EVALUATION OF THE SUCCESS OF MOUNTAIN BLANKET BOG POOL RESTORATION IN TERMS OF AQUATIC MACROINVERTEBRATES

Peatlands in Ireland have been subject to peat extraction and drainage for many years, with detrimental effects on the flora and fauna of the ecosystem. Blanket bog has been listed for protection under Annex 1. of the EU habitats directive, making the conservation of intact bogs as well as the restoration of degraded sites a priority. In order to assess how effective a restoration measure this has been it is important to look at the biodiversity within the site. This study compared the macroinvertebrate and microcrustacean communities ill open-water habitats of an intact and a. restored mountain blanket bog in County Wicklow over a number of seasons. It also examined the hydrochemistry of both treatments. Hydrochemically there was no difference between the restored and intact pools. Neither was there any significant difference between the two in terms of taxon richness, abundance, community composition or structure. Season was found to significantly affect the structure of the invertebrate communities in both areas. It is not known how long it takes a peatland to return to its natural state. However, we can conclude that the restoration measures implemented fifteen years ago have provided an aquatic habitat similar to that of the intact site.