A £170,000 grant has been used to save a much overlooked but important habitat – the humble bog.
May Moss bog, in Langdale Forest, near Fylingdales, is believed to be nearly 9,000 years old and is a vitally important habitat, sustaining an array of plants, birds and insects.
But the fragile quagmire was being endangered by trees that were planted during the 20th Century to bolster the nation’s timber reserves, which had been left depleted following two world wars.
The trees were sucking the moisture from the ground and slowly drying out the ancient habitat.
Now the Forestry Commission has stepped in to remove 170,000 conifers from the site.
Specialist equipment which can mulch a tree in a few seconds was deployed in some parts of May Moss, while conventional mechanised harvesters were also used.
Already the bog has been given a new lease of life and plants such as sphagnum moss, cotton grass, and bog rosemary have begun to flourish, and numbers of insects, such as dragonflies, have been boosted.
Forestry Commission ecologist Brian Hicks said: “We have restored 150 hectares of the bog – twice as much as originally planned – by removing trees and blocking drainage channels to help the site retain rain water.
“The signs are encouraging with the return of vegetation to areas cleared of trees.
“Despite appearances this is a living habitat with about a metre of new peat being laid down every 1,000 years. Bogs may not have the profile of rainforests or ancient woods, but ecologically they are just as important.”
The work is also helping prevent flooding further along the moors.
Ditches are being blocked by the Yorkshire Peat Partnership and vegetation surveys undertaken by North York Moors National Park volunteers under the guidance of the York-based Place Education and Research Centre.
Sensors are also monitoring water flows, allowing experts at Liverpool University to gauge the success of the project.
Mr Hicks added: “Another major gain from restoring May Moss is that it is acting like a giant sponge, retaining water for longer and alleviating the severity of flooding downstream in vulnerable areas by reducing surging run-offs during storms or very wet periods.”
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