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THE RURAL STEWARDSHIP SCHEME 16. Management of
Lowland Raised Bogs
| Aim: To enhance areas of lowland raised
bog for birdlife and to encourage botanical diversity that will benefit invertebrates
Some BAP species that may benefit: Skylark, Baltic bog-moss
Eligible sites: An area of lowland raised bog - an isolated
peat deposit over one metre thick that is surrounded by non-peat soils. |
A management plan should be prepared which will include the following
requirements as appropriate:
- Block existing ditches at intervals to raise or maintain the
water table at
or just below the surface of the vegetation (to prevent flooding
of sites). - Clear scrub and prevent recolonisation.
- Do not graze
with cattle at any time.
- Exclude other livestock from 1 November to 28
February.
- Do not stock at over 0.05 LU/Ha except with the prior written
agreement of Scottish Ministers.
- No supplementary feeding to occur
on the site. - No peat cutting to be carried out without the prior written
agreement
of Scottish Ministers. - No muirburn to be carried out on
the site.
| 
Lowland raised bog at Offerance Moss
Photo: L. Gill - SNH |
| Lowland Raised Bog |
box 3.14 |
| 
Sundew,
an insectiverous plant found in bogs
Photo: L. Gill - SNH
|
Intact lowland raised bogs are one of Europe's most threatened
habitats. They occur in the lowlands of central Scotland. They are recognised
by gently sloping domes of peat that have accumulated to a depth of many metres
over thousands of years. These peat layers form an invaluable 'environmental archive'
of preserved plant and insect remains and pollen. This can yield information relating
to ancient landscape and climate changes.
| 
Bog mosses
Photo: L. Gill - SNH
| The surface
of the bog is raised well above the influence of groundwater so that the vegetation
is dependent almost entirely on rain and snow for its source of nutrients. Only
plant species specially adapted to live in such waterlogged, nutrient-poor conditions
can survive, and this results in a specialised plant community supporting unusual
insects. The vegetation is usually dominated by bog mosses, heathers and cotton
grasses. This important habitat is threatened by drainage and water abstraction,
commercial-scale peat cutting and artificially introduced nutrients, overstocking
and repeated heavy burning. All of these increase the risk of altering the vegetation
composition to the detriment of its conservation value and, in extreme cases,
may initiate erosion of the peat surface. | < Previous | Contents | Next > | 
