Marshes, bogs and swamps: habitat fragmentation

Many Dutch marshes, bogs and swamps are so small that the species in them are at risk of dying out.

Trends

There are almost 1500 marshes, bogs and swamps in the Netherlands, but over 80% of them are smaller than 10 ha (upper figure) and a sizeable proportion of the total area of this habitat is in areas smaller than 100 ha (lower figure).

In the small areas, species are much more at risk of disappearing, especially if the small marsh, bog or swamp is very isolated from other similar areas. Even the largest areas of this habitat (1000 to 5000 ha in size) are too small to be able to guarantee the long-term survival of all the characteristic species in them. However, the effects of habitat fragmentation can be countered by physically linking marshes, bogs and swamps.