Apologies in advance if tag is wrong, can’t identify if this is biology, chemistry or planetary science lol
AFAIK bogs especially peat bogs are carbon sinks, they take in more carbon than they release, since biomass in these bogs are unable to completely decompose into carbon dioxide. They are stored in whatever partially decomposed forms as peat. I have some confusion regarding this, questions below, since my knowledge on this is really limited and i can’t understand the wiki on this. TIA!
– Doesnt this make oxygen more prevalent in these areas since carbon is readily absorbed?
– Why are peat bogs so dangerous? Is it solely due to peat just being a very unshaky ground to walk on, like quicksand, swamps etc. Is it just a drowning hazard?
– Why are bog mummies so well preserved? Back to my first point, if carbon is readily absorbed and oxygen takes its place, doesnt this accelerate decomposition since oxidation happens more easily?
– Are bodies well preserved in alkaline bogs (fens) due to saponification? If so how do acidic bogs preserve bodies? is it just due to low microbial count because of the low pH hurdle?
In: Biology
You seem to have misunderstood what “takes in carbon” means. Peat is not some material that absorbs the carbon from biomass that enters, it *is* that biomass. Oxidation would be carbon joining with oxygen to form CO2; this is the process that is not occurring in significant amounts in a bog.
Peat bogs can be dangerous due to the sogginess of the ground and so the drowning risk as you identify.
The conditions in a peat bog of acidity, low levels of oxygen and a low temperature means that decomposition is dramatically slowed down. However it appears that the bodies were deliberately placed in the peat bogs and object placed on the bodies to prevent them from resurfacing. https://youtu.be/JOBVh7Xo8Yw
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