The conservation management value of testate amoebae as 'restoration' indicators: speculations based on two damaged raised mires in northwest England

The ideas behind peatland restoration and the utility of testate amoebae in informing such schemes are briefly reviewed and discussed in the context of two lowland raised-mire sites in northwest England (Astley Moss, part of the Chat Moss complex in Greater Manchester, and Danes Moss, Cheshire). Our study indicates a high degree of correspondence between the sites in their response to major documented climatic deteriorations during the last five millennia. In particular, the c. 2300 BP event appears to correspond with greatly increased water-table fluctuation at both sites and pronounced declines in characteristic mire taxa of testate amoebae. These do not regain their former dominance save for a brief episode at c. 300 BP affecting both sites. Despite some restoration attempts at both sites, testate assemblages bear little resemblance to what might be considered a typical mire assemblage and do not appear to have done so with any degree of stability for c. 2500 years. This raises important issues regarding the practicability and suitability of such sites for large-scale restoration attempts and the range of conditions that can be considered natural for such sites; these questions should form the basis of future research.