West Coast Islands Blogs
Blogs (web logs) provide an ideal opportunity to explore the traditions, culture and wildlife of Wild Lochaber. We have put together a collection of local blogs and provide the titles and text snippets to give a taste of each entry with direct links to the main blog entry on the host website. We hope you will find time to explore the full articles and further information on the host blog sites.
Please feel free to contact us if you have any suggestions for blogs you would like to see here.
Plants of Skye, Raasay & The Small Isles
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I collected thirty specimens of Hieracium from Raasay between 11th June and 1st July and sent them to David McCosh who found eight species: H. anglicum (English Hawkweed) 3 sites H. hebridense (Hebridean Hawkweed) 6 sites H. oxybeles (Pointed-leaved Hawkweed) 3 sites H. pollinarioides Calcareous...
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So, where to start? I can report that Epipactis atrorubens (Dark-red Helleborine) is now in flower on Raasay. Epipactis atrorubens (Dark-red Helleborine) and that not far away, in the world of micro-moths, there was Apple Fruit Moth (Argyresthia conjugella), here living on Rowan rather than Apple....
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At Brochel I came across two micro-moths of interest. The first is a Bactra sp. that I have sent off for dissection as there is a chance that it is Bactra lacteana which would be exciting this far north, but perhaps more likely B. lancealana which we do have hereabouts. Bactra sp. This is a poorly...
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For obvious reasons, plant records have been a bit thin on the ground this year. As well as things already reported here, Neil has found quite a few new tetrad records and a very pleasing new 10 km square record for Carlina vulgaris (Carline Thistle). He also sent me this image of Armeria maritima...
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One of the Brassica plants in the polytunnel had a leaf mine: Using the key at the excellent website Plant Parasites of Europe I found it to be the larva of the Large Striped Flea Beetle that had been attacking the turnips. I have been out on Raasay collecting Hieracium (Hawkweed) specimens for...
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There was so much more than orchids last Thursday. But firstly, a Frog Orchid Coeloglossum viride (Frog Orchid) and secondly, Holly-fern Polystichum lonchitis (Holly-fern) Insects included several sawflies of this type, which I feel sure are Abia sericea (Club Horned Sawfly or Scabious Sawfly), but...
Marc Calhoun
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Here I am stuck at home, with a total incompetent in charge of things. It probably means the virus will run rampant for the rest of the year, and ten's of thousands of unnecessary deaths. It seems trivial, in all of this, that I am concerned about not being allowed to return to the UK in 2021. But...
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I recently learned some sad news. Twenty years ago I visited a unique island in Loch Shiel, a dozen miles southwest of the Glenfinnan Monument. This small island has two names: An t-Eilean Uaine (the Green Isle), and Eilean Fhianain (St Finnan's Isle). I wrote about the visit in...
Treshnish Farm
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Walked on Calgary machair today. It is looking fantastic. Huge swathes of Lady's bedstraw and wild Thyme. Bees and tiny flitting Moths, incredible scent. Prasad was there too, and spotted a Common twayblade. In the evening we went up to Reudle to look for Early marsh orchids...
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Lots of quite grown up Greylag goslings in Salen Bay. Very flighty! In the evening we went looking for Lesser twayblade on the Sitheans, we didn't think we had found one but when we checked with Prasad we had! So exciting. Please excuse the photograph, it was almost dark!...
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We clambered into the damp wood. This Water avens greeted us, it was about 3 feet tall. Bird's nest orchid. It is not past its best, this is how it looks. It hasn't flowered here since 2012. Nearby were 3 Broad leaved Helleborines but they are not flowering. After the...
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The wild flowers that caught my attention today amongst all the others:Yellow pimpernelSweet woodruffEnchanter's nightshadeDog's mercuryBuckhorn plantainSea plantainCommon hogweedFairy flaxCorn spurryWild thymeBirds foot trefoilMelancholy thistle Marsh thistleBloody cranesbillSt Johns...
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Another good flower dog walk on the Point this afternoon and a bonus walk through the field beyond Haunn this evening. A relief after most of the day was spent doing the cleaning course and then ordering extra bedlinen and duvets etc. I wish I could adequately capture the...
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Treshnish escaped the worst of the thunder storms, thankfully, and it has been sunny most of the day in spite of the forecast. We had errands to do this morning which took us over the hill road to Dervaig and down to Croig. Farmer went to the Post Office, first time he has been to the shop in...
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Another amazing walk through the fields this evening. Interesting to walk through 4 different fields in one walk, it makes you appreciate the different diversity in each field.
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We went looking for Bogbean today, whilst checking the sheep over at Crackaig. We walked home across the bog to Beinnanaraich. It was wonderful up there. Water forget me notOily bogI disturbed a Red deer calfLing heatherLooking down on Glac gugaraidhEnglish stonecropThe Islands from...
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Chose to walk the dogs according to the weather forecast today, as it was to be wet and windy. In fact we had moments of sunshine and it was dry all the time we were out. The Lady's bedstraw is flowering on the turf dykes along with Heath bedstraw and Wood sage. These clumps of...
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Not a great day for wildlife at Treshnish Farm, as we discover that our young ash trees beside the farmhouse probably have Ash dieback. We have always hoped that our remote location would protect us from tree diseases, but not so.
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The wind was getting up this evening so we walked into the Black Park and explored some of the dips to the north side of the track which were slightly sheltered. This Greater butterfly orchid was the largest one we had seen this summer. Huge!
wondering wanderers
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I have been prompted by email that I have not blogged in a month (thank you Lynda! xxx)It is the strangest time I hope we ever live through, on the one hand not a lot has changed, on the other everything feels as though it has changed forever. We are still mostly doing what we always do but...
