Orton Moss devil's-bit scabious, knapweed, meadowsweet and wild angelica are abundant. Small remnants of raised mire vegetation including sphagnum moss, bog rosemary and royal fern. Birds to be seen are willow tits, woodcock, great spotted woodpeckers and willow warblers. Orton Moss Orton Moss is a Site of Special Scientific Interest located west of the city of Carlisle in northwest England. Orton Moss is a former raised mire and divided into strips and fields which would traditionally have been used for peat cutting and grazing. Formerly noted for its butterflies, it was once the homes of the wood white, ("Leptidea sinapis"), the large
Portlethen Moss lower elevations in every direction. Due to the high winds, moderate precipitation and cool temperatures that generally prevail, conditions are favourable for formation of an acid bog, since water stagnates, but eventually evaporates with ensuing acidity enhancement of decaying organic matter. There was virtually no drainage outlet in prehistoric times, and little drainage even in modern times. Many coastal mosses were initiated by the process of glaciation, which sheared rock formations to a generally level terrain, while also gouging moderate sized craters that would pond. This description fits the fundamental situation of Portlethen Moss, where sphagnum would have flourished over