A bit more from the A9

In the last post, I went to look for what was flowering along the A9, but much to my surprise I found that there were some unexpected lichens as well. Because the new part of the A9 near the Wildlife park has been built through woodland, there are still some older trees.  There was a group of old aspens that I looked at.

Aspens by the A9

The ecological survey before building the road must have checked these trees as two of them had a metal disc with a number attached - presumably to protect them from workmen with a chainsaw!

There were woodland plants like Wood Anemone and Common Dog Violet in the grass, but I wanted to see what lichens there were.  On a fallen log was a lichen I had never seen before.

It looked like a series of dark brown lobes (leaves) with some lighter brown structures that look a bit like fingernails  (they are apothecia - the spore producing parts).  Looking more closely, there were lots of little peglike growths as well (they are called isidia and are another way a lichen can spread).

"Fingernails" (out of focus) and the tiny pegs (isidia)

The lichen turned out to be Peltigera praetextata and it was growing on the trunk of a live tree as well.

I had never seen that Peltigera before, but there is a common one that grows in lawns, or on grassy or mossy surfaces:

Peltigera membranacea

It will prefer lawns that don't receive too much care in the form of weedkillers and fertilisers.  A benefit of a bit of neglect! As it is No Mow May again,  I am hoping some wildflowers will appear in my lawn soon. The lawn a few doors down from me has a nice show of Slender Speedwell (Veronica filiformis.)

For more on Speedwells check this post. 

The common name for the Peltigera group is Dog lichen. They have little projections underneath that look like dog's teeth so in the past they thought it would cure rabies.

A9-ning

 North of Kingussie is a stretch of the "new" A9 where it has been upgraded into dual carriageway (much to the relief of locals as now you can overtake safely). There is also a cycle path alongside the North bound carriageway so you can safely have a look at the verge and slopes to see what is growing there. I feel some affinity to the A9 as in 1976 we moved up here to work on the "new" A9 between Calvine and Drumochter.

Along with husband and dog, I parked by the Wildlife Park access road and headed North along the bike path. I was on a mission to find Danish Scurvy Grass (Cochlearia danica) as there had been a request to check how far it had spread along the A9.  This is normally a coastal plant as it does not mind salt, but the same conditions arise alongside roads that are salted so it has spread along the A9 from Inverness. The red squares on the map show the places that it has been noticed and recorded  - and you can see that there is a big gap along the A9 from North of Aviemore to Newtonmore. It is very likely that it is growing in many more places, but no one has recorded it. 

Map showing places where Danish Scurvy Grass has been recorded (from BSBI)

I have found it in Newtonmore, and it is flowering at the moment alongside the wall of the Balavil Hotel. There are quite a few small white flowered plants around just now, but the ivy shaped leaf helps to distinguish it from the others.

Danish Scurvy Grass

leaf and buds

In fact , I did not find any on the stretch that I walked, but if you see any, let me know!

 Although I did not find what I went for, I did collect two dandelions to ID, both of which turned out to be new records for East-Inverness-shire, and one (Taraxacum exsertum) was the furthest north record in the UK.

Taraxacum vastisectum

Taraxacum exsertum (it has very pointed ends to the leaves)

Hang on a minute, I hear you say, aren't they both the same? Well, no, but the differences in dandelion microspecies are quite hard to spot which is why every one is verified by a referee who will confirm or correct your ID from a series of photos of the different features. I managed to ID the T. exsertum correctly but had to be put right for the T. vastisectum.

There were a few more interesting things to report from the A9 excursion, but I will save them for another post.

Warm days, cold nights

 I have really been enjoying the recent sunny weather with clear blue skies, followed by a frost at night.  This year the plants seem quite slow to get going though the yellow ones are the first to appear.  celandines, as in the last post, and today while walking in Kingussie by the Gynack, I saw my first Coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara).

Coltsfoot

The scientific name comes from the Latin, "tussis", which means a cough and it is still used to treat coughs and respitatory problems.  Just because something grows wild does not make it a safe natural remedy.  There is an interesting website about the uses of plants at Plants for a Future.

The other yellow flower appearing is the dandelion.  I saw a strange example in Kingussie. Two (or three) flowers have fused together to produce this monster flower and wide stem.  This happens occasionally in many flowers and is called fasciation:

 Dandelions are very common everywhere and you might think that they weren't that interesting for botanists.  You would be wrong! There are hundreds of microspecies of dandelion which have their own scientific names and are subtly different from each other.  This has happened because most dandelions now do not need to be fertilised by another dandelion to produce seed, though maybe they did a very long time ago.  This means that every seed that a particular dandelion produces will be genetically identical to its parent and so any differences are perpetuated. You might have noticed that pulling the head off a dandelion does not stop the flower producing seed (clocking).Bees and other insects visit the flower for pollen and nectar though.

Outside Kingussie High School, I noticed some bright orange patches on a concrete fence post. I was interested in the two near the bottom of the photo.

`These were lichens so I took a few photos.  I use a clip on macro lens on my phone to get a closer photo. The yellow one at the top is Xanthoria parietina and is a very common leafy lichen on trees and walls. I was more interested in the bright orange ones near the bottom.

This is a crustose lichen and probably a Caloplaca, perhaps Caloplaca saxicola.  The round circular shapes in the middle produce spores, and the finger-like structures at the edge are the lichen growing outwards. It is stuck fast to the cement and can't be pulled off without chipping at it with a chisel. Some lichens prefer to grow on acidic rocks like granite.  Most of the local rocks and boulders here are acidic.  Other lichens like a more alkaline  surface like cement and concrete.  This Caloplaca likes to grow on basic (non-acidic) stone so I can only find it on cement and mortared walls.  If we lived in an area with limestone or chalk it would grow on local rocks.

Here is are more similar lichens growing on a breezeblock wall in Newtonmore:

Caloplaca saxicola

Caloplaca decipiens

More Signs of Spring

Today I saw my first Celandines in flower. 

Lesser Celandine

Their scientific name is Ranunculus ficaria.  The buttercup also belongs to the Ranunculus family and you can see the similarity in the shiny yellow petals. Remember holding a buttercup under a friend's chin to see if they liked butter?  Which they would if the sun was shining and the yellow reflected off the petals.

The Gorse, Ulex europaeus, is another early bloomer, but the petals are a more lemony colour and are protected by fearsome spikes. You certainly would not want to hold that near your chin!

Gorse

I was walking by the River Calder when I saw some shiny green beetles on a large rock.   They were quite small, maybe 5mm,  and they don't look like much until you get a close up.  Then the colours were stunning in the sun.

They obligingly stayed put while I photographed them with the macro lens attachment on my phone, and they are fantastic - the Newtonmore scarab!

Although it was a beautifully sunny day, there were some shady areas that were just as pleasant, especially with the sound of water running over the rocks of this small burn that crosses the track.

If you have been following my posts during the winter, you will be wondering why there is no mention of lichens yet.  Continuing with the bright yellow theme, here is the brightest yellow lichen around,  Chrysothrix candelaris. Chrysothrix means "Golden Hair. 

 Usually the yellow lichens have a chemical sunscreen called parietin that gives them their colour, but this lichen grows on the shady side of the tree and  the colour is thought to be from chemicals that protect it from being eaten. Parietin has been investigated as a potential anti-cancer drug.  You can read more about it here.

Upper storey plants

 There is not much of interest in the flowering plants yet apart from the spring bulbs, so I am still keeping myself occupied looking for lichens. On two occasions I have found plants setting up home in holes in the trees, several feet above the ground. Whether they will survive, I am not sure...

Today I found some Wood Sorrel half way up a birch tree on the side of Creag Dhubh.

Wood Sorrel

Wood Sorrel (Oxalis acetosella) normally grows on the ground under trees. Its leaves have a lemony taste and are three lobed, a bit like clover.  They are closed up in this photo. It has white flowers in the spring.

Another tree dweller I found was by Allt Laraidh.  This time it is a violet.

It is probably a common Dog Violet (Viola riviniana)

Although the weather has become a bit cooler today, I am hopeful that we will see some spring flowers soon.

Spring?

The weather has at last become more springlike - the lying snow has melted in the village though there is still snow on the hills. Snowdrops and crocuses have started to flower and the daffodils are putting up green shoots and some buds.

There are no "wild" snowdrops or daffodils in Newtonmore.  All the ones you see in waste ground are the result of people dumping their garden rubbish.  It is rather ironic that I had someone complaining today that they could not get snowdrops to grow in their garden, when they seem to grow against all odds in "throw out" material! Once snowdrops get going, they easily multiply by developing more bulbs or by seeding nearby.

All the snowdrops I have seen out and about are "common or garden" ones that go by the name of Galanthus nivalis but there are other fancier species.  If you think you have something a bit different in your garden, there is a simple online ID guide by Mick Crawley to help you decide what it is here. Snowdrop lovers (Galanthophiles) pay a lot of attention to the green markings on the inner petals which can take different patterns.  The common snowdrop has an upside down green V shape.  Here is one from my garden: 

When taking this photo, I was surprised by the strong scent of honey that came from the flower.  I had never noticed it before. If you have snowdrops in your garden, pick one and take a sniff!

Beards and Flying Saucers

 One of my first posts on lichens was about Usnea, Beard lichens.  I am gradually getting better at seeing the difference between the different species and saw two examples on the Wildcat Trail at Allt Laraidh (Aultlarie), at the North end of the Newtonmore.  

Last week you could walk up to the falls, which were full of water from the recent rain and snowmelt:

This is a lovely walk but at the moment (late February 2021) the path has washed away so only the lower part is accessible.

Lower down the Allt Laraidh, was a fallen tree.

A fallen willow

This is a lichen hunter's dream as all the lichens that grow high up are now within easy reach.  And there were plenty of lichens to look at.

My favourite was this one - with the flying saucers:

Usnea subfloridana with circular fruits

The fruiting bodies are circles with "eyelashes" growing out of them, and I have never seen them before.

The other lichen that was new to me was long and dangly:

The long strands look a bit like fish bones:

I think this one is Usnea dasopoga.

If you are not interested in naming lichens, there is still plenty to admire  - like this next box, also at Allt Laraidh, which is growing its own camouflage!