Prospectus: valley peatlands ecosystem project, Idaho

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Peatlands are generally defined as wetlands with waterlogged substrates and at least 30 cm of peat accumulation. Bursik (1990) recognized two types of peatlands in Idaho based on vascular floristic composition: 1) Valley Peatlands, which generally occur around lakes and ponds at relatively low elevations in major river valleys, from near Bonners Ferry in the panhandle, to near Driggs in eastern Idaho and 2) Subalpine Peatlands, which are more common throughout the same portion of Idaho, but generally form along low-gradient, subalpine streams. Subalpine peatlands are generally characterized by plant species common throughout the western cordillera, while valley peatlands are characterized by numerous boreal species whose Idaho populations are disjunct by hundreds of miles from the main portion of their range in boreal regions of Canada. The biodiversity value of Idaho's valley peatlands is high, and ecologists have made some interesting discoveries in Idaho. Peatlands are an important terrestrial habitat worldwide where they cover an estimated one percent of ice-free continental land masses. (Much of the world's peatland was drained or mined.) Aside from containing a unique biota and being an archive of Pleistocene and Holocene vegetational and climatic history, peatlands also apparently exert a tremendous influence on the earth's climate. Methanogenic anaerobic bacteria inhabiting peat soils produce as much as 40 percent of the methane (an important "greenhouse gas") released into the atmosphere annually (Breining 1992). On the other hand, peatlands act as immense sinks of carbon dioxide, the most important greenhouse gas. Each year, discoveries such as those in Idaho have raised intriguing questions about biogeography, species migration, the autecology of individual species, and the synecological interactions of various components within these systems that maintain their stability and account for their biodiversity. These discoveries also underscore the biodiversity value of these sites and the need for an integrated inventory, research, and monitoring program directed toward conservation and restoration of these habitats. This prospectus reviews past and ongoing work on peatland habitats in Idaho, as well as identifies gaps in our knowledge of Idaho peatland ecology and management.

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ELECTRONIC FILE - Ecology

SWAP (2/19/2016) citation:
Bursik R, Moseley B. 1992. Prospectus: valley peatlands ecosystem project, Idaho. Boise (ID): Idaho Department of Fish and Game, Conservation Data Center. [accessed 2015 Dec 4]. https://fishandgame.idaho.gov/ifwis/idnhp/cdc_pdf/bursr92e.pdf.