case the bog blends into the surrounding expanses of boreal evergreen forest 17 Sedges are one of the more common herbaceous species Carnivorous plants such as sundews Drosera and pitcher plants for example Sarracenia purpurea have adapted to the low nutrient conditions by using invertebrates as a nutrient source Orchids have adapted to these conditions through the use of mycorrhizal fungi to extract nutrients 1 88 Some shrubs such as Myrica gale bog myrtle have root nodules in which nitrogen fixation occurs thereby providing another supplemental source of nitrogen 18 nbsp Many species of evergreen shrub are found in bogs such as Labrador tea Bogs are recognized as a significant specific habitat type by a number of governmental and conservation agencies They can provide habitat for mammals such as caribou moose and beavers as well as for species of nesting shorebirds such as Siberian cranes and yellowlegs Bogs contain species of vulnerable reptilians such as the bog turtle 19 Bogs even have distinctive insects English bogs give a home to a yellow fly called the hairy canary fly Phaonia jaroschewskii and bogs in North America are habitat for a butterfly called the bog copper Lycaena epixanthe In Ireland the viviparous lizard the only known reptile in the country dwells in bogland 20 The United Kingdom in its Biodiversity Action Plan establishes bog habitats as a priority for conservation Russia has a large reserve system in the West Siberian Lowland 21 The highest protected status occurs in Zapovedniks IUCN category IV Gydansky 22 and Yugansky are two prominent examples citation needed Bogs are fragile ecosystems and have been deteriorating quickly as archaeologists and scientists have been recently finding Bone material found in bogs has had accelerated deterioration from first analyses in the 1940s 23 This has been found to be from fluctuations in ground water and increase in acidity 24 in lower areas of bogs that is affecting the rich organic material Many of these areas have been permeated to the lowest levels with oxygen which dries and cracks layers There have been some temporary solutions to try and fix these issues such as adding soil to the tops of threatened areas yet they do not work in the long term 25 Extreme weather like dry summers are likely the cause as they lower precipitation and the groundwater table It is speculated that these issues will only increase with a rise in global temperature and climate change Since bogs take thousands of years to form and create the rich peat that is used as a resource once they are gone they are extremely hard to recover Arctic and sub Arctic circles where many bogs are warming at 0 6 C per decade an amount twice as large as the global average Because bogs and other peatlands are carbon sinks they are releasing large amounts of greenhouse gases as they warm up 26 These changes have resulted in a severe decline of biodiversity and species populations of peatlands throughout Northern Europe 27 Types editBog habitats may develop in various situations depending on the climate and topography 28 see also hydrosere succession By location and water source edit Bogs may be classified on their topography proximity to water method of recharge and nutrient accumulation 29 Valley bog edit nbsp Aerial image of Carbajal Valley peat bogs Tierra del Fuego Province ArgentinaThese develop in gently sloping valleys or hollows A layer of peat fills the deepest part of the valley and a stream may run through the surface of the bog Valley bogs may develop in relatively dry and warm climates but because they rely on ground or surface water they only occur on acidic substrates citation needed clarification needed Raised bog edit This section does not cite any sources Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed January 2021 Learn how and when to remove this template message nbsp Viru Bog in Lahemaa National Park Estonia which is rich in raised bogsMain article Raised bog These develop from a lake or flat marshy area over either non acidic or acidic substrates Over centuries there is a progression from open lake to a marsh to a fen or on acidic substrates valley bog to a carr as silt or peat accumulates within the lake Eventually peat builds up to a level where the land surface is too flat for ground or surface water to reach the center of the wetland This part therefore becomes wholly rain fed ombrotrophic and the resulting acidic conditions allow the development of bog even if the substrate is non acidic The bog continues to form peat and over time a shallow dome of bog peat develops into a raised bog The dome is typically a few meters high in the center and is often surrounded by strips of fen or other wetland vegetation at the edges or along streamsides where groundwater can percolate into the wetland The various types of raised bog may be divided into Coastal bog Plateau bog Upland bog Kermi bog String bog Palsa bog Polygonal bogBlanket bog edit Main article Blanket bog nbsp Sphagnum moss and sedges can produce floating bog mats along the shores of small lakes This bog in Duck Lake Oregon also supports a carnivorous plant sundew nbsp Blanket bog in Connemara IrelandIn cool climates with consistently high rainfall on more than c 235 days a year the ground surface may remain waterlogged for much of the time providing conditions for the development of bog vegetation In these circumstances bog develops as a layer blanketing much of the land including hilltops and slopes 30 Although a blanket bog is more common on acidic substrates under some conditions it may also develop on neutral or even alkaline ones if abundant acidic rainwater predominates over the groundwater A blanket bog can occur in drier or warmer climates because under those conditions hilltops and sloping ground dry out too often for peat to form in intermediate climates a blanket bog may be limited to areas which are shaded from direct sunshine In periglacial climates a patterned form of blanket bog may occur known as a string bog In Europe these mostly very thin peat layers without significant surface structures are distributed over the hills and valleys of Ireland Scotland England and Norway In North America blanket bogs occur predominantly in Canada east of Hudson Bay These bogs are often still under the influence of mineral soil water groundwater Blanket bogs do not occur north of the 65th latitude in the northern hemisphere 14 Quaking bog edit A quaking bog schwingmoor or swingmoor is a form of floating bog occurring in wetter parts of valley bogs and raised bogs and sometimes around the edges of acidic lakes The bog vegetation mostly sphagnum moss anchored by sedges such as Carex lasiocarpa forms a floating mat approximately half a meter thick on the surface of water or above very wet peat White spruce Picea glauca may grow in this bog regime Walking on the surface causes it to move larger movements may cause visible ripples on the surface or they may even make trees sway The bog mat may eventually spread across the water surface to cover bays or even entire small lakes Bogs at the edges of lakes may become detached and form floating islands 31 Cataract bog edit A cataract bog is a rare ecological community formed where a permanent stream flows over a granite outcropping The sheeting of water keeps the edges of the rock wet without eroding the soil but in this precarious location no tree or large shrub can maintain a roothold The result is a narrow permanently wet habitat 14 Uses editIndustrial uses edit nbsp The Sitniki peat bog in Russia recultivated after industrial useAfter drying peat is used as a fuel and it has been used that way for centuries More than 20 of home heat in Ireland comes from peat and it is also used for fuel in Finland Scotland Germany and Russia Russia is the leading exporter of peat for fuel at more than 90 million metric tons per year Ireland s Bord na Mona peat board was one of the first companies to mechanically harvest peat which is being phased out 32 The other major use of dried peat is as a soil amendment sold as moss peat or sphagnum peat to increase the soil s capacity to retain moisture and enrich the soil 4 It is also used as a mulch Some distilleries notably in the Islay whisky producing region use the smoke from peat fires to dry the barley used in making Scotch whisky citation needed Once the peat has been extracted it can be difficult to restore the wetland since peat accumulation is a slow process 4 33 34 More than 90 of the bogs in England have been damaged or destroyed 35 36 In 2011 plans for the elimination of peat in gardening products were announced by the UK government 4 Other uses edit The peat in bogs is an important place for the storage of carbon If the peat decays carbon dioxide would be released to the atmosphere contributing to global warming Undisturbed bogs function as a carbon sink 4 37 38 As one example the peatlands of the former Soviet Union were calculated to be removing 52 Tg of carbon per year from the atmosphere 21 41 Therefore the rewetting of drained peatlands may be one of the most cost effective ways to mitigate climate change 39 Peat bogs are also important in storing fresh water particularly in the headwaters of large rivers Even the enormous Yangtze River arises in the Ruoergai peatland near its headwaters in Tibet 1 fig 13 8 Blueberries cranberries cloudberries huckleberries and lingonberries are harvested from the wild in bogs Bog oak wood that has been partially preserved by bogs has been used in the manufacture of furniture citation needed Sphagnum bogs are also used for outdoor recreation with activities including ecotourism and hunting For example many popular canoe routes in northern Canada include areas of peatland Some other activities such as all terrain vehicle use are especially damaging to bogs citation needed 40 Archaeology editThe anaerobic environment and presence of tannic acids within bogs can result in the remarkable preservation of organic material Finds of such material have been made in Slovenia Denmark Germany Ireland Russia and the United Kingdom Some bogs have preserved bog wood such as ancient oak logs useful in dendrochronology and they have yielded extremely well preserved bog bodies with hair organs and skin intact buried there thousands of years ago after apparent Germanic and Celtic human sacrifice Excellent examples of such human specimens include the Haraldskaer Woman and Tollund Man in Denmark 41 and Lindow man found at Lindow Common in England The Tollund Man was so well preserved that when the body was discovered in 1950 the discoverers thought it was a recent murder victim 42 and researchers were even able to tell the last meal that the Tollund Man ate before he died porridge and fish 43 This process happens because of the low oxygen levels of bogs in combination with the high acidity These anaerobic conditions lead to some of the best preserved mummies and offer a lot of archeological insight on society as far as 8 000 years back 44 Ceide Fields in County Mayo in Ireland a 5 000 year old neolithic farming landscape has been found preserved under a blanket bog complete with field walls and hut sites One ancient artifact found in various bogs is bog butter large masses of fat usually in wooden containers These are thought to have been food stores of both butter and tallow 45 Image gallery edit nbsp Sphagnum with northern pitcher plants at Brown s Lake Bog Ohio nbsp A bog in Ostfriesland nbsp Bog wood and boulders at the Stumpy Knowe near South Auchenmade Ayrshire Scotland nbsp Bog with October morning mist in Mukri EstoniaSee also edit nbsp Wetlands portalBlackwater river Slow moving dark colored river flowing through forested swamps or wetlands Bog body Corpse preserved in a bog Bog butter Ancient substance found in peat bogs Bog iron Form of iron ore deposited in bogs Irish Peatland Conservation Council Kerry bog slides 2008 series of bogslides in County Kerry Ireland Kettle bog Depression or hole in an outwash plain formed by retreating glaciers or draining floodwaters List of bogs Paludification ecological process of peatland formationPages displaying wikidata descriptions as a fallbackReferences edit a b c d e Keddy P A 2010 Wetland Ecology Principles and Conservation 2nd ed Cambridge University Press ISBN 978 0521739672 Watson Geraldine Ellis 2000 Big Thicket Plant Ecology An Introduction Third Edition Temple Big Thicket Series 5 University of North Texas Press Denton Texas 152 pp ISBN 978 1574412147 Texas Parks and Wildlife Ecological Mapping Systems of Texas West Gulf Coastal Plain Seepage Swamp and Baygall Retrieved 7 July 2020 a b c d e Rosenthal Elisabeth 6 October 2012 British Soil Is Battlefield Over Peat for Bogs Sake The New York Times Archived from the original on 7 October 2012 Retrieved 7 October 2012 Peatlands and climate change IUCN 6 November 2017 Retrieved 15 August 2019 Bog Education National Geographic Society Retrieved 25 February 2023 a b c d Rydin Hakan Jeglum J K 2013 The Biology of Peatlands Second ed Oxford UK Oxford University Press Oxford ISBN 978 0 19 150828 8 OCLC 861559248 Gorham E 1957 The development of peatlands Quarterly Review of Biology 32 2 145 66 doi 10 1086 401755 S2CID 129085635 a b Fraser L H Keddy P A eds 2005 The World s Largest Wetlands Ecology and Conservation Cambridge UK Cambridge University Press ISBN 9780521834049 Adamovich Alexander 2005 Country Pasture Forage Resource Profiles Latvia Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Archived from the original on 11 August 2017 Retrieved 23 April 2010 Swindles Graeme T Morris Paul J Mullan Donal J Payne Richard J Roland Thomas P Amesbury Matthew J Lamentowicz Mariusz Turner T Edward Gallego Sala Angela Sim Thomas Barr Iestyn D 21 October 2019 Widespread drying of European peatlands in recent centuries Nature Geoscience 12 11 922 928 Bibcode 2019NatGe 12 922S doi 10 1038 s41561 019 0462 z ISSN 1752 0908 S2CID 202908362 Alt URL Smith David 27 May 2014 Peat bog as big as England found in Congo The Guardian Retrieved 31 May 2014 Mitsch William J 2007 Wetlands James G Gosselink 4th ed Hoboken N J Wiley ISBN 978 0 471 69967 5 OCLC 78893363 a b c Keddy Paul A 2010 Wetland ecology principles and conservation 2nd ed Cambridge Cambridge University Press ISBN 978 1 139 22365 2 OCLC 801405617 Home Organization Selection docs shib ncsu edu doi 10 1046 j 1365 2699 2000 00458 x S2CID 84241035 Retrieved 23 February 2021 Keddy P A 2007 Plants and Vegetation Origins Processes Consequences Cambridge UK Cambridge University Press ISBN 978 0521864800 Archibold O W 1995 Ecology of World Vegetation London Chapman and Hall ISBN 978 0 412 44290 2 Bond G 1985 Salisbury F B Ross C W eds Plant Physiology Wadsworth biology series 3rd ed Belmont CA Brooks Cole p 254 ISBN 0534044824 See figure 13 3 Tutterow Annalee M Graeter Gabrielle J Pittman Shannon E June 2017 Bog Turtle Demographics within the Southern Population Ichthyology amp Herpetology 105 2 293 300 doi 10 1643 CH 16 478 ISSN 2766 1512 S2CID 90491294 Farren Aodan Prodohl Paulo Laming Peter Reid Neil 1 January 2010 Distribution of the common lizard Zootoca vivipara and landscape favourability for the species in Northern Ireland Amphibia Reptilia 31 3 387 394 doi 10 1163 156853810791769428 ISSN 1568 5381 a b Solomeshch A I 2005 The West Siberian Lowland In Fraser L H Keddy P A eds The World s Largest Wetlands Ecology and Conservation Cambridge UK Cambridge University Press pp 11 62 ISBN 9780521834049 Russian Zapovedniks and National Parks Russian Nature Archived from the original on 11 March 2018 Retrieved 8 March 2018 Boethius Adam Kjallquist Mathilda Magnell Ola Apel Jan 29 July 2020 Human encroachment climate change and the loss of our archaeological organic cultural heritage Accelerated bone deterioration at Agerod a revisited Scandinavian Mesolithic key site in despair PLOS ONE 15 7 e0236105 Bibcode 2020PLoSO 1536105B doi 10 1371 journal pone 0236105 PMC 7390309 PMID 32726345 Sperle Thomas Bruelheide Helge 25 October 2020 Climate change aggravates bog species extinctions in the Black Forest Germany Diversity and Distributions 27 2 282 295 doi 10 1111 ddi 13184 Boethius Adam Kjallquist Mathilda Magnell Ola Apel Jan 29 July 2020 Human encroachment climate change and the loss of our archaeological organic cultural heritage Accelerated bone deterioration at Agerod a revisited Scandinavian Mesolithic key site in despair PLOS ONE 15 7 e0236105 Bibcode 2020PLoSO 1536105B doi 10 1371 journal pone 0236105 PMC 7390309 PMID 32726345 Schuur E A G McGuire A Schadel C 9 April 2015 Climate change and the permafrost carbon feedback Nature 520 7546 171 179 Bibcode 2015Natur 520 171S doi 10 1038 nature14338 PMID 25855454 S2CID 4460926 Boethius Adam Kjallquist Mathilda Magnell Ola Apel Jan 29 July 2020 Human encroachment climate change and the loss of our archaeological organic cultural heritage Accelerated bone deterioration at Agerod a revisited Scandinavian Mesolithic key site in despair PLOS ONE 15 7 e0236105 Bibcode 2020PLoSO 1536105B doi 10 1371 journal pone 0236105 PMC 7390309 PMID 32726345 Glaser P H 1992 Raised bogs in eastern North America regional controls for species richness and floristic assemblages Journal of Ecology 80 3 535 54 doi 10 2307 2260697 JSTOR 2260697 Damman A W H 1986 Hydrology development and biogeochemistry of ombrogenous bogs with special reference to nutrient relocation in a western Newfoundland bog Canadian Journal of Botany 64 384 94 doi 10 1139 b86 055 van Breeman N 1995 How Sphagnum bogs down sic other plants Trends in Ecology and Evolution 10 7 270 275 doi 10 1016 0169 5347 95 90007 1 PMID 21237035 Appleton Andrea 6 March 2018 How Do You Solve a Problem Like a Giant Floating Bog Atlas Obscura Retrieved 8 March 2018 de Roiste Daithi 5 October 2015 Bord na Mona announces biggest change of land use in modern Irish history Bord na Mona Archived from the original on 7 October 2015 Retrieved 18 October 2021 Campbell D R Rochefort L 2003 Germination and seedling growth of bog plants in relation to the recolonization of milled peatlands Plant Ecology 169 71 84 doi 10 1023 A 1026258114901 S2CID 42590665 Cobbaert D Rochefort L Price J S 2004 Experimental restoration of a fen plant community after peat mining Applied Vegetation Science 7 2 209 20 doi 10 1111 j 1654 109X 2004 tb00612 x Insight into threatened peat bogs BBC News 31 July 2004 Archived from the original on 24 October 2007 Retrieved 8 March 2018 Destruction of peat bogs RSPB Archived from the original on 30 September 2007 Gorham E 1991 Northern peatlands role in the carbon cycle and probable responses to climatic warming Ecological Applications 1 2 182 95 doi 10 2307 1941811 JSTOR 1941811 PMID 27755660 S2CID 2701885 Loisel Julie Gallego Sala Angela 21 December 2020 Guest post How human activity threatens the world s carbon rich peatlands Carbon Brief Archived from the original on 21 December 2020 Retrieved 1 January 2021 Mandel Martti 10 November 2018 Interview Rewetting Peatlands to Cut Emissions EUKI Retrieved 2 November 2019 Taylor Richard B THE EFFECTS OF OFF ROAD VEHICLES ON ECOSYSTEMS 2001 Glob P V 2011 The Bog People Iron Age Man Preserved Faber and Faber ISBN 978 0571270903 Welcome to the story of the Tollundman Silkeborg Museum Nielsen N Henriksen P Enevold R Mortensen M Scavenius C Enghild J 2021 The last meal of Tollund Man New analyses of his gut content Antiquity 95 383 1195 1212 doi 10 15184 aqy 2021 98 S2CID 238030730 Welcome to the story of the Tollundman Silkeborg Museum Earwood Caroline 1997 Bog Butter A Two Thousand Year History The Journal of Irish Archaeology 8 25 42 ISSN 0268 537X JSTOR 30001649 Bibliography editAiton William 1811 General View of The Agriculture of the County of Ayr observations on the means of its improvement drawn up for the consideration of the Board of Agriculture and Internal Improvements with Beautiful Engravings Glasgow External links edit nbsp Look up bog in Wiktionary the free dictionary nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bog Ballynahone Bog Archived 19 October 2021 at the Wayback Machine Black Spruce Bog Describes a forested bog type of North America Bog bodies Germany s Endangered Bogs slideshow by Der Spiegel Preserve peat bogs for climate BBC 28 March 2007 Bog Encyclopaedia Britannica 11th ed 1911 Bog The American Cyclopaedia 1879 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Bog amp oldid 1192931984, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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