2024 County Report for West Ross & Cromarty

Duncan Donald

As previous reports have explained, with very few active botanists living in West Ross I rely heavily on support from visitors to help me cover the ground. So it was truly wonderful to have welcomed four field meetings this year, only one of which I had any responsibility for organizing!

In June, the Inverness Botany Group visited the croftlands at Duirinish and Drumbuie: an area well recorded by Stephen Bungard in 2011, but we saw large numbers of Greater Butterfly-orchid (Platanthera chlorantha) and updated several 1950s’ records; new hectad records included the hybrid orchid Dactylorhiza maculata × purpurella, D. × formosa.

Following on immediately, Dan Watson ran a week-long recording meeting on the National Trust for Scotland’s Kintail estates, based at Morvich Outdoor Centre. It was good to welcome several keen young field-botanists. 3,000 records were collected across a wide cross-section of habitats. Highlights – all at least locally rare – included thirteen sites for Tall Bog-sedge (Carex magellanica) across three tetrads at Falls of Glomach; new populations of Sheathed Sedge (Carex vaginata), Chestnut Rush (Juncus castaneus) and Small Cow-wheat (Melampyrum sylvaticum) near known sites; and new hectad records for Pale Lady's-mantle (Alchemilla xanthochlora) and Chickweed Willowherb (Epilobium alsinifolium). This year’s palm must go, yet again, to Dan himself, for finding the hybrid Pearlwort (Sagina procumbens × saginoides, S. × normaniana), a new vice-county record.

In July, Jim McIntosh organized a week-long BSBI meeting based at the Woodland Trust’s Couldoran House; over 5,500 records were collected. Highlights from nearly 1,000 records from Gleann Shildeag estate itself included Lax-flowered Rush (Juncus anthelatus) from North America (a new vice-county record); Rock Whitebeam (Sorbus rupicola); and the silvery form of Creeping Willow (Salix repens var. argentea), unusually from an inland crag. Beinn Eighe, not tackled systematically since 1997, yielded updates for Alpine Lady-fern (Athyrium distentifolium), Arctic Mouse-ear (Cerastium nigrescens), Upland Eyebright (Euphrasia frigida), Creeping Lady’s Tresses (Goodyera repens), Common Wintergreen (Pyrola minor), Alpine Pearlwort (Sagina saginoides) and Sibbaldia (Sibbaldia procumbens). Many of Beinn Alligin’s Arctic-alpines – e.g. Northern Rock-cress (Arabidopsis petraea), Curved Woodrush (Luzula arcuata) and Wavy Meadow-grass (Poa flexuosa) – have been monitored in recent years and were seen again during this trip, but it was pleasing to have added new sites for lower-level species too, notably Bog Orchid (Hammarbya paludosa) and Tea-leaved Willow (Salix phylicifolia); the views were also spectacular. The Applecross Trust kindly offered a lift, via a private track, to enable us to reach hitherto poorly recorded areas at the peninsula’s centre; highlights included a significant colony of Bog Orchid, and the discovery – amidst otherwise acidic heath and bog – of an alkaline ravine sheltering Green Spleenwort (Asplenium viride), Mountain Male-fern (Dryopteris oreades), Woodruff (Galium odoratum), Early-purple Orchid (Orchis mascula), Serrated Wintergreen (Orthilia secunda), Hard Shield-fern (Polystichum aculeatum) and the upland form of Goat Willow (Salix caprea subsp. sphacelata). Jack Ravenscroft & Lewis Donaghy also found Serrated Wintergreen, and Mountain Melick (Melica nutans), near Coulags. Rassal Ashwood is now sadly devastated by Ash Dieback but, from nearby, Chris Miles reported [locally rare] Blue Water-speedwell (Veronica anagallis-aquatica) for the first time since Druce’s 1893 record!

In August, Inverness Botany Group joined me at Cadha Buidhe [where, unbeknownst to us, Will Soos had recently rediscovered Holly-fern (Polystichum lonchitis)]; we ourselves found Laurel-leaved Willow (Salix cinerea × phylicifolia, S. × laurina) nearby, a new record, and refound Salix caprea subsp. sphacelata. Later that month, during a foray at Dundonnell, Will and I made a new hectad record for Early Orache (Atriplex praecox); and I was shown one of the estate’s true Crab Apples (Malus sylvestris), which has a very different ‘jizz’ from Malus domestica.

Other miscellaneous rare finds include a new Eelgrass (Zostera marina) colony offshore at Mellon Charles, discovered by Seabed and Seashore Loch Ewe community group; Petty Whin (Genista anglica), found by Jim McIntosh near Loch Droma; and Tunbridge Filmy-fern (Hymenophyllum tunbrigense) – much rarer in vc 105 than Wilson’s Filmy-fern – found by Oliver Moore on Ben Shieldaig.

Renewed thanks to all those who have submitted records during 2024.

Duncan Donald

BSBI Recorder for West Ross, VC 105