The Oppenwehe Moor (german: Oppenweher Moor) is a

raised bog Raised bogs, also called ombrotrophic bogs, are acidic, wet habitats that are poor in mineral salts and are home to flora and fauna that can cope with such extreme conditions. Raised bogs, unlike fens, are exclusively fed by precipitation (ombrot ...

in the

natural region A natural region (landscape unit) is a basic geographic unit. Usually, it is a region which is distinguished by its common natural features of geography, geology, and climate. From the ecological point of view, the naturally occurring flora and ...

of Diepholz Moor Depression (''Diepholzer Moorniederung'') in North Germany. It covers a total area of around 870 ha''Naturschutzgebiet Oppenweher Moorlandschaft.''
In: ''Schutzgebiete unseres Kreises'', No. 3. 4. Auflage. Kreis Minden-Lübbecke (publ.), 2011, retrieved 25 May 2016 (pdf; 885 kB). and lies in the northeastern part of the German state of

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more than 18 million inha ...

as well as in

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...

. It is one of the most important bogs in Northwest Germany and is one of the ten most important wet meadow reserves in North Rhine-Westphalia. It is part of the

Dümmer Nature Park The Dümmer Nature Park (german: Naturpark Dümmer) in North Germany is located in the Lower Saxon districts of Diepholz and Vechta and the North Rhine-Westphalian district of Minden-Lübbecke. It is about northeast of Osnabrück and lies betwe ...

The actual area of bog within the state of North Rhine-Westphalia covers 215 ha and has been 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 ...

since 1974. The landowner of most of the real estate is the district of

Minden-Lübbecke Minden-Lübbecke is a ''Kreis'' (district) in the northeastern part of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Neighboring districts are Diepholz, Nienburg, Schaumburg, Lippe, Herford, Osnabrück. Geography This is the northernmost district of North ...

, which has bought up the plots of land with the support of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. In spite being formerly

drained ''Drained'', (Portuguese: ''O Cheiro do Ralo'') is a 2006 Brazilian dark comedy film based on a novel by Lourenço Mutarelli. It was directed by Heitor Dhalia, and stars Selton Mello. The film was produced by Geração Conteúdo, Primo Filmes & ...

, the bog forms a habitat for a large number of endangered plant and animal species. Important plants on the Oppenwehe Moor include peat mosses,

cottongrass ''Eriophorum'' (cottongrass, cotton-grass or cottonsedge) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cyperaceae, the sedge family. They are found throughout the arctic, subarctic, and temperate portions of the Northern Hemisphere in acid bo ...

and

cross-leaved heath ''Erica tetralix'', the cross-leaved heath, is a species of flowering plant in the family Ericaceae, native to western Europe, from southern Portugal to central Norway, as well as a number of boggy regions further from the coast in Central Europ ...

. The peat mosses are responsible for the growth of the bog and are the most important plants in the raised bog; they can store more than twenty times their own weight of water. Their lower layers die off and become

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 ...

. The best-known and most striking plant is cottongrass. In spring the cottongrasses turn large parts of the raised bog into a sea of white. The cross-leaved heath is a typical heather plant of raised bogs. It prefers wet locations and blooms in summer. Four circular walks run through the nature reserve and enable visitors to see rare animals and plants. In the ''Moorblick'' ("bog view") information pavilion the history of the bog and interesting information about the creation and importance of bogs is displayed. The nature reserve, ''Am Oppenweher Moor'', borders the raised bog to the south and is 275 ha in area.

References

{{Reflist Bogs of Lower Saxony Nature reserves in Lower Saxony Diepholz (district) Stemwede Minden-Lübbecke Bogs of North Rhine-Westphalia