Although Wetland Month has come to a close, we wanted to highlight one of the wetland species in honor of the March Species of the Month. At the beginning of this month, social media followers of the LIFE For Species project took part in a vote, as a result, Sphagnum pulchrum was chosen as the species of the month for March.

In Latvia, this species is very rare. It can be found in various constantly wet and humid places - in mossy swamps, swampy forests, ditches and on the shores of swampy lakes. In Latvia the common name for the species is “the beautiful sphagnum” and it probably earned this name due to its shades, which vary from yellowish to greenish-brown, and can sometimes even take on a purple hue.

Sphagnum pulchrum is similar to the very common sphagnum (S. fallax), but it is distinguished in nature by its distinct five-rowed branched leaves.