29 • 03 • 2017
Watch Awakening of Spring in a LVM Marsh
Each season has its own enchantment, and spring allows us to observe awakening of nature and animals after the long winter. Within the framework of JSC "Latvia's State Forests" (LVM) environmental education and research project "Birds and Animals in a Marsh" everyone has an opportunity to watch on-line changes that take place in nature and follow bird and animal activity in a marsh in the north-eastern region of Latvia.
Although the spring has just arrived, the breeding period has already started for a number of bird and animal species. They fly over and walk through the area searching for a suitable place for making nests and giving birth to babies. Wolves, foxes, elks, martens and white hares are the most typical marsh dwellers - a patient observer, who recognises animal voices will definitely notice something special. The golden eagle, the rarest bird of prey is Latvia, has chosen to make its nest in the marsh ...
"Animals are mainly active at night and in twilight, so it is best to watch them early in the morning. However, in unhindered, unspoilt and quiet places such as marshes and swamps, animals can also be spotted during the light hours of the day. When it is quiet, their voices can be heard from afar," says Uģis Bergmanis, LVM Senior Environmental Expert.
February and March are the mating time for wolves. Wolf males walk around their territory, marking it with urine. In case a male animal has not found a female yet, it often howls, thereby communicating with other wolves.
"Wolf males have a low, hollow and uniform voice, while female howling is shriller and voice intonations are much more diverse. Wolves of the previous year, having already reached the height of an adult wolf, still howl as cubs. Starting howling, it resembles an adult wolf's voice, but at the final phase of howling, the voice becomes whiningly barking. When a couple is formed, the two wolves walk over a smaller area and select a place for making a lair and giving birth to cubs. In marshy areas, they usually choose a remote marsh island or a dry mound where there are no people around as a place for their lair. That is why wolf foot-prints can often be seen in marshes, which is an especially important habitat for this protected and at the same time also much hunted animal species," says Uģis Bergmanis. During the mating season, wolves of the previous year usually stay apart from the adult wolves and learn to survive on their own.
Marshes are among the most peculiar and least-known biotopes. They are formed through paludification of wet hollows or overgrowing of large lakes. An increased volume of water is the most important factor for the formation of marshes, promoting development of specific vegetation: sphagnum moss, cotton-grass, sundew, andromeda, cassandra and many other species. As parts of plants are dying-off, peat is formed and accumulated in marshes; peat is an important water and carbon dioxide regulator. In Latvia, the peat layer is growing by 1-2 millimetres a year; therefore the marsh-formation process takes many thousands of years. Marshes are among the most endangered biotopes in the world, and Latvia is one of the richest countries in Europe in terms of marsh areas. Open bogs occupy about 5 % of the Latvian territory. For several species, marsh is the only place of dwelling; therefore the largest and most biologically diverse marhses are protected.
