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Scientific classification.
Swamps are of the following types and types:
1. Depending on the nature of water and mineral nutrition, the following types and types of swamps are distinguished:
Lowland (eutrophic) - a type of swamp, the water-mineral nutrition of which is rich, mainly due to groundwater. They are located in low-lying areas - in floodplains, along the banks of lakes, in places where springs emerge. Vegetation – alder, birch, sedge, reed, cattail, green mosses. 
Transitional (mesotrophic) - a type of swamps that are a transitional stage between lowland and raised swamps. Water and mineral nutrition is moderate. Trees – birch, pine, larch. The herbaceous vegetation is the same as on lowland marshes, but in smaller quantities. Small shrubs appear, and sphagnum mosses begin to appear among the green mosses. 
Riding (oligotrophic) - a type of swamp that feeds on atmospheric precipitation, poor in minerals. The water is different increased acidity. Trees – dwarf birch, larch, pine. Herbaceous vegetation is almost absent; sphagnum mosses are common. Shrubs are found in large quantities - heather, wild rosemary, cassandra, blueberry, cranberry, etc. Due to the accumulated peat, the surface of the bog can become convex over time.
In turn, raised bogs are of the following types and types:
Forest - covered with low pine, heather, sphagnum mosses;
Ridge-hollow - no trees, covered with peat hummocks.
2. Based on the type of characteristic vegetation, the following types and types of swamps are distinguished:
- forest- swamps of flowing type, dominant in the vegetation cover tree species(spruce, birch, etc.), sphagnum and green mosses. In Russia, large transitional forest swamps are characteristic of the lowlands around lakes Vozhe, Bely, Nikolskoye or are found on unflooded terraces above the floodplain,
- shrubby- poorly watered swamps with stagnant or slowly flowing water, the vegetation cover is dominated by shrubs and depressed pine,
- herbal- types of swamps that are overgrown with sedges, reeds, cattails (Typha angustifolia), etc. (most often lowland swamps),
- moss bogs - mosses, like a sponge, absorb water from atmospheric precipitation, due to which they can appear on plains, watersheds and even on slopes. In addition to various peat mosses (Sphagnum medium, S. fuscum, etc.), rosemary, blueberries, lingonberries, cranberries, etc. grow in moss bogs (most often raised bogs).
3. Based on the type of microrelief, the following types and types of swamps are distinguished:
- lumpy- a feature of this type of bog is the presence of peat mounds from several tens of centimeters (small-hilly bogs) to several meters (large-hilly bogs) (common in the tundra zone and forest-tundra, the presence of peat mounds is characteristic),
- flat- lie in depressions, have a more or less flat surface and are fed by water rich in minerals (lowland and transitional swamps),
- convex- have a convex surface and are fed by atmospheric water; the vegetation cover is dominated by sphagnum mosses (raised bogs).
4. Based on the type of macrorelief, the following types and types of swamps are distinguished:
- valley- most often occupy the entire width river valleys(lowland swamps), valley swamps feed not only precipitation, but also river and groundwater,
- floodplain- type of swamps that occupy the floodplain of the river and have a running water supply (belong to lowland swamps),
- slope- common in mountainous areas, are formed on slopes of varying steepness in places where springs emerge,
- watershed - usually developed on wide watersheds (raised bogs).
5. Based on the type of climate, the following types and types of swamps are distinguished. The climate determines the flora and fauna of the swamps.
- subarctic (in regions permafrost),
- moderate(most of the swamps of the Russian Federation, the Baltic states, the CIS and the EU);
- tropical and subtropical (for example, the Okavango swamps in South Africa and the Paraná swamps South America).
Folk names.
The life of the peoples of Russia has always been very closely connected with swamps, therefore, along with scientific classification there are many local names swamp areas at different stages of development.
Folk names of swamp areas. What types of swamps are there?
- Window– clean puddles clear water on the gray-green surface of the swamp.
- Vodya- these are entire lakes formed on the surface of the swamp. They can reach several tens of meters in width. The banks, made of peat, lie flush with the water. There is a bottomless swamp underwater.
- Charusa- a very treacherous, but seemingly attractive clearing, overgrown with fresh green grass and bright colors. However, the grass cover, which cannot support even small animals, hides a terrible abyss underneath.
Solid rock, located under the swamp, due to various reasons sometimes forms very deep vertical voids. Filled with sandy material, abundantly saturated with water, they form treacherous windows, waters and charuses.
- Tesan– lowlands of interfluves, which are in the initial stage of swamping. Vegetation is represented various types sedges that actively choke out young trees. There are still few or no mosses.
- Yudal– marshy, flat areas of terrain characterized by oppressed woody vegetation. There are several stages of yudal swampiness: ordinary, damp and wet.
Among local residents Tesan and Yudal are not recognized as swamps. These are rather swampy forests. Only wet udal, in which the process of peat deposition has already begun, is classified as a swamp, and even then in the initial stage of development.
- Kolyok- already a solid swamp with clearly defined shores, located in depressions in the terrain among the taiga or on the site of overgrown lake basins.
- Ryam- a swamp overgrown with dwarf trees and bushes. Sphagnum moss is actively developing.
- Galya- a swamp, almost impassable, looking like a green meadow. There are no trees, it is overgrown with sphagnum or hypnum mosses. It is located next to ryams or small hills overgrown with forest - peculiar islands in the middle of a swamp.
- Ponja- a swamp located on the high banks of rivers, fed by groundwater and overgrown big amount water-loving plants. It can reach several kilometers in width and stretches in a strip along the coast.
- drummer - a swamp overgrown with sedge grass species and hypnotic mosses. There are dwarf birches.
- Urman- a powerful, well-drained peat bog, overgrown with spruce, pine and cedar.
- excessively moist areas of land with peculiar swamp vegetation and a layer of peat of at least 0.3 m, and therefore are characterized by difficult exchange of gases. Bogs typically contain 87 to 97% water and only 3-13% dry matter (peat).
With less thickness of peat or its absence, excessively moist areas are called wetlands.
Swamps are formed when water bodies become overgrown or when the area becomes waterlogged.
The main way of formation of swamps is swamping, which begins with the appearance of periodic and then constant waterlogging of soils. The climate contributes to this. Excess moisture due to excessive precipitation or weak evaporation, as well as high level groundwater, the nature of the soil is poorly permeable rocks; “permafrost”, relief - flat areas with shallow drainage or depressions with slow flow; prolonged floods on rivers, etc. Forests in conditions of excess moisture, which means anaerobic conditions and oxygen starvation, die, which contributes to greater waterlogging due to a reduction in transpiration.
Moisture-loving vegetation, adapted to the lack of oxygen and mineral nutrition, - moss, etc. Moss turf, which absorbs and retains moisture well, resembling a wet sponge, contributes to even greater waterlogging of land. So in the future, it is vegetation that plays the leading role in waterlogging. In conditions of lack of oxygen, incomplete decomposition of plant residues occurs, which, accumulating, form peat. Therefore, waterlogging is almost always accompanied by peat accumulation.
Most favorable conditions exist in forests to accumulate peat temperate zone, especially Western Siberia, where, within the forest-swamp zone, swampiness sometimes accounts for more than 50% of the territory, the peat thickness is 8-10 m. To the north and south of the forest zone, the thickness of the peat deposit is reduced: to the north due to a decrease in the growth of plant mass in cold climates, to the south - due to for more intensive decomposition of plant residues in warm climates. In hot conditions humid climate the huge increase in biomass is compensated by the intensive process of decay of dead plants, and there are few swamps, although evergreen equatorial forests over-moistened.
The structure of the peat deposits of swamps that arose in place of lakes or dry lands is different. Peatlands formed as a result of swamping of lakes have lake silt - sapropel - under a layer of peat, and when swamping land, the peat lies directly on the mineral soil.
Swamps develop in different climatic conditions, but are especially characteristic of the temperate forest zone and tundra. Their share in Polesie accounts for 28%, in Karelia - about 30%, and in Western Siberia (Vasyugan) - over 50% of the territory. Swampiness is sharply decreasing in steppe and forest-steppe zones, where there is less precipitation and evaporation increases. The total area occupied by swamps is about 2% of the Earth's land area.
Types of swamp
Based on the nature of water supply and vegetation, swamps are divided into three types: lowland, upland and transitional.
Lowland marshes are formed on the site of former lakes, in river valleys and in depressions that are constantly or temporarily flooded with water. They feed mainly on groundwater rich in mineral salts. The vegetation cover is dominated by green mosses, various sedges and grasses. In older swamps, birch, alder, and willow appear. These swamps are characterized by weak peat - the thickness of the peat does not exceed 1 — 1 .5 m.
Raised bogs formed on flat watersheds, fed mainly by precipitation, vegetation is characterized by limited species composition- sphagnum mosses, cotton grass, wild rosemary, cranberry, heather, and woody ones - pine, birch, less often cedar and larch. The trees are severely depressed and stunted. Sphagnum moss grows better in the middle of the swamp; on the outskirts it is suppressed by mineralized waters. Therefore, raised bogs are somewhat convex, their middle rises 3-4 m. The peat layer reaches 6-10 m or more.
Transitional swamps, or mixed represent a transitional stage between lowland and upland. In lowland swamps, plant residues accumulate and the surface of the swamp rises. As a result, groundwater, rich in salts, ceases to nourish the swamp. Herbaceous vegetation dies off and is replaced by mosses.
Thus, lowland swamps turn into raised swamps, and the latter are then covered with bushes or meadow vegetation, turning into dry meadows. Therefore, moss or grass swamps in their pure form are rarely found in nature.
The swamps have a large economic importance. So, peat bogs- a source of fuel for industry. The first thermal power plant in the world operating on peat was built in Russia in 1911 (in the city of Elektrougli).
Peat from lowland bogs is a good organic fertilizer. Therefore, partially low-lying swamps are drained and turned into fertile land. But not all swamps need to be drained; some of them must be preserved so as not to disrupt the relationships that have developed in nature.
Swamps moisten the air in the area, are home to valuable plant species (cranberries, cloudberries, blueberries) and habitats for many species of animals, especially birds, and are natural reservoirs of water that feed rivers.
Since ancient times, people's imagination has populated swamps with goblins, kikimoras and other evil spirits. And this is understandable: what is good in a swamp? A dead place, useless. However, some swamps are rich in berries, waterfowl, peat... But immediately one remembers swamps, bogs, damp, unhealthy air, clouds of mosquitoes... No, after all, there is little good in a swamp.
This opinion prevailed until man created powerful technology that helped in a short time to drain vast territories and extract large quantities peat. Since that time, mainly in our century, the number and size of swamps began to decrease noticeably. In their place, agricultural lands and engineering structures began to emerge.
But calls for the protection of swamps began to be heard more and more often. It turned out that they play very important role in the lives of many birds, animals, plants. Here you can receive good harvests herbs, berries and medicinal plants(cranberries, blueberries, wild rosemary, etc.). Reeds and reeds are used for paper production and construction. Sphagnum mosses are good antiseptics, and they are also used as bedding for livestock. The swamps are home to muskrats and otters, moose and wild boars, ducks and cranes, black grouse and wood grouse. In addition, studies have shown that the air above the swamps is clean and rich in oxygen.
But the main advantage of swamps is that they serve as natural regulators of surface and groundwater flow. In some cases, draining swamps reduces groundwater levels. reduces soil fertility in elevated areas and contributes to severe floods. However, bountiful crop yields can be harvested from drained wetlands. For example, on drained lands in Belarusian Polesie, the same harvests are sometimes harvested as on the famous Ukrainian black soils.
A swamp is an excessively moist area of land with special vegetation and a peat layer of at least 0.3 m (where there is even less peat - wetlands).
Most often, swamps arise where groundwater comes to the surface, as well as in forest clearings and burnt areas: due to the lack of plants that “suck out” groundwater, the groundwater level rises. There are many swamps in the tundra and forest-tundra, where a layer of permafrost prevents surface water from seeping into the ground; in the mouths and floodplains of rivers that are often flooded during floods (floodlands, oxbow lakes, densely overgrown with reeds, cattails, and sedges).
Swamps are divided into lowland, transitional and raised. Lowland ones are not necessarily located in the lowlands, and highland ones are not necessarily located on the hills. The main difference here is what the swamps feed on - lowland swamps, mainly groundwater, highland swamps - precipitation. The waters of lowland swamps are therefore richer in mineral salts than the waters of transitional and, especially, raised swamps. The acidity of the waters of lowland swamps is increased, and that of upland swamps is low. Low-lying swamps can be found in a watershed if the sub-marsh soils are rich in mineral salts. And the upland ones are also found in depressions located among washed quartz sands.
Swamps usually appear in heavily moist depressions or on the site of overgrown lakes and are mostly lowland. As plants die and peat accumulates, the surface of the bog becomes flat and then slightly convex. The vegetation is first represented mainly by herbs, shrubs, and then increasingly abundant sphagnum mosses. The lower part of the turf, located in water depleted of oxygen, decomposes poorly. Peat begins to accumulate. The peat “cushion” grows, the surface of the swamp rises higher and higher, the vegetation cover becomes more diverse: shrubs, trees, and meadow plants appear. A thick layer of peat serves as a sponge that absorbs water. Accumulating moisture, the swamp feeds the plants with plenty of it. Now it can exist without using groundwater, only due to precipitation. This is how the transformation of a lowland swamp, the surface of which is concave, like a saucer, into a raised swamp with a convex surface.
The famous Soviet scientist and naturalist M. M. Prishvin called the swamps “the storeroom of the sun.” Swamp vegetation is rich. But every plant is a battery solar energy. In swamp water, these batteries are stored for a long time and do not “discharge”, forming peat deposits.
Previously, peat was used mainly for heating. Now it is considered very important complex raw materials. Resin and mountain wax are extracted from it, medications and substances that purify oil and water are prepared on its basis organic fertilizers, feed mixtures, as well as insulating Construction Materials etc. The “Pantry of the Sun” has stored up many excellent, valuable gifts for people.
Peatlands have a large scientific significance. Based on the change in swamp vegetation (this is evidenced by plant remains, buried spores and pollen), it is possible to restore the patterns of change natural conditions(climate, groundwater fluctuations) in the area.
Of course, swamps are different from swamps. The vast swampy expanses of Western Siberia or the Arctic must be largely drained, and peat bogs must be developed. The situation is not so simple with the swamps of the European part of the Union. Intensive management Agriculture, urban growth and industrial enterprises, reduction in forest area - all this makes it necessary to conserve and rationally use soil and surface water. For this purpose, hydrological reserves are set up (for example, in Belarusian Polesie), where swamps are protected - storage tanks and water regulators. In the Ivanovo region, 20 forest swamps have been taken under protection. It is expected in the coming years to significantly increase the number of protected wetlands in our country. Swamps - interesting object local history research.
Raised moss bogs are the most in need of protection. They perform particularly important functions in nature: like giant sponges, they retain and regulate moisture; feed streams, rivers, lakes, groundwater, soils; serve as a shelter for many birds and animals; have large reserves of the most valuable berry - cranberries; store some rare or endangered plants, and among them are psilophytes, which have lived on earth for more than 300 million years.
But it's not only that. As practice has shown, on the site of such swamps, after draining, a good harvest is harvested for only a few years, and then the lands become waste and are subject to erosion. That is why the reclamation of swamps requires preliminary serious research and economic calculations.
Swamp - interesting, original and beautiful in its own way natural object. Studying his life and history is not an easy and very exciting task, requiring good knowledge, observation, the ability to overcome difficulties and - it is very important to remember this - caution.
This article will consider one of the common natural formations, which is a waterlogged area of the earth's surface with a layer of peat and peculiar plant forms characteristic only of such areas, adapted to conditions with a lack of oxygen, with weak water flow and with excess moisture.
Will be presented here Various types swamps with their brief characteristics.
general information
There are 3 main signs of swamps:
- Excess and stagnation of water.
- The presence of vegetation specific to swamps.
- Peat formation process.
Wetlands are commonly referred to as areas where plant roots cannot reach mineral soil.
Education
Before we find out what the main types of swamps exist, let's find out how they are formed.
For the formation of such areas, a constant excess of moisture in the soil and on its surface is required, as well as weak water exchange (including with groundwater). In turn, the lack of oxygen caused by excess moisture makes it difficult for air to enter the soil, resulting in insufficient decomposition (or oxidation) of the remains of dying vegetation, and peat is also formed. The latter is a soil substrate with high water content. It consists entirely of decomposed plants. Peat is different to varying degrees decomposition. For example, a decomposition rate of 70% means that 70 percent of the dead plants have decomposed and 30 percent have not. This type The substrate has excellent water-holding capacity, so it has a fairly high water content (about 97% of the total volume).
According to the forms and conditions of nutrition, lowland (in other words, eutrophic), transitional (mesotrophic) and highland (oligotrophic) are distinguished, respectively, having concave, flat and convex surface shapes.
Lowland (eutrophic) refers to swamps located in depressions, with soil moistened by surface and groundwater, rich in mineral salts. Horses predominantly feed on sediment from the atmosphere, which is not very rich in mineral salts. Transitional swamps belong to the intermediate group.
Based on the vegetation that predominates in the area, forest, grass, shrub and moss types of swamps are distinguished. According to the microrelief - lumpy, flat, convex. Marshes are the most waterlogged areas of swamps.
Swamps of the Russian Federation
We will consider the types of swamps in Russia below. For now - general information.
The area of swamps in Russia is approximately 1.4 million square meters. km (approximately 10% of the area of the entire country). According to rough estimates, they contain about 3,000 cubic meters. m of static natural water reserves.
Swamps are quite complex. They consist of interconnected biotopes, which are characterized by strong moisture, the presence of peculiar moisture-loving vegetation and the accumulation of various organic residues in the form of silt or peat. Under the conditions of different Russian climates, topography, and depending on the underlying rocks, they develop different types swamps, each of which differs in the characteristics of the peat deposit, the conditions of water supply and its flow, and the characteristics of vegetation.
The following types of nutrition of Russian swamps are distinguished: lowland, upland and transitional.
About the nature of nutrition
By characterizing nutritional conditions we mean the modern surface of the swamp and the presence of that upper layer of substrate where plant roots are located. For each type of swamp, their food sources are presented just above.
Excess moisture is the main symptom of any swamp. It causes the emergence of specific species of animals and vegetation, as well as peculiar special conditions of humification, which in temperate climate usually lead to incomplete decomposition of vegetation residues and the formation of peat.
Geographical distribution of swamps in the Russian Federation
Russian swamps are common in almost all natural areas, but mainly in drainless, excessively moist depressions. The bulk of them are concentrated in central regions and on
The most wetlands in Russia are the tundra and taiga zone. The types of swamps here are very diverse. The swampiness in some areas of the tundra is 50%. Approximately 80% of all are concentrated in taiga zones. In the European part of Russia, the most swampy areas are Vologda, Leningrad region and the Republic of Karelia (approximately 40%).
The taiga of Western Siberia is swamped up to 70 percent. A huge number of swamps and Far East, for the most part in the Amur region.
Distribution of swamps by type
The types of wetlands in Russia are geographically distributed unevenly. Horses occupy half of the total wetland area, and they predominate in the northern regions. Lowland ones make up less than half (about 40%) of the area of all swamps. Very small areas are occupied by swamps transitional type (10 %).
Lowland swamps are mostly fed by river or groundwater, and they are found mostly in arid areas. And these are valleys and deltas large rivers. Raised swamps are mainly fed by precipitation, and they are more often found in the taiga and tundra zones of Eurasia. The main part (84%) of peat areas is located in the Asian part of Russia.
What type of swamp predominates in the North? Lowland swamps in western Siberia occupy 42%. Most of the peat lands (about 73%) are confined to the area of territories with permafrost.
Vegetation cover
The following plants predominate in lowland swamps: downy birch, willow, pine and spruce. Among the herbs, sedge is predominantly found here, and among the cereals, reed and reed grass are found. The mosses that grow mainly are green mosses.
For transitional swamps Birch and pine are typical (in Siberia - Daurian and Siberian larches, cedar), as well as willow (slightly less common than in lowland swamps). The common grass here is the same as in low-lying swamps, but not in such significant quantities. Most often here you can find alpine downy grass, reed grass, bottle sedge and woolly-fruited sedge. There is also vegetation characteristic of raised bogs.
In the upland swamps one can find pine (in Siberia it is mixed with cedar) and Daurian larch. There are no shrubs here at all, but the heather group predominates in these places: cassandra, heather, wild rosemary, blueberry and cranberry. Single-headed cotton grass also grows here abundantly and is widespread in such places ( herbaceous plant), forming large hummocks-turf. You can often find cloudberries and sundews. Mosses here are represented only by sphagnum.
Thus, by the nature of the peat and vegetation cover one can also judge (as noted above) what type of swamps are.
In conclusion about environmental issues
Behind last years More and more negative processes are emerging in connection with the excessive, destructive exploitation of swamps. First of all, this is pollution, excessive water intake from the ground and massive peat extraction. Also an important role in this was played by drainage and plowing, violation of the hydrological regime during the construction of roads, gas and oil pipelines and other structures.
Drainage of bogs often leads to peat fires, land degradation and loss of biological diversity. All work must be carried out carefully, with the obligatory preservation of most of the wetlands. It is imperative to follow the rules for maintaining ecological balance in nature.
Have you ever wondered about the answer to the question of what a swamp is? Or, perhaps, you were curious to find out in more detail about the nature of its occurrence and the main features? If yes, I note that you are far from the only ones who are so inquisitive.
For example, since childhood I wanted to understand why people associate so many secrets and legends with this area, what is so unusual about it and what plants and animals inhabit it.
Section 1. General definition concepts
A swamp is a fairly complex nature education, which is an area of varying area on which it is constantly concentrated great amount moisture, both low-flow and stagnant. It should also be noted that although the swamp ecosystem is in most cases stable and perfectly balanced, it is also fraught with many mysteries. For example, many do not know that a given body of water, such as a typhoon, is characterized by the presence of a so-called eye, which is a small absolutely clean lake.
Most swamps on our planet are located in tropical and subtropical zones. It's hard to imagine that they total area amounts to millions of hectares.
Of course, every schoolchild will immediately answer that the area around South America is considered the most swampy. However, Russia can boast of having the largest reservoir of this type in the world - Lake Vasyugan can be seen in Western Siberia.
Section 2. What is a swamp and how is it formed?
At first glance, it may seem that all the current swamps were once lakes, but this is not entirely true. How then can we explain the fact of their emergence on land?
Let's imagine a small array that has suffered from forest fire. For greater clarity, let’s mentally draw before our eyes the black remains of trees, branches, ash and burnt stumps firmly seated in the soil.
Nature will try to heal its wounds at all costs, which means that some time will pass, and the first plants to appear in such a forest, for example, moss, called cuckoo flax in nature. Due to the lack of foliage on the branches, lower vegetation will receive more moisture. Gradually, the speed of its growth will gain more and more momentum. If the rampant growth continues for a long enough period of time, it will eventually change the character of the soil itself, making it wetter.
There is another way. According to experts, if for some reason underground is not too great depth a weakly permeable layer is formed, it will certainly retain moisture in the upper layers, as a result of which gradually appear which, as in the first case, will change the nature of the soil, turning it into swampy.
Section 3. What is a swamp, its flora and fauna
As a matter of fact, it does not matter how exactly this or that swamp was formed, in any case it will gradually grow.
Undoubtedly, at first these changes will be barely noticeable, but several years, or even decades, will pass, and the peat layer will strengthen. Let's put it this way: in about 1000 years, in place of the burnt forest, it will already be ten or even twelve meters high.
Trees will appear here. Wetlands are characterized by the presence of birch, pine, spruce or alder trees. If the humidity is high enough, then all plants, as a rule, take on an unusual shape.
Most of the inhabitants of these territories, say, insects and amphibians, are quite small or very tiny, but there are also large representatives.
If we talk about the entire territory of the planet as a whole, then it is in the swamps that predators such as pythons or alligators live; crocodiles hunting smaller prey are also frequent guests. Of the herbivores, one cannot fail to mention nutria, tapirs, muskrats and beavers. Unfortunately, drainage of swamps leads to a significant reduction in their numbers.
Large ungulates also adapt to this semi-aquatic lifestyle. Nature made sure that the hooves of, for example, Asian buffaloes were widened. This significantly increases the area of support, and heavy animals, although they can wander through the swamp, plunging up to their chests, will never get completely bogged down.
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