In almost any geographical area, one can find such an amazing natural landscape as a peat bog. This is a storehouse of colossal energy reserves, new fertile land and a water reservoir that provides river nutrition.
Description
A swamp is a site with excess moisture and stagnant water on the surface throughout the year. Due to the lack of a slope, no waste water occurs, and the plot is gradually covered by moisture-loving vegetation. As a result of a lack of air and excessive humidity, peat deposits form on the surface. Their thickness, as a rule, is at least 30 cm.
Peat is a mineral used as a source of fuel and organic fertilizer, therefore swamps are of great economic importance.
Reasons for the formation of peat bogs
The history of their appearance totals more than 400 million years. Modern "young" swamps reach the age of approximately 12 thousand years. Their total area around the planet is about 2, 682, 000 km², of which 73% is in Russia. The emergence of the swamp is preceded by a number of factors: humid climate, landscape features, the presence of water-resistant soil layers and the proximity of groundwater.
As a result of prolonged excess moisture in the soil, specific processes occur that lead to the accumulation of peat. Forests in conditions of oxygen starvation die, areas are inhabited by marsh vegetation, well adapted to such conditions. All this contributes to further waterlogging, which is accompanied by peat accumulation. With a lack of oxygen, plant residues do not decompose completely, gradually accumulate, forming a peat bog.
Vegetation
The peculiar living conditions contribute to the development of specific plants. The lack of water exchange creates a lack of lime in peat deposits. This leads to the propagation of sphagnum moss, which does not tolerate the presence of even a small amount of lime in water.
Typical plants of peat bogs include cranberries, blueberries, cloudberries, lingonberries, sundews, whitewashed. An interesting fact is that they all have features that prevent the loss of water, characteristic of plants that prevail in dry places.
Peat formation
It is an organic rock containing up to 50% of minerals. It contains bitumen, humic acids, their salts, as well as parts of plants that have not had time to decompose (stems, leaves, roots).
The top layer covering the peat bog is hydromorphic soil. It is populated by invertebrates and microorganisms, riddled with roots and participates in the metabolism with phytocenosis. The accumulation of peat is very slow - over a year, the layer thickness increases by no more than 1 mm. This largely depends on the growth rate of the main peat-forming agent - sphagnum moss.
Gradually, under the influence of the layers above, the peat is compacted, chemical transformations occur in it, and the inorganic part appears. The biological activity of this layer is preserved if the water level in the swamp is variable and decreases to 40 cm in summer.
Peat is a mineral used in a wide variety of industries and agriculture. It serves as a raw material for the creation of coarse but durable fabrics. Medicines are produced from peat. The ability of peat to absorb moisture allows it to be used as bedding for livestock. In addition, it is a great organic fertilizer.
The value of peat bogs
The high rate of drainage of the marshes led to the threat of their complete extinction. In 1971, the Ramsar Convention was signed, the purpose of which was the conservation of wetlands. Today, about 60 countries (including Russia) participate in it, which are especially concerned about the disappearance of peat bogs.
Any swamp is a natural reservoir. Together, they hold five times more fresh water than all the rivers in the world. Peat bogs are involved in the supply of rivers. The largest of them are able to stop forest fires. They humidify the air in the surrounding space and serve as a specific filter. During the year, 1 hectare of the swamp absorbs up to 1500 kg of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, releasing more than 500 kg of oxygen. Peat extraction often leads to the death of the swamp, and as a result, rivers become shallow, soil erosion is formed, and the landscape is changing.
In peat they find the remnants of plants, pollen, seeds that have been perfectly preserved for thousands of years, from which we can study the past of our planet. Findings in peat bogs helped, for example, scientists to establish that some species of animals managed to wait out there for a change in climatic conditions.
The swamp is the ecosystem least affected by human intervention; therefore, it is a reliable refuge for many plants and animals listed in the Red Book. Valuable berries grow here, such as cloudberries, cranberries, lingonberries.
