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for several inches. The humified layer is composed of <br />moderately- decomposed hemic, and highly- decomposed sapric <br />material. It extends from the base of the fibric zone to the <br />bottom of the deposit. <br />Verry and Boelter (1978) recognize the classifications as: <br />1) fibric material has a fiber content of more than 67 percent; <br />2) hemic material has a fiber content between 33 and 67 percent; <br />and, 3) sapric material has a fiber content of less than 33 <br />percent. Fibers are classified as the proportion of plant <br />fragments greater than .15 mm in size. <br />As mentioned previously, peatlands are divided on the basis <br />of their water source, and only minerotrophic peatlands are found <br />in Colorado. Technically these areas are termed "fens ". Water <br />in fens is more nutrient rich and less acidic than in "bogs ", and <br />as a result of these ameliorated conditions fens contain a more <br />diverse and richer flora than do bogs (Stanek and Worley 1983). <br />Bogs are specifically ombrotrophic in nature and technically do <br />not occur in Colorado (Cooper 1989). As elsewhere, however, the <br />colloquial sense of the word is frequently used. <br />The category of fen is further subdivided on the basis of <br />relative nutrient richness, and includes four classes between <br />extremely rich (pH 7.0 to 8.5) and extremely poor (pH 3.7 to 5.2) <br />(Sjors 1950). In Colorado, extremely rich fens develop in areas <br />where source waters percolate through limestone rock formations. <br />The Mosquito Range which lies along the west side of South Park <br />is one example of an area that produces extremely rich fens. <br />0 5 <br />