Part of the terrain around Malham Tarn is extremely unusual. The area as a whole is underpinned by limestone and the lake itself is an uncommon marl (alkaline) lake. An area of fen and bog has developed since the last ice-age over a shallow area of the lake, gradually building up a dome of acid peat bog, now 10m thick in parts, that allows rare acid-loving plants and mosses to grow. It became a National Nature Reserve in 1992 and is now carefully managed to provide the right balance to support and nurture the plants, birds and other wildlife. Such bogs are an especially valuable resource as they store carbon that would otherwise contribute to global warming.
There are deer in the reserve and for a moment I thought I saw one... or perhaps a leopard? ... but no, just a piece of wood.
I really should walk beyond Malham Cove someday. Are you sure it's not a leopard?
ReplyDeleteI was thinking, shy kangaroo!
ReplyDeleteIt looks like a leopard to me, Jenny!
ReplyDeleteIsn't this an unusual place! I am so upset that Martin said kangaroo before I did. Now I look like I am mimicking him.
ReplyDeleteI think you have found heaven on Earth for my husband. He tried recreating a fen in our yard, only God can create a fen! Ha! Our new home borders a wetland ...I think that should keep him satisfied for a bit!
ReplyDeleteTarn is such an evocative word -- and your pictures are wonderful.
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