The Wonders of Peatland Biodiversity

What are Peatlands?

You might have heard about peatlands before, maybe even from other Frontiers for Young Minds articles like this one or this one, but did you know they were not always understood? In medieval Europe, people saw peatlands as spooky places full of fog, hidden pools, and mysterious sounds. Some cultures even thought they were gateways to other worlds!

Today, we know peatlands are far from lifeless or scary. Peatlands can look different depending on where they are. In Southeast Asia they are swampy and tropical, while in northern Europe they are usually covered with mosses. All peatlands have one thing in common: soils full of water that stop organic matter from breaking down completely, with the remains forming a soil called peat. The slow-growing peat layers, which can be thousands of years old, preserve environmental history, including ancient plants and even human artifacts. Peatlands also bridge the gap between land and water. This distinctive environment supports many unique plants, animals, and other tiny creatures, making peatlands a treasure trove of biodiversity.

Why is Peatland Biodiversity so Special?

Only certain plants and animals can survive in the wet, squishy conditions of peatlands (Figure 1) [1]. For example, you will likely find Sphagnum moss in peatlands. This moss soaks up water like a sponge, keeping the ground damp and creating a home for other plants and animals. If you find Sphagnum, you might also find sundews—carnivorous plants that eat bugs for extra nutrients.

Figure 1 - (A) Peatlands are beautiful landscapes where water meets the land. (B) They are home to many birds and (C) insects like dragonflies. (D) The plants may be small, but if you look really close, it looks like a real ant jungle!

Another key player in peatlands are reeds—tall, grass-like plants. Reedbeds help keep dirt from washing away, clean the water like a filter, and create hiding spots for frogs and birds. You might hear the reed warbler, a small brown bird that builds nests in the reeds. The bittern, another bird, hides in the reeds with perfect camouflage, blending in and sneaking up on prey. Both birds rely on the reedbeds for survival. Plants like Sphagnum and reeds are called ecosystem engineers because they change their environment to help themselves (and other species) live there. Pretty impressive, huh?

But it is not just the larger creatures like plants and birds that make peatlands unique. Peatlands contain a hidden world of tiny organisms—bacteria, fungi, and algae—that work hard to keep the ecosystem healthy. These little guys recycle nutrients and support carbon storage, which helps fight climate change. We would not have peatlands without them!

And Why is Peatland Biodiversity Important?

Peatlands provide homes for rare species that may struggle to survive elsewhere. For example, tropical peat forests are home to endangered species that depend on the wet, cool conditions to survive. Endangered species that live in peatlands include jaguars, cayman, anacondas, capybaras, and orangutans.

Each species in a peatland has a remarkable job. Some help protect the land from washing away, while others clean the water. Together, they keep the whole ecosystem strong and healthy [2]. When a peatland can keep going or recover from challenges like storms or droughts, we call this ability resilience. When a peatland stays strong and healthy, even when things get tough, we call it resistance. The rich biodiversity in peatlands makes sure these ecosystems are both resilient and resistant, supporting the many creatures that live there.

Some species are essential for keeping the peatland in balance. For example, peat-forming plants, like Sphagnum or reeds, create the unique soil that builds up the peatlands. Other species, like birds and insects, help connect peatlands to nearby habitats by spreading seeds and helping wildlife move from one place to another.

Peatland Biodiversity Supports Us

Can you spot all the peatland wildlife in Figure 2? The scene features 15 different species of animals. Challenge yourself, friends and relatives to find them all! Peatlands have been helping humans for a very long time—even before electricity was invented! For example, people used Juncus, a wetland plant, to light oil lamps (Figure 2). During World War I, Sphagnum moss was used as a bandage because it can hold a lot of water and keep bacteria away. Sphagnum is not just a sponge for water, it also helps lock away carbon. It takes in carbon from the air as it grows, and because it decomposes very slowly, that carbon becomes trapped in peat. This long-term carbon storage helps fight climate change.

Figure 2 - In a healthy peatland, valuable products can be derived from peatland plant species. These ecosystems also provide essential benefits, such as recreation, clean water, flood protection, and carbon storage. Can you spot the wildlife? This scene features 15 different species of animals, showcasing the rich biodiversity supported by peatlands. (Note: In reality, not all these species would coexist in the same peatland type.)

Plants like reeds and cattails are also helpful for humans. People use them to build houses—for the roofs or insulation in the walls. Plus, these plants act like filters, cleaning water for both humans and animals. Peatlands also help prevent floods by soaking up rain like a giant sponge and releasing it slowly. However, peatlands can no longer do these crucial jobs when they lose their special plants and animals [3].

Why Peatlands Need Our Help

Unfortunately, peatlands are facing big challenges because of human activities and the changing environment [2, 3]. For a long time, people did not realize how important peatlands were and they drained them to use the land for farming or dug up the peat for fuel. When peatlands dry out, the plants and animals that live there lose their homes, and the soil releases carbon into the air, which makes climate change worse. Today, around 15% of the world’s peatlands have been drained. Click here to explore more facts in the Peatland Atlas.

Drained peatlands can also cause floods, fires, and pollution. For example, in 2020, the Pantanal in Brazil experienced massive fires that burned two-thirds of this wetland area. Fires can release a lot of carbon, worsening global warming. These fires also create toxic smoke that can harm people. When we damage peatlands, we force wild animals to live closer to us, which can spread diseases from animals to humans. So, peatland damage hurts not only wildlife but also human health.

What Can We Do?

To protect peatland biodiversity, we need to focus on restoring damaged peatlands while protecting the ones that are still healthy. Restoration means helping nature heal from the harm humans have caused. In peatlands, humans have removed water, damaged the soil, and added too many nutrients. We need to fix these changes by bringing back the water and using plants to rebuild the peat and store carbon again.

Restoration is key to bringing peatlands back to life. We start by rewetting them—raising the water levels to recreate the soggy conditions that peatland species need. This also includes reducing harmful nutrients and reintroducing species like Sphagnum and reeds, which rebuild the peat layer. We can also help by removing non-native plants. Ramsar, The Convention on Wetlands, has created a helpful fact sheet including successful peatland restoration projects in Finland, Central and South America, Indonesia, and China. By continuing these projects and starting new ones, we can help peatlands recover.

Conclusions

Peatland biodiversity helps to maintain a healthy planet. By preserving and restoring peatland biodiversity, we ensure these ecosystems stay strong and give us essential benefits. If we restore the basics—like water, peat-forming plants, and clean conditions—the rest of the system will heal over time. Species that connect food webs and habitats will return. We have to be patient, because recovery takes time. But we can accelerate the recovery and let nature do the rest! Let us work together to protect the wonders of peatland biodiversity—for today and future generations! Did you find all the different species of animals in Figure 2, check out Figure 3 for the responses.

Figure 3 - Did you find all 15 hidden animals in Figure 2? You might spot a salamander (1), a graceful heron (2), a tiny spider (3), a lizard (4), a curious hare (5), two butterflies (6), a frog (7), beavers (8), dragonflies (9), a colorful pheasant (10), a gentle deer (11), a slow snail (12), ducks (13), a shy hedgehog (14), and finally two hikers (15) stepping carefully through this amazing wetland, taking in all the wonders of nature around them.

Glossary

Organic Matter: ↑ Material in the soil that is made from dead organisms, mostly leaves and roots from plants. Organic matter mostly consists of carbon, and is important for carbon storage.

Peat: ↑ A type of soil which mostly consists of organic matter with bigger pieces of plants, such as wood or roots. Peat is formed in places where water prevents the breakdown of organic matter.

Biodiversity: ↑ All the different life forms in an area, including plants, animals, or even different members of the same species.

Camouflage: ↑ The ability of an organism to blend in with their surroundings, so it is hard to see.

Ecosystem Engineers: ↑ Animals or plants that change their environment in a big way—just like builders or architects.

Carbon Storage: ↑ A process where plants take up carbon from the air and store it in the soil, where the carbon can stay for many years.

Resilience: ↑ The ability of species or ecosystems to resist damage or recover after events such as fire, flooding, and drought. Resilience is a combination of resistance and recovery.

Resistance: ↑ The ability of an ecosystem to stay strong during events such as fire, flooding, and drought.

Conflict of Interest

The author(s) declared that this work was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Acknowledgments

The authors were funded by Wet Horizons (Horizon Europe GAP-101056848), PaluWise (Horizon Europe GAP-101181479), and FIBSUN (Horizon Europe GAP-101112318).

AI Tool Statement

The author(s) declared that generative AI was used in the creation of this manuscript. During the preparation of this work, the author(s) used ChatGPT in order to improve text clarity. After using this tool/service, the author(s) reviewed and edited the content as needed and take full responsibility for the content of the publication. For Figures 2, 3, we used ChatGPT in order to create a more realistic background illustration, to which we added content-related elements manually.

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[1] ↑ Rydin, H., and Jeglum, J. K. 2013. The Biology of Peatlands, 2nd edn. Oxford: Oxford Academic. doi: 10.1093/acprof:osobl/9780199602995.001.0001

[2] ↑ Loisel, J., and Gallego-Sala, A. 2022. Ecological resilience of restored peatlands to climate change. Commun. Earth Environ. 3:208. doi: 10.1038/s43247-022-00547-x

[3] ↑ Minayeva, T. Y., Bragg, O. M., and Sirin, A. A. 2017. Towards ecosystem-based restoration of peatland biodiversity. Mires Peat. 19:1–36. doi: 10.19189/MaP.2013.OMB.150