La tourbière des Petits Riaux - Conseil départemental de l`Orne

> Discovery trail
La tourbière
des Petits Riaux
english
Hello
and welcome to the Petits Riaux peatland site
Peatlands are often depicted as the home of legends, haunted
by ghosts, goblins and other wicked creatures. Popular belief
often, quite rightly, saw peatlands as dangerous places.
In fact, these complex ecosystems are habitat to some exceptionally
diverse fauna and flora. This discovery trail covers six stages, designed
to help you discover the distinctive features of the peatland and its
environment.
To access the Petits Riaux peatland, take the path along the edge of the
P wood. The trail starts 300m down on your left, over the footbridge.
Stage Q
Formation of a peat bog
Here, you are in the Goult wood, on the edge of the Ecouves forest
(14,000 ha).
The entire site sits on Armorican sandstone, a hard, impermeable rock
that acidifies soil and water.
The area’s cool, damp climate contributes to the formation of numerous
water sources which spring from the bottom of the
slope, encouraging the development of small hillside
peat bogs, typical of the Armorican Massif.
Formation of the peat bog
In a cold micro-climate, dead plant matter breaks
down very slowly in nutrient-poor, acidic,
water-logged soil. This plant matter accumulates and forms peat (up to 1.2m thick).
Role of the peat bog
The peat bog is critical for water regulation,
absorbing rainfall during winter and providing
water for animals in the pastures downhill
during the summer.
Peat is mainly formed thanks to sphagnum.
This is a type of moss that grows continually
upwards while the lower parts die off
and accumulate, forming clearly visible
mounds. Sphagnum is able to hold up to
30 times as much water as its dry weight.
The peat bog is home to its own special
flora, adapted to nutrient-poor, wet
environments.
Sphagnum
Stage W
Original plant life
Bu
ew
There are a number of signs
along the trail, describing the
characteristic plants found in
peat bogs and on wet heathlands. You will learn more
about various species such as
cotton grasses, which date back
to the ice ages. There are also carnivorous plants that feed on the
insects they capture!
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ort
The botanic trail
nd
Su
tte
The plant life here is a mosaic of vegetation groups, varying according to
soil humidity.
Groups of bog asphodel and carnivorous plants are found in the wettest
areas.
Deergrass
Bog
asphodel
Hare’s-tail cottongrass
Sundew
Sphagnum
Cross-leaved heather, dwarf gorse and common heather are found on
wet heathlands, which are less water-logged.
Common heather
Dwarf gorse
Cross-leaved
heather
Moor grass
Stage E
The peat wood
This is mainly made up of beech
with some aspen. Thick layers of
moss – common hair moss – form a
carpet in the undergrowth.
This can reach heights of 40cm and
is the tallest moss in Europe.
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Roy
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Pol
Stage R
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Large chequered skipper
Fauna
Fauna in the peat bog is mainly made up of reptiles,
amphibians, insects and spiders. Mammals and birds that
live on the edge of the bog come here to feed.
The large chequered skipper is a butterfly typical to wet
areas. It is easily recognised by the oval markings on its
wings and by the way it seemingly bounces through the air
as it flies.
Look in the grass and see if you can spot spider’s
webs with a characteristic zigzag decoration.
These are spun by the wasp spider, whose yellow
and black wasp-like markings help protect it from
birds.
Large gold grasshopper
on genista anglica
Wasp spider
You might also spot
grasshoppers and crickets
trapped in the webs, since
bog bush crickets and
large gold grasshoppers
thrive in this kind of environment.
Bog bush cricket
on fruit
of the bog asphodel
Dragonflies and damselflies are impressive hunters of flying insects.
Their larva are aquatic. Once fully grown, they move out into the
open air where they transform into winged adults. You can look for
their moult, known as the exuvia, in the grasses around the pond.
Argiope frelonExuvia
liza
rd
You can watch the common lizard
catching the sun and enjoying the
heat on the deck.
The common European adder is
more timid, and
hides away at the
slightest disturbance.
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on
Common European adder
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Stage T
Evolution and management
Heathlands and peatlands were grazed and mown until the 1970s. These
agricultural practices helped maintain these open environments and
preserve their great diversity. If they are abandoned, afforestation can
occur, leading to the disappearance of the fauna and flora typically found
in this kind of wetland.
The site is recognised as being of European interest (Natura 2000) and
has been actively managed since 1996, with regular restoration and
maintenance work carried out.
The aim of the work is to reopen the environment, cutting down and
pulling up trees and bushes and limiting common bracken growth.
Stage Y
The hamlet of Goult
As you return to the car park, finish off
your visit with a detour to the hamlet
of Goult. Here, you can admire the built
heritage and in particular the Roman
porch of Saint Peter’s chapel.
You will also find the remains of a
historical site that overlooks the hamlet.
The site is referred to as a “Roman camp”
but dates back to the Bronze Age.
Discovery trail: 1,400 m
Path starts 325m from the car park

Site map and discovery trail
325 m

5
You are here
P
Path starts here
3
rosfay
om G
Path fr
to
Goult
1
2
4
Goult wood
Contact : BUREAU DES ESPACES NATURELS SENSIBLES
Conseil général de l’Orne
27, boulevard de Strasbourg
CS 30528 - 61017 Alençon cedex - Tél. 02 33 81 61 53
Information on guided tours: Parc naturel Normandie Maine.
If you don’t wish to keep this leaflet, please put it back in the dispenser at the site entrance.
Réalisation : API CG61 - janvier 2014
Conception : CG61 - PNR Normandie-Maine / Illustrations : Jean-Christophe Joubert - Claire Felloni / Photographies : AFFO, CG61, Collines normandes CPIE, D. Commenchal.
Tourbière
des
Petits Riaux /
Path
peatland
starts here