__NOTOC__ The Dürres Maar is a maar located in the vicinity of the village of

Gillenfeld Gillenfeld is an '' Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Vulkaneifel district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' of Daun, whose s ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

in the West Eifel mountains about 400 metres northwest of the

Holzmaar The Holzmaar lies in the Volcanic Eifel in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate almost halfway between Gillenfeld (2.5 km away to the southwest) and Eckfeld. The maar has an area of about , a diameter of and a depth of and lies withi ...

. The Dürres Maar ist a dry maar, the original maar lake has silted up. It is surrounded by an embankment of lapilli-

tuff Tuff is a type of rock made of volcanic ash ejected from a vent during a volcanic eruption. Following ejection and deposition, the ash is lithified into a solid rock. Rock that contains greater than 75% ash is considered tuff, while rock ...

which has only been gently eroded and has a diameter of about 290 metres. The Dürres Maar was formed more than 25,000 years ago. In the hollow formed by the maar is a transitional bog, which is made of

sphagnum ''Sphagnum'' is a genus of approximately 380 accepted species of mosses, commonly known as sphagnum moss, peat moss, also bog moss and quacker moss (although that term is also sometimes used for peat). Accumulations of ''Sphagnum'' can store wa ...

and

brown moss Brown Moss is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, Local Nature Reserve and important wetland area rich in wildlife close to Whitchurch, Shropshire. It is open to visitors and contains a number of self-guided walking trails. The name 'mos ...

peats. The peat body is about 3,000 to 4,000 years old and has a thickness of about 12 metres. Below the

peat Peat (), also known as turf (), is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, moors, or muskegs. The peatland ecosystem covers and is the most efficient ...

are heavily disintegrated limnic deposits that date to the late late glacial period. The bog is not only fed by precipitation, but also be springs that are found at the northeastern end. The Dürres Maar is protected as a

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

Literature

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References

External links

Dürres Maar
at EIsoPal {{DEFAULTSORT:Durres Maar Maars of the Eifel Vulkaneifel Nature reserves in Rhineland-Palatinate Bogs of Rhineland-Palatinate