In a few weeks, UNESCO is set to announce its decision on whether the Flow Country in northern Scotland will become a world heritage site. This unique designation, awarded to places of exceptional cultural, historical, or scientific significance, would elevate this misty, midge-filled region to the same status as the Great Barrier Reef, the Grand Canyon, and the Pyramids.
The Flow Country, spanning Caithness and Sutherland in the northernmost part of the British Isles, is the world’s largest expanse of blanket bog. Covering 4,000 square kilometers, it hosts a diverse range of wildlife, including black-throated divers, golden plovers, greenshanks, golden eagles, merlins, and short-eared owls, as well as otters and water voles. This landscape is dominated by sphagnum moss, which blankets peat layers up to 10 meters deep—deep enough to bury a double-decker bus. Unique plant life such as sundews, which use sticky tentacles to trap insects, also thrives here.
A partnership involving the RSPB, NatureScot, and the Highland Council formally requested UNESCO to designate the Flow Country as a world heritage site, emphasizing its global importance and need for special protection. After over a year of consideration, UNESCO is ready to make its decision.
Professor Roxane Anderson of the University of the Highlands and Islands, an expert in peatland science involved in the UNESCO bid, highlighted the uniqueness of blanket bogs, noting their ability to cover steep slopes and create a complex mosaic across the landscape. She emphasized that the region’s constant rain and fog prevent the peat from drying out and degrading, maintaining its integrity even on sharp inclines.
The Flow Country’s blanket bogs have been accumulating since the last glaciers retreated over 10,000 years ago. This ancient habitat plays a crucial role in carbon storage, with scientists estimating it holds over 400 million tonnes of carbon across nearly one million acres. However, this remarkable environment is also infamous for its midges, particularly the Culicoides impunctatus species, which thrive in the boggy, acidic terrain and form swarms that plague humans, livestock, and pets.
