The Cenas tīrelis is a

bog A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials often mosses, typically sphagnum moss. It is one of the four main types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, mosses, quagmire, and muskeg; a ...

located in the municipalities of

Mārupe Mārupe (german: Marienbach) is a town in and the centre of Mārupe Municipality, Latvia. Mārupe is in practice a suburb of the Latvian capital, Riga, and is the headquarters of the Latvian Bandy Federation. A small river Mārupīte flows thro ...

and

Olaine Olaine (; german: Olai) is a city in Olaine Municipality in the Vidzeme region of Latvia. Olaine gained town rights in 1967. The name comes from the Saint Olai Church, built by the Misa river under Swedish rule in the 17th century. An old cemete ...

, approximately 30 kilometers west of

Riga Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Ba ...

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

. It is a

Natura 2000 Natura 2000 is a network of nature protection areas in the territory of the European Union. It is made up of Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas designated under the Habitats Directive and the Birds Directive, respectively ...

protected site and one of Latvia's 261

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 ...

s. It was formed 5000 years ago. The bog has a total size of 6,000 ha, mostly occupied by the nature reserve and an active

peat extraction 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 ...

site. The Cenas tirelis bog is the second largest peatland in Latvia, after the

Teiči Nature Reserve Teiči Nature Reserve ( lv, Teiču dabas rezervāts) is a nature reserve situated in eastern Latvia, spread across Madona, Varakļāni and Jēkabpils municipalities. History The nature reserve was created in 1982. Its purpose is to protect the ...

, which has a total size of 19,779 ha. The " Skaista ezers", which is Latvian for "Beautiful Lake" is also located within the nature reserve. In 2007 a

trail A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or small road usually passing through a natural area. In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, a path or footpath is the preferred term for a pedestrian or hiking trail. Th ...

of wooden planks was built in the southern area of the reserve. It leads from the end of the peat extraction area in a circle and has a total length of 5 kilometers. On the widest point away from the start, close to an old military road from

WW1 World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, a bird watching tower and picnic tables can be found. Along the way, several information boards explain about the resident flora and fauna as well as about the peat industry in Latvia and the world in Latvian and English language. According to those information boards, peat is still used as energy source in Latvia and accounts for around 1% of the total

energy mix The energy mix is a group of different primary energy sources from which secondary energy for direct use - such as electricity - is produced. Energy mix refers to all direct uses of energy, such as transportation and housing, and should not be c ...

. The reserve is home to several special of animals, including 10 protected bird species in Latvia. It is also a common resting place for several

geese A goose (plural, : geese) is a bird of any of several waterfowl species in the family (biology), family Anatidae. This group comprises the genera ''Anser (bird), Anser'' (the grey geese and white geese) and ''Branta'' (the black geese). Some o ...

and cranes.

References

Strict nature reserves in Latvia Natura 2000 in Latvia Mārupe Municipality Olaine Municipality {{Latvia-geo-stub