A good month for midges. Opening my diary to examine what I had been up to throughout September I found several pages dotted with lifeless midges no doubt ‘collected’ during an outing to Rothiemurchus to check out an excellent inhabitants of sedges discovered by plant expert Andy a number of days earlier. The go to was made to attempt to discover a new location for the smut fungus growing on heads of bladder sedge (Carex vesicaria), discovered solely once earlier than by the River Spey close to Kincraig. The wee lochan with the sedges additionally had an excellent inhabitants of skullcap (Scutellaria galericulata), an uncommon plant in these components, however even rarer was a caterpillar-like larva that Andy had discovered, munching big holes in most of the plants leaves. I failed to seek out something on the bladder sedge. The variety of larvae suggested a species of sawfly (just think of sawfly larvae defoliating your gooseberry bushes) and Andy identified the species as Athalia scutellariae, the skullcap sawfly. This strikingly patterned larva had solely been recorded beforehand from two places in Scotland and simply once from Highland in 2014, so one to look out for if encountering its food plant sooner or later. The identical day our Queen additionally broke a report having been on the throne for sixty three years and seven months, virtually the whole of my life – amazing. The continuing seek for Anthracoidea fungus on sedge heads, significantly on sedges with few records or no records at all in the Canada continued to take me down new paths of discovery. This I did and the thanks reply knowledgeable me that the balloon had been released in Greenwich, London, some 550 miles away. A tremendous distance however I did ask the Tarmac organisers whether adding to the variety of balloons now littering the countryside was a good suggestion. At the end of this ribbon was a message asking the finder to e-mail particulars of the placement. I nonetheless await a reply. Inverness to see a sedge I’d never seen earlier than – club sedge (Carex buxbaumii). The preliminary test would be to find and identify the sedge and if found, spend a little bit of time checking the fruiting heads. Just a few plants were added to the notebook as I descended through boggy ground towards the loch together with the insectivorous plants nice and round-leaved sundew, plants that might have an unexpected hyperlink to another discover later within the day. I needn’t have frightened about identifying the membership sedge: fairly tall, with an unusually colored (inexperienced/yellow) flower-head, and quite considerable in a couple of locations with five distinct inhabitants along the loch shore. An insect having a swim in the loch was value saving as it was one of the shield bugs. Once dwelling my picture helped establish the red-legged shield bug (Pentatoma rufipes) via the British Bugs webpage. My wander spherical the loch turned up a tiny quantity of mud sedge which I thought could be new to the positioning but knowledgeable Ian Green had beaten me to it. In a small loch-side pool I may also see another unusual plant, a member of the bladderwort household, and just on the off-chance I’d have the ability to determine it, I took a small piece of stem and leaves and also with a single facet stem full with ‘the bladders’. Whilst it wasn’t possible to test all of the sedge heads for the fungus, fairly a couple of were looked at and a rising sense of excitement was extinguished when the sedge with the correct fungus turned out to be carnation sedge, an a sedge commonly discovered with the fungus. Sadly, no smut fungi were discovered on the membership sedges, however it had been a very good day in an area I seldom visit. Sadly, this group of plants seldom produce flowers (aside from lesser bladderwort (Utricularia minor) see Firwood weblog September 2009), so the one means is to carry out the microscope test. Back house I found some information on bladderwort identification, but this meant microscope work to look at hairs on the inside of the bladders! Within the back of my head I remembered the identify Utricularia australis (Bladderwort) as being the species recorded prior to now from within Abernethy Forest but that was presumably earlier than specialists obtained all the way down to the tough pastime of wanting inside the bladders. Inside the hairs develop out from the bladder wall. So, undaunted, I sliced one of many bladders open to see what I might see. It’s the shape of those hairs that leads to the plants ID. And positive enough, I was amazed to search out a fantastic patterning comprising the hairs. Photos had been sent off to the BSBI knowledgeable. The title Utricularia stygia (Nordic bladderwort) got here again. Were the plants in Abernethy the identical species? There was only a technique to find out by combining an outing to verify a number of more patches of mud sedge for smuts. The very best forest bogs have been just too wet to have been drained and planted through the damaging 1960s and 70s, and it was to a pair of those sites that I made my outing. Abernethy in this watery habitat. Once once more no smuts have been discovered on the mud sedge however all the wetter sections of the bogs had considerable populations of bladderwort and some small samples have been collected for checking. Just time for a quick photo as it posed with a brilliant patch of bladderwort as an again-drop. Back home it was again to the microscope and it in a short time grew to become apparent that there were ‘things’ contained in the a number of the bladders, the first one in the shape of a tick! Amazingly, one other bladder with tick was present in another, later collection from one other site – well accomplished bladders. On cutting open the bladder I found it was a tick and simply how tick and underwater bladder got here together I’ll by no means know! More superb was the tick was still alive on this and the later assortment. U. stygia. The subsequent bladders checked posed a barely different downside in that there gave the impression to be a mixture of perfect crosses. Crosses with totally different arm size but when checked by the professional they were deemed to be the identical. Crosses with different arm size however when checked by the knowledgeable they have been deemed to be the same. The third collection once once more had something within the bladders which initially seemed like tiny eggs. The following bladders checked posed a slightly totally different drawback in that there appeared to be a mix of excellent crosses. I’m not sure how I searched however out popped the title Ostracoda, an arthropod of the large, mainly aquatic group Crustacea, corresponding to a crab, lobster, shrimp, or barnacle, so my mussel description wasn’t too removed from appropriate. I must assume that the bladders catch their prey by having the ability to suck in and filter the water around them. When the bladder was opened the ‘eggs’ appeared like tiny mussel shells with a really obvious bright spot at what would be the hinge. Without an Ostracoda expert to hand that’s so far as my ID skills can go. Goodness, we know so little about what is going on round us. So, amazingly, the plant was a new species for Vice County 96 (East Inverness-shire with Nairn), and a new species for Abernethy Forest NNR. I simply want to find out if U. australis is there additionally. Early September saw the Osmia inermis bee staff back within the Blair Atholl space to re-go to the 2 sites where the ceramic saucers have been installed to see if we had tempted any bees to make use of them as nest websites. See simply what else these amazing plants have been eating. With a greater summer season in 2016 it might also be wise to strive. Sadly, not one in every of them had been used however seeing issues like vegetation progress round them, dampness within and the quantity occupied by tiny ants, a little bit extra thought will want to enter the way to current them on site when the challenge enters its second yr. Spend a bit of extra time on site to see if the bee can be discovered visiting flowers. The fifth September saw me set off on the final plant recording session of the summer time for the BSBI survey of beneath-recorded areas inside the Cairngorms National Park. However, the go to did discover a site for the lichen Peltigera leucophlebia and the fungal smuts on star and glaucous sedge (Carex echinata & flacca) so not all wasted regardless of the large disappointment. This outing took me once again to the Spey Dam area near Laggan the place two earlier outings had already been completed. Would or not it’s unusual, that might only be determined as soon as back home. At this stage I was fairly a means up the hillside and nicely into the realm of pure birch woodland with brilliant views back all the way down to Spey Dam and loch and the tiny green dot which was my wee automobile! Back home and the first thing I did was kind into Google “Anthacoidea fungus on Carex pallescens in UK” and the checklist of choices took me to the FRDBI database where I discovered there was just one record for a fungus with the unpronounceable identify of Anthracoidea pseudirregularis, found by the late P. W. James on the island of Mull in 1966. Famous footsteps to follow indeed. Due to the dampness of the site fifteen species of sedge were recorded through the go to with the pale sedge turning out to be the star of the day right at the tip of the day. A cellphone call to say that something odd/unusual had been found on the leaves of a small patch of bearberry (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi) had me visiting the positioning to confirm that the rare Exobasidium sydowianum fungus was present. Ongoing survey work at a site regionally threatened with 1500 houses by native volunteer recorders turned up some good information. On the best way into the location a number of small bees flying around on the sandy observe-facet stopped me in my tracks and, with digital camera at the prepared, several had been photographed and videoed so the species may very well be confirmed. About the same time an e mail arrived detailing a discover of a wide range of considered one of our common clubmosses which appeared unusual enough to want to go and try to find it. The regular selection is fir clubmoss (Huperzia selago), however a bit of greater up on our hill/mountain sides is the subspecies arctica – Arctic fir clubmoss, with information currently (26, 14 of that are current finds by native skilled Andy) from the Cairngorms space and the Western Isles. Mellinus arvensis. The false morel parasite fungus Cordyceps ophioglossoides was additionally rising from the financial institution as was a group of three Sarcodon imbricatus, the scaly hedgehog tooth fungus. My first thought was to go to the path taking walkers out to the Chalamain Gap, so with an afternoon free, I headed off up the Cairngorm road parking near the Sugarbowl car park. The primary find was a small group of fir clubmoss plants however with a shape tending in direction of subspecies arctica, so hopes were high for the real factor. Northern Corries. At this level the path reaches 550 to 600m in altitude, about the best elevation to search for the clubmoss. There have been good patches of bearberry on the naked gravels. All around the deer grass was turning to its orange/brown autumn colour. Each with distinct double whorls of bigger leaves spaced up the stem. Right at the top were the double whorls of this years progress with barely bigger. The following small inhabitants of clubmoss regarded just like the plant I was looking for with single plant stems. These fall off and presumably allow the plant to vegetatively regenerate itself. Darker growths known as ‘gemmifers’ projecting. Hopefully, the passing group of walkers didn’t think that they had discovered a physique as I lay photographing the plant as they walked past! The 24th noticed us up brilliant and early as we drove over to daughter Ruth’s to select her up en-route to Eden Court in Inverness for her BA Graduation Ceremony the fruits of four years of research. I believe there have been around 500 students packed into the theatre with at least the same number again of supporting companions, parents and family members. A brief thumbs up from her course tutor as she crossed the stage was in recognition of not just finishing the various assignments however of encouraging her to maintain going while coping with the various calls for of raising a younger household, giving delivery to Harry and shifting house 4 instances! Three weeks later she additionally profitable in getting a spot on one other three yr course at Elgin College. I nipped house to get camera. Tripod to capture the occasion. The next day noticed the culmination of a number of days of preparation for the felling of an enormous Norway spruce in considered one of our neighbours gardens by native tree surgeon Alban and his group. This quick growing tree was about 1.5m diameter close to its base, means outdoors the dimensions of something I had ever tackled in my tree felling days. The highest would come off first and steadily by the day the top of the principle stem could be lowered till the principle trunk was of a manageable height to be felled in one go. The felling notch was made on the felling side of the tree. When i acquired again with my camera Jamie was up at the top of the tree taking off the last few smaller branches earlier than fixing himself in position to fell the highest eight metre section of the tree along with his chainsaw. Direction of the felling. ‘hinge’ would be left to regulate the speed. With the two cuts complete Jamie then switched off his powersaw utilizing his power to lever excessive of the tree, pushing upwards on one of many branches left on for that objective. At first nothing occurred, but as Jamie bought a rocking movement going, the top of the tree began to topple over in precisely the right route as deliberate. By the top of the day the whole trunk was on the ground, some of which could be planked into useable sections quite than just chopping up for firewood. Success, and simply earlier than the rain started to fall. With fungus skilled Liz now not resident on Deeside I made a visit over the tops mid-month to test one in all solely two identified sites for the tooth fungus Bankera violascens and if current, to undertake the annual count of fruiting our bodies. As I reached the A93 Deeside road I stopped off to examine a notable stand of Sots pines between the street and the River Dee for different fungi. On the other facet of the River Dee was the Woods of Garmaddie, a part of the Royal Balmoral Estate. The large floods that occurred on the Dee in 2014 appeared to have left their mark. No doubt, restoration may take a few years. Only some of the previously recorded fungi were discovered. I believed was familiar to me was coming from the river but search as a lot as I did, the elusive ‘kingfisher’ wasn’t found. At one stage it sounded like it was just beneath me on the facet of the river, however still I couldn’t see it. Time to take a seat down and blend in and await a bit of motion to see my chicken. The penny then dropped, my mystery calls weren’t coming from a hen at all, however from a young otter separated from in all probability its mom, by the width of the river! 20 on the opposite. A motion on the alternative aspect of the river caught my eye and by means of my binocs I was in a position to make out an adult otter making its means alongside the financial institution, sometimes calling. As I drove again over the tops (Deeside – Lecht – Tomintoul) I had one other species in my thoughts to look for, brittle bladder-fern (Cystopteris fragilis), in an old lime quarry. On the damp monitor facet were a number of leaves of lesser twayblade, with only a few flowering spikes but within the conifer needle debris a small buff-colored fungus had me fascinated by one thing growing in a spruce wooden close to home, Cudonia circinans, and sure enough when checked at house this is what it turned out to be. The quarry had, in the past, produced several good lichen data, so value a fast cease. The lichen Solorina saccata was still present on some of the rock ledges but the quarry didn’t look fairly right for the fern, however, surprisingly it turned up on the next set of rock ledges. It isn’t doable to verify the spores on site so a small pattern needs to be taken residence, so I checked the again of the fern to ensure there have been sori current (these incurved constructions hold the spores and are ‘spring loaded’ to eject the spores when mature) and to my very nice surprise I found the beneath-aspect coated in orange spots indicating a rust fungus was current. ‘real’ find meaning two species for the price of one from the fern frond collected. I couldn’t resist popping into the opposite limestone quarry on the edge of Tomintoul as I drove in the direction of dwelling the place, once once more the species turned out to be brittle bladder-fern however the bonus here was finding a tiny inhabitants of holly fern (Polystichum lonchitis) in amongst the rocks, a brand new location despite in all probability plenty of previous visits by botanists. Ross and Ros’s garden, attorneys wig or, more appropriately, shaggy inkcap (Coprinus comatus). Back dwelling the fern turned out to be brittle bladder-fern and the rust, later confirmed by Paul, was identified as Hyalopsora polypodii, with simply forty previous data within the Canada. Somewhere alongside the way in which some animal dung should have found its manner onto their lawn because the generic title Coprinus means ‘living on dung’. The group comprised three fruiting our bodies, two young ones plus an older one mostly absolutely intact but with the cap on one facet beginning to liquefy into drips or rather more descriptive deliquesce, because the fungus went about dispersing its spores. As we stated cheerio to Sue and Clifford our chalet guests we headed down the road to Lancashire to spend a few days with Janet’s mum. Ribchester Arms, Bashall Barn and the Calf’s Head supplied great lunch-time outings augmented by glorious weather. The routes to and from the lunch-stops had been all decided by local information gained by Janet’s ninety five years younger mum and as we adopted the wee lanes the altering colours of autumn were changing into attractively obvious. We gave up on driving on to Skipton and wandered up and by the old castle earlier than a brief stroll round the Salthills Quarry Local Nature Reserve with ferns and limestone in thoughts. Mid-method by means of our go to we had deliberate a day’s buying(!) mainly to furnish yours actually with some new shirts and to have a wander round Clitheroe. This area was quarried for decades by Ribble Cement (now Hanson Cement Ribblesdale). Because the quarrying moved to its current adjoining site the old site started to develop into dwelling to lots of unusual plants like lime-loving orchids. My dad knew the positioning effectively and often told me about his finds and those made by the members of the native pure historical past group. We had moved to Scotland by this stage so not a site I had visited at the moment. As the necessity for industrial development grew to become urgent much of the old quarry was converted into industrial units with the small area now comprising the native nature reserve squeezed in amongst the brand new developments. ’s-bit scabious and discipline scabious, betony and agrimony and on the barer much less vegetated area area gentian and the occasional carline thistle. As we followed the path again in direction of the automobile I noticed a piece of the reserve which regarded prefer it had been closed off by a locked gate regardless of there nonetheless being numbered info posts current. Janet was glad to walk again to the car as I hopped over the gate to see if there was something unusual along the rock-face but nothing was found. This area was mainly the stays of a quarried rock-face, rich in fossils with a carline thistle wealthy flat space which was in all probability the outdated quarry ground. Lancashire and it was only as I bent all the way down to have a more in-depth look that I realised I used to be looking on the round-leaved model, Pyrola rotundifolia, a plant I had solely seen as soon as before over on the NTS Mar Lodge Estate (see August blog 2011). There were just five flower-spikes with some flowers effectively past their greatest, those still present though all displayed the distinctive down-bending fashion popping out from the white petals. I was aware that there were several populations of this plant in the dunes south of Southport however wasn’t too certain about whether or not it had been found on this limestone area close to Clitheroe. Brother John’s pc supplied the reply later within the day – there have been no records on both NBN or the BSBI database. It was solely as I was strolling again that I spotted one thing that acquired me fairly excited – the leaves of one of many wintergreen plants. An old school friend who I mentioned the discover to once home did vaguely remember one Rex Taylor (my dad!) exhibiting him a wintergreen plant within the Salthill area in the distant past. Wouldn’t that be an incredible hyperlink to make, notably as there are a couple of other unusual plant information on the BSBI Db from the mid-1980s from that area! All too quickly we have been heading again up the M6, M74 in time for our subsequent chalet visitor arriving on the Saturday.
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