The Mire of Loch a'Bhogaidh, Islay

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Abstract
A valley mire at Loch a'Bhogaidh, Islay, part of an SSSI, was briefly examined because of its rich flora and deep sediments. A mixture of fen, aquatic and raised bog vegetation now occupies the site which earlier had more open shallow water. Vegetation, temperature profiles and conductivity were sampled along an EW transect and water samples removed for laboratory analysis. Stratigraphic profiles were made for eight sediment cores from the transect, and pollen analysis was carried out in one of these. Three vegetation zones correlated exactly with water chemistry and hydrology; a central species-rich and relatively eutrophic reedswamp with moving water was flanked by a drier ombrotrophic bog and a floating, successional, species-poor eutrophic Sphagnum carpet. Stratigraphic profiles showed deposits of probable lateglacial age overlain by gyttja and then fen peat as the lake basin filled in. The pollen record showed a predominance of tree and shrub pollen at the lowest levels succeeded by bog and open grassland species. The site is recommended for future comparison with similar Inner Hebridean sites and for its conservation value.