Evaluating changes in Holocene and Anthropocene biodiversity and healthiness of Peatlands in England (UK)

The research aims to discover over what timescales current environmental conditions were emplaced, and is there evidence for a significant change in biodiversity? Do the peatlands (bog and fen) represent healthy ecosystems or indicate a trend towards biogeochemical degradation? Are the predicted future changes in precipitation and temperature because of global warming likely to initiate significant changes in peatland hydrology, biogeochemistry, and biodiversity, and what mitigation options might be explored to manage the problem?

 

The research will utilise various biotic and abiotic proxies to answer these questions. Testate amoebae will provide information on water table depth and can be used in reconstructing past hydrological conditions. Vegetation changes will be investigated using pollen and plant macrofossils. These can assist in distinguishing wet and dry phases in peatland history. The degree of humification will be assessed through analysing the biogeochemistry of the peat horizons extracted. Carbon/Nitrogen Ratios reflect decomposition and organic matter quality and stable Isotopes (e.g., δ¹³C, δ¹⁵N) indicate changes in vegetation type, hydrology, and decomposition processes. X-ray Fluorescence will be used to determine elemental composition (e.g., Ca, Fe, Ti) to infer environmental changes such as nutrient influx or atmospheric deposition. Analysis of carbonaceous particulate matter will allow us to investigate pollution events through time as well as fire history. Detailed dating of deposits over approximately the past 1000 years will be achieved using radiocarbon and Pb²¹⁰ dating. The evidence of changing hydrological and biogeochemical conditions gained through using these various proxies will be compared to present day surface data (vegetation, pH, Eh, Dissolved Organics).

 

To consider the likely effects of future climate change scenarios, we will evaluate the above findings within the context of Natural England’s Long-Term Monitoring Network (LTMN) datasets to increase understanding around the likely effects of climate change based on the latest climate models and explore potential beneficial mitigation options for each key site.

 

Recent field work has yielded the first set of cores from the Fenn’s, Whixall and Bettisfield lowland raised bog on the border of the English county of Shropshire and north Wales. We will present the findings from the preliminary palaeoenvironmental analyses of these cores. Further core samples will be taken from this site and other LTMN sites during 2025. Applications are being made to access protected Natural England peatland sites at Malham Tarn Moss and Featherbed Moss in northern England.

 

The findings from the research will inform Natural England on the historical development of LTMN sites including lowland raised bogs and fens as well as upland blanket bogs. Ongoing data collection on several nature reserves across England has been carried out since 2009, including vegetation, soil chemistry, air quality, mesofauna and microbes. A major challenge identified by the project, however, is a poor understanding of the historical context and likely future development of the environment at each reserve, particularly the response of peatland habitats to future climatic change.