Bog

A bog is a wetland type that accumulates acidic peat, a deposit of dead plant material. The term peat bog in common usage is not entirely redundant, although it would be proper to call these sphagnum bogs if the peat is composed mostly of acidophilic moss (peat moss or Sphagnum spp.). Lichens are a principal component of peat in the far north. Moisture is provided entirely by precipitation and for this reason bog waters are acidic and termed ombrotrophic (or cloud-fed) which accounts for their low plant nutrient status. Excess rainfall outflows giving bog waters a distinctive tan colour.

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Bogs are widely distributed in cold, temperate climates, mostly in the northern hemisphere (Boreal). The world's largest wetlands are the bogs of the Western Siberian Lowlands in Russia which cover more than 600,000 square kilometres. Sphagnum bogs were widespread in northern Europe. Ireland was more than 15 per cent bog; Achill Island off Ireland is 87 per cent bog. There are extensive bogs in Canada (called muskegs), Scotland, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, and northern Germany. There are also bogs in the Falkland Islands. Ombrotrophic wetlands - i.e. bogs are also found in the tropics with notable areas documented in Kalimantan. These habitats are forested. Extensive bogs cover the northern areas of the U.S. states of Minnesota and Michigan, most notably on Isle Royale in Lake Superior.

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Wetland: In physical geography, a wetland is an environment "at the interface between truly terrestrial ecosystems...and truly aquatic systems...making them different from each yet highly dependent on both" (Mitsch & Gosselink, 1986). In essence, wetlands are ecotones....

Peat: Peat is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetable matter. Peat forms in wetlands or peatlands, variously called bogs, moors, muskegs, mires, tropical swamp forests and fens....

Moss: :This is an article about the plant. For other uses, see Moss (disambiguation)...

Bog related Images and Photos (experimental)

A bog star flower in a river-edge meadow

Bulldog in a Bog