In view of the sensitivity of Liparis loeselii to changes in habitat conditions, we carried out a study with the aim to monitor population numbers, identify the individual features of the Liparis loeselii population, analyse habitat conditions, identify threats and propose conservation measures to preserve the species. The investigations were conducted in seven unmanaged objects located in three Natura 2000 areas in eastern Poland. The results of this study provide a new insight into Liparis loeselii ecology. The analysed populations inhabited some habitat types: extremely poor fen, transitional mire, rich fen, calcareous fen, spring-fed fen. The content of nutrients was similar in all the habitats. A CCA analysis revealed that the total carbon content, pH, and redox potential of the substrate determine differences between the habitats analysed. Juvenile individuals represented a maximum of 12% of the analysed populations and were the least abundant group of these plants. The flowering was primarily influenced by hydrological conditions. Based on the long-term observations reported in this article, it can be assumed that the species stands a chance of surviving at the localities analysed, provided that the habitat conditions do not change dramatically.
Properties of peat reflect the peat-forming environment, peat development processes and the types of peat-forming plant. They also enable peat classification and quality evalution. Investigation of the physicochemical properties of organic matter is the key to understanding the history, evolution and geology of bogs. The purpose of this study was to determine some physicochemical properties, such as pH, Eh, electrolytic conductivity, carbon forms in water extracts and dry peat samples (TOC, IC, TC), degree of decomposition, macrofossil plant analysis and ash content, in a whole stratigraphic profile of bog sediment located near Lake Moszne. The research comprised a 17.5 ha lake, which was described in the 1990s as a dystrophic one, and the adjacent mires. The open water surface of the lake is surrounded by a 30-150 m wide belt of floating mat, composed of peatmosses and sedges with the dominant Sphagno-Caricetum rostratae association, all representing vegetation typical for transitional mires. These communities are most often found in the Polesie Lubelskie Region, in old lakes, and usually on their floating mat. The research material was collected from such a site. The analysis demonstrated acidic pH (4.17 in profile I and 4.08 in profile II, respectively) in the layer of 0-0.65 m, whilst from the 1.50 m depth to the mineral bottom the pH increased to nearly neutral (pH = 6.62 ± 0.18 in profile I and pH = 6.45 ± 0.12 in profile II). Redox potential in the surface layer corresponds to good oxygenation of mineral soils: 577 mV and 490 mV for profile I and II, respectively. A nearly linear decrease of Eh was observed to about 118 mV at the depth of 2.50 m. Lower than that, down to the depth of 3.50 m, the Eh value was stabilized. The graphical presentation of the Eh-pH relationship shows that in both cases (profiles I and II) aerobiosis prevails to the depth of 0.45-0.65 m, confirming that oxygen continues to be the final electron acceptor.
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