In response to Andy Baird's posting:
Acrotelm definitions
I think Andy's comments (and David Wilkinson's response) highlight a
difficulty with the "original" (or at least English translation) definition
of acrotelm. It seems to me that the term acrotelm is defined by a
combination of structural properties, hydrological function, and
microbiological function. While all of these properties and functions may
combine coherently in Sphagnum-dominated raised bogs, this is not
necessarily true for other peat-forming systems. The acrotelm-catotelm
concept has been very useful and encouraged a new way of looking at mires.
But I think we should be looking for concepts that are applicable across
different types of peatlands, including those not dominated by Sphagnum. I
think a start might be to separate structural properties from hydrological
and biological function. Malmer & Wallen (1993) took an approach of
defining structural layers based on physical and chemical properties to
compare hummocks across a wide range of sites. Clymo (1991) defined
functional (biological) zones which move up and down through structural
layers that are more or less static. Perhaps we could start to build on
these ideas to develop a terminology that is applicable across the whole
range of peatland types, from Sphagnum-dominated raised bogs, to fens, to
restiad mires. I would be interested to hear what other people think of
this.
Research focus
I agree with Andy and David that the MRG is in danger of losing its focus
on "pure" research, and one of the symptoms of this is a somewhat parochial
view. Despite its name, the BES has an international membership, and so
does the MRG. One thing we can do is to keep an international perspective
on research issues - via discussion on this email list, for example. We
currently have 81 members, 56 of whom are based in the UK. But we also
have members from other parts of northern Europe, Japan, Australia, New
Zealand and Canada. I would be very interested to hear how researchers who
work in other parts of the world view this debate on the acrotelm - is it
relevant to your system, or do we need to develop a different approach?
Lisa Belyea
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