Amphibians

Birds

Grazing Animals

"Before the era of livestock farming (Neolithic times), no domestic cattle grazed in wetlands. Instead, fens and/or neighboring woodlands in Europe were grazed by large ungulates such as Elk (Alces alces) and Red deer (Cervus elaphus; Cromsigt 2000), and in North America, Moose (Alces alces) and Wapiti (Cervus elaphus canadensis; Jackson 1961)." - Biodiversity Management of Fens and Fen Meadows by Grazing, Cutting and Burning 

Carbon Sequestration

"In addition, fens usually form peat, a layer of organic material formed by the partial decomposition of plant material that is a vital carbon sink. This also helps with flood control and providing habitat for wetland wildlife. " - Freshwater Habitats Trust: Fens

Migratory Rest Stops

While fens are home to a diverse array of species year-round, they are also important resting and refueling spots for migratory wildlife, particularly songbirds and water fowl.

Migratory Species

Fire

Livestock Grazing

Peat Harvesting & Cutting

Peat is often used as a growing medium in nurseries and gardens.

Water Levels & Water Quality

"water extraction nearby or the prevention of flooding from nearby rivers and by the nutrients from agricultural run-off. At some key sites, attempts have been made to maintain higher water tables, including irrigation and the installation of an impermeable membrane." - The Wildlife Trust: Lowland Fen

Manage Invasive Species

Restore Water Tables

By making informed changes in how to allocate and use water, we can drastically reduce our over extraction of water, while actually boosting food security.

Prescribed Fire

"In North America, fire was probably a much more structuring factor than grazing during the presettlement period. Before the defeat of Chief Black Hawk in 1832, American Indians and lightning fires annually burned fens in Wisconsin and other parts of the Middle Western United States (Curtis 1959; Prince 1997). Also, farmers had once burned pastured fens to improve forage quality, but in places such as southern Wisconsin, this practice abruptly ceased after World War II (Middleton 2002b). After that time, many fens became less species-rich and/ or encroached by woody species. Fire in North-American fens can be considered a natural disturbance, and should be considered to help maintain the biodiversity of fens. 

Fire is generally considered destructive in peatlands in Europe (Klimkowska 2004), mainly because the peat may catch fire, particularly in drained fens. Once set, the fire may smolder for long periods of time (Anon. 2005). Nevertheless, fire set by lightning strike must have once burned undrained fens in the European landscape as it is reported for mires in Finland (Pitkänen et al. 1999), and so could be considered as a natural disturbance at least for the management of undrained fens. The burning of sedge meadows was regularly practiced in eastern Europe (Poland and Belarus) until recently (Kloskowski & Krogulec 1999; Kozulin & Flade 1999)." - Biodiversity Management of Fens and Fen Meadows by Grazing, Cutting and Burning 

Protect & Re-Introduce Large Grazing Animals

"The re-introduction of appropriate native ungulates in fens could be beneficial, especially in relatively unpopulated regions. Native ungulates require large areas in which to range, and so it is not likely that these could be re-introduced successfully in urbanized areas. Other native ungulates could be re-introduced to fens in both Europe and North America. In North America, moose may once have been important herbivores in fens, and could be reintroduced in remote parts of North America. Moose are dangerous animals and not especially welcome in urbanized areas. Elk eat woody vegetation in European fens (Bokdam & van Braekel 2002), so that these could be useful to manage woody species in fens. Free ranging wild animals such as red deer in Central Europe have little influence on sedge-dominated fen vegetation because hunting pressure and disturbance by people keep the animals in the forests during daytime. When red deer enter open habitat at night, they prefer food of high energy and protein content (Wagenknecht 2000) and avoid vegetation dominated by sedges because of their low nutritional value. 

... While Aurochs and wild horses no longer exist, Heck cattle and Polish Konik horses are available. Heck cattle were bred in an attempt to redevelop the aurochs by mixing various European cattle races. Polish Konik horses are a primitive horse breed from Poland and are sometimes used to graze fens in Europe (e.g. Wicken Fen, Norfolk and Suffolk Broads, England). Both Heck cattle and Polish Konik horses should be regarded as primitive breeds only, and not directly equivalent to their wild ancestors. Both Heck cattle and Konik horses avoid nutrient-poor sedge vegetation in the same way as red deer when nutrient-rich food is available (Vulink 2001). However, both of these large ungulate species resemble their extinct wild ancestors, and so have been introduced to some nature reserves in Europe (J.P. Bakker 1989)." - Biodiversity Management of Fens and Fen Meadows by Grazing, Cutting and Burning 

Resources & Guides

Management Resources

• Biodiversity Management of Fens and Fen Meadows by Grazing, Cutting and Burning (PDF) "This paper is a review of the literature on the effects of grazing, fire and cutting on fens, to explore the relationship between management and biodiversity in fens."

Organizations