Drainage Impact on Plant Cover and Hydrology of Aukštumala Raised Bog (Western Lithuania)

Abstract

Jarašius L., Matulevičiūtė D., Pakalnis R., Sendžikaitė J., Lygis V., 2014: Drainage impact on plant cover and hydrology of Aukštumala raised bog (western Lithuania) [Sausinimo įtaka Aukštumalos aukštapelkės hidrologinėms sąlygoms ir augalinei dangai]. -Bot. Lith., 20(2): 109-120.One-third of the former Aukštumala raised bog (western Lithuania) has been preserved as Telmological Reserve since 1995, while the remaining territory is still under active industrial peat mining or are abandoned peat harvesting fields. The present study was carried out in 2013 and aimed to assess long-term human impact on the structure of plant cover and hydrology of Aukštumala raised bog. On the basis of vegetation assessment (Twinspan analysis), four habitat types were identified: i) active raised bog, ii) degraded raised bog drained by ditches, iii) contact zone of the bog and the peat mining fields and iv) recently burnt areas. The largest anthropogenic impact on vegetation cover was found in the degraded raised bog drained by the ditches and in the burnt area, where the proportion of plant species atypical to ombrotrophic raised bogs was the highest. Water electrical conductivity negatively correlated (r = -0.57) with bog water level, whereas correlation between pH and bog water level was weaker (r = -0.38). Water level in the active raised bog was significantly higher than in the rest three habitat types. Electrical conductivity values in the active raised bog were significantly lower compared to the degraded raised bog and burned area habitats. In order to recreate favourable conditions for peat accumulation and natural functioning of bog ecosystem, mean bog water level should be raised at least up to -32 cm (the optimum water level assigned for most of the typical ombrotrophic species fell into the range of -20 --32 cm).

On the after‐use and restoration of abandoned extracted peatlands in the Baltic countries

“…The first small‐scale experiments to restore bog vegetation in an abandoned extracted peatland area were implemented in Aukštumala peatland in 2011–2012 (Fig. A & B) by planting 130 patches (5–7 cm thick and 0.4 × 0.4 m in size) collected from a donor site in a degraded part of the bog (0.12 ha) (Jarašius et al , Jarašius ). During the first year, 93% of the planted patches dominated by Sphagnum mosses established successfully.…”

Removal of birch as a means of protecting raised bog mossy vegetation Ledo-Sphagnetum magellanici

“…The conservation status of this habitat in the continental region of Polish territory was defined as bad (U2). The main threats to this habitat include the exploitation of peat, drainage and alien vegetation succession (http://cdr.eionet.europa.eu; Navrátil and Navrátilová 2007;Soini et al 2010;Jarašius et al 2014;Konvalinková and Prach 2014). Important factors affecting raised bogs are nitrogen deposits (Akagi and Osawa 2005;Juutinen et al 2010;Hurkuck et al 2014) and climate change, which impact the amount of precipitation and transpiration (Mauquoy and Yeloff 2008;Minayeva and Sirin 2012).…”