Stratigraphy and Pollen Analysis of Claish Moss, North-West Scotland: Significance for the Origin of Surface-Pools and Forest History

SUMMARY Stratigraphic investigations to determine the origin and development of the excentric system of ridges and pools characteristic of the present-day mire surface of Claish Moss, north-west Scotland, are described. The pool-and-ridge system has persisted since an early stage in the development of the mire, and there is evidence which suggests that the position of one pool selected for detailed study has remained constant throughout the intervening period, although the area of the pool has altered. One peat core was subjected to pollen analysis and the resulting pollen diagram is given. The pattern of forest history resembles that found at a number of other Scottish sites at present in the transition zone between deciduous and coniferous forest. The deciduous forest pollen types in the profile (Quercus, Ulmus and Alnus) are present in some quantity throughout the mid-Flandrian, and there is evidence of successive forest clearance episodes above the Ulmus decline. The occurrence of Hedera helix pollen suggests an oceanic frost-free climate at Claish Moss in the early-Flandrian. The pollen data are used to provide a time-scale for the course of mire development. It is suggested that the current complex surface topography has been in existence for about 5000 years.