A month with two purple patches

The outstanding issue at the time of the last diary was the scarlet elf cap fungus and which of the two species of Sarcoscypha it would turn out to be. In early March a return visit to Reelig Glen was eventually sorted and the slightly hairy trip along the side of the steep-sided Moniack Burn was made. This amazing glen and its magnificent mix of old conifer and broadleaved trees really is worth a visit. The current woodland, now owned by the Forestry Commission, was established in the mid-1800s under the ownership of the Fraser family – in particular James Baillie Fraser who was responsible for the planting of the policy woodlands which now form the ancient stand of mixed woodland found on site today. A car park, signposted from the A862 Inverness to Beauly road, gives access, and a well made up path takes you along one bank of the burn to an old stone bridge and grotto allowing you to cross the burn and return along the other side. The walk takes you through a group of Douglas Firs which are amongst the tallest trees in Britain. A sign at the base of one introduces you to Dougall Mor, which, until February 2009, WAS the tallest tree in Britain at 204'. However, another Douglas fir near Dunans Castle in Argyll was climbed and measured at 209' – taking the title. Having climbed a few Douglas firs in Morayshire at over 100' to ring osprey chicks the 200' versions must be real Jack and the beanstalk climbs! See http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/glasgow_and_west/7911032.stm

The scary bit of the Moniack Burn starts up-stream of the bridge and grotto and despite having a GPS reference for the fungus it took quite a bit of re-finding. Eventually there it was, glowing bits of red still peeking out from the vegetation (right). A photo was taken and a single sample for Liz to check. On one outcrop of rock on the way back to the path a few clumps of harts tongue fern were found, another addition for the site. The tube and fungus were packed off first class to Liz and a day later the news came back that the version of scarlet elf cap fungus was Sarcoscypha austriaca, a fungus with few records this far north in Britain, making the return trip well worthwhile. The map from the NBN (National Biodiversity Network) website gives an idea of the importance of this find. The fungus was found close to the Inverness/Beauly Firth area on the NBN map. Amazing.

Working through the many lists of species in the files at Abernethy over the last twelve months shows the reserve is home to just over 4000 species of plants and animals. This has attracted the attention of a few journalists particularly when we mention the water beetle Agabus wasastjernae found in 1993, alive, when its previous finds had been as fossils from peat samples from two sites in England. The dates of the fossil deposits showed that the beetle was present in Britain before the last Ice Age (one was ca. 15,000 years before present and the other 40,000 years). The fossils were actually skeletal remains (wing cases, heads etc) preserved in the peat, with several beetle parts found at each site. “Do you have a photograph of the beetle?” was a regularly asked question to which we had to answer no. A mounted specimen but not a photo, so the next task was to try and find one to photograph. John, our visiting beetle expert, originally found several beetles at one of the bogs in the forest and I had personally found another site on Abernethy and a single site on a neighbouring estate – still the only location known outside Abernethy. So, armed with pond-dipping net, polythene sheet for sorting net contents and a camera, I made my way up into the forest to see if the beetle could be re-found. The beetle is found in pools of water underneath moss- covered Scots pine stumps (as photo left), actually in amongst the roots. It is a case of checking each root hole by inserting the net, wiggling it around, hoping to have a water beetle in amongst the peaty debris. The beetle remains rare in Britain because the habitat it requires is rare, a tree dying naturally on a mire, the slight movement of water possibly being responsible for the pool under the root. To most folk the pool under the root is completely invisible, and it is only by parting the mossy covering and feeling if there is water can the sites be found. There are lots of moss covered mound on these sites without a drop of “hidden” water. Over a period of an hour several pools had been found but no beetles emerged from the peaty debris. The beetle is about half of the size, but the same shape as those tasty sunflower seeds that you put out for the birds, so looking for something black in amongst wet peaty debris isn’t easy, the knack being to wait for some movement as the beetle tries to hide. A move to a part of the mire where the beetle hadn’t been found previously did the trick and there was a beetle of the right size and shape which would have to be transported home to be checked under the microscope. A commoner close relative is also found in these watery holes and it is only by checking the patterning on the beetles wing cases (elytra) that you know you have the right species. The site was GPS-ed and photographed and on returning home the beetle turned out to be Agabus wasastjernae, all that was needed now was a photograph – something easier said than done with something that is constantly trying to hide! A photo of a kind was obtained and the beetle was returned to its watery home, none the worse for its wee adventure. An earlier beetle (in 1994) made a trip via the mail to Epsom to be confirmed by John before being posted back and released a couple of days later unharmed. The lengths we go to……. The beetle might just star in an article in this weeks Sunday Telegraph (3 May) but with 4000 other species to compete with, perhaps it won’t.

Around the place the early spring flowers started to appear with the Good Friday grass (Luzula campestris) once again leading the way. Wandering the higher slopes of the Cairngorms last autumn looking for the arctic stagshorn clubmoss, I started to think about some of the early spring mountain flowers, some of which I haven’t seen for many years. In particular I had fond memories of the early splash of colour on some of the slightly lime rich rocks when the purple saxifrage puts in an appearance usually during March and April and made a note that should the opportunity arise, it was something to try and see. The opportunity came via a work colleague who had been out for a weekend moss and lichen recording and reported seeing the leafy runners, lots of buds and a few open flowers on one of the rock faces they had visited close to Loch Ness. A note was made of location and a couple of weeks allowed to pass for more flowers to develop and on the next day off I headed west. A very steep climb up a heathery hillside lead to a sheer rock face and after a bit of searching the first patch of flowering brilliance was found. An amazing splash of colour to say that we were only in the third week of March, making the hike up the hill well worthwhile. On the way back I popped in to the RSPB reserve at Loch Ruthven (no grebes) and then over the Farr Road to the River Findhorn (Eagle Ally) where heather burning on the grouse moors was progressing apace. The smoke always makes the fires look much worse than they are though with the dry spring weather this year in the Highlands quite a few fires have got away from the beaters and the fire brigade has been kept busy.

The first warm days of April brought out the first bumblebees of the year and in the garden the first bee looks like it was Bombus hortorum – the garden bumblebee. This particular bee was caught out with the weather, easy to fly when the sun was out but very difficult to take off when the sun disappeared and the temperature dropped to about five degrees centigrade. However, taking refuge on the open crocus flowers it was at least able to have a wee feed whilst waiting for the sun to return. A week or two later a few other bees were visiting the newly-opened flowers, particularly the big trumpets of daffodils. Not all bees though go in through the front of the flower to pollen or nectar, some will just push their long tongues through the base. This bee was caught in the act as it visited several daffodils and pierced the base of the flowers in all cases. Some bees have very long tongues, just watch them next time they visit flowers in your garden. Length of tongue is sometimes a help when trying to identify a particular bumblebee. Finlay, our grandson, has also developed a fascination with ‘bumbey-bees’ and will often grab our hands to go looking for them around the garden.

A return visit was made to one of the Beauly woods to collect a bit more information on two of the lichens found there on an earlier visit. With help from lichen expert Sheila Street we now know that what I thought was Lobaria virens is actually that species (right), so a new 10km square record for the lichen atlas. A second Lobaria photographed in the same wood turned out to be Lobaria scrobiculata, something new for the wood in which it was found. No, I am not about to start identifying lichens but checking out the odd one will be the order of the day, and hopefully I can add a little information regarding their distribution. This visit though, was not without a cost. The twinge in the hip that developed as I walked into the wood, that should have been rested to give it chance to recover, is still sore seven weeks on. Recovery is well enough advanced to be back on my bike to work and hopefully the daily ice pack will be discarded in a few more days, but the overall effect has meant less visits with cameras here, there and everywhere. I hope enough photos though will allow a reasonable diary in May but with little bending, walking etc the camera hasn’t been to the fore. The photo left shows why the problem might have developed!

That’s all for now, enjoy the read.

Best wishes
Stewart & Janet

Apple moss complete with 'apples'

All photos © Stewart Taylor