NC2448 : Shallow Lochan above Laxford BridgeLochs do not develop from boggy ground, rather, the opposite happens. Lochs gradually become filled in, often by the growth of marginal plants which cause the shoreline to creep gradually outwards until the former open water is covered with vegetation. Where the water is shallow, as is the case in the example shown, the dead stems of water plants gradually make the water even more shallow until marshland replaces the loch and, if no large grazing animals are present, trees would eventually take root, causing the damp ground to dry out even faster. This type of succession is referred to as a hydrosere. Part of a reservoir in the Lothians where I used to fish is now almost dry land and where good fish used to be caught is now a path over a network of iris rhizomes.