Östra Sälsjömossen, Naturreservat

In the Östra Sälsjömossen nature reserve, you will have time to experience the untouched and quiet nature of the wilderness. From the beach forest you can see the grouse playing out on the bog and in spring and early summer you can hear the cuckoo calling.

The bog

Bogs are marshes that get their water from rain. They are therefore nutrient-poor. They are also low in oxygen, due to the stagnant water in them. Mosses are made up of peat formed over a long period of time, as dead plant parts rot very slowly in the oxygen-poor environment. Peat is partially decomposed plant parts. White mosses and other plants grow new shoots every year, but the decomposition of the previous year's plant parts is so slow that the thickness of the peat grows slowly. Some bogs grow so that the surface arches high above the surrounding solid ground. There is evidence of such an elevation of the bog surface in the far south of Östra Sälsjömossen.

The marsh

Marshes are bogs that get a large part of their water from the surrounding land. The water carries nutrients that have been dissolved from the surrounding solid ground. At Östra Sälsjömossen there are two east-west marsh troughs that divide the bog into three parts. As the water in the marshes is more mobile than in the bogs, it also carries more oxygen. This contributes to a higher degree of decomposition in bogs than in fens, and the thickness of the peat layer is generally less than in fens. As bogs are more nutrient-rich than fens, they also have a richer and more varied flora.

Vegetation

Groups of small pine trees grow on the bog. These pines are able to live on the wet and nutrient-poor surface of the bog, an environment that not many other plants can handle. They are much older than you might think, perhaps a couple of hundred years old. These 'late-growth' trees are called martallas. They are characterized by very slow growth. Sedges, meadowsweet, bluebells and various sedge species are plants that require more nutrients than the bog can provide. This is why they are only found in the marshy bogs. On the nutrient-poor moss, you will find plants that can manage without much nutrition, such as tufa, heather and roselle. There is also a lot of the low creeping shrub dwarf birch. In the marginal forest bordering the bog there are hemlocks and sedges. These also need very little nourishment.

Bird life

It is mainly grouse that thrive out here and they are here all year round. From the edge of the forest, you can see the grouse playing out on the bog. In March-April, the grouse spawn and the spectacle can be best experienced then. The grouse are sensitive to disturbance, so it is best to be there before dawn. The game starts at dawn and slows down after a few hours. Sometimes you can hear lone grouse playing at other times of the day and year. Greater crossbill, meadow pipit, golden plover, crane and greenfinch also nest on the bog almost every year. If you want to hear the cuckoo in spring and early summer, this is a good place.

Accessibility

Östra Sälsjömossen belongs to level 1 in the County Administrative Board's leveling of the county's nature reserves, which means that the reserve has a wilderness character and lacks outdoor recreation facilities.

Read more about the leveling and management of protected nature