Killinallan Ramble

The first summer Sunday rAmble of the season (29th June) was a great success, wonderful group of people and the lovely sunny weather showed off the wildlife at its real best.  A nice low tide, provided a host of crabs, fish and the grey seals came out to bask in the sun!

Of note: big hermit crabs, common shore crab, cockles, shanny, butterfish, sand mason worms, grey seal, eiders, redshank, oystercatchers.

A move up onto the dunes had a plethora of dune flowers, butterflies and moths.  Orchids: pyramidal orchid, frog orchid, fragrant orchid, northern marsh orchid, common twyblade and a sole wayward marsh helleboraine.  Dune flowers: wild thyme, lady's bedstraw, fairy flax, lesser meadow rue, burnet rose, bird's foot trefoil, grass of Parnassus, marsh pennywort, self heal.  Insects: six spot burnet (everywhere), small heath, meadow brown, ringlet, common blue, dark green fritillary, marsh fritillary (old and tired), grasshopper and dragonfly.  The last couple of creatures, common lizard and skylark.  Finally at the end of the walk the seals decided to sing as I promised that they would.





                                                                            

     

         

Wild flowers in 2013

After the usual start to the year with the carpets of snowdrops decorating Bridgend Woods, the cold spring delayed a great many flowering plants so that, when the BSBI (Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland) held their annual Scottish recording week on the island for the first time, and had chosen the second week of June as a good time of year to come, it turned out to be probably about two weeks earlier than would have been optimal. However, whereas I usually require a flower to be fully out to help me identify it, the experts included in the visiting dozen botanists seemed just as happy with buds or even just leaves! Assisted by generally very good weather, planned visits to under-recorded parts of the island went very well and, later in the year, I was sent a spreadsheet containing a magnificent 7,949 records which represented an increase in total wild flower records for the island of just over 20%!
The highlights of the year were undoubtedly the orchids, most of which flowered in much greater abundance than usual, especially the Greater and Lesser Butterfly and the Marsh Helleborine. The very rare Narrow-leaved Helleborine also had one of its better years, with 15 spikes, the most since the small scattered colony was first found in 1998.
Malcolm

Pyramidal Orchid

Greater Butterfly Orchid

Lesser Butterfly Orchid

Marsh Helleborine

Narrow-leaved Helleborine

Photos from Alistair Hutchison

Thanks to Alistair for sending us some photos from his wild flower ramble. Malcolm, can you help with the orchids please.
Becky

Burnet Rose

Lousewort

Butterwort