Cornwall Botanical Group Field Trip to Ellenglaze - 05/07/22

 As well as having access to expert botanists on field trips, another big plus is that field trips sometimes take you to out of bounds areas that others cannot explore. This was one such trip to Penhale Sands near Ellenglaze which is a MOD training area, which is behind barbed wire and guarded. 

This was a sunny, warm day and before the drought had started properly, so the plants were still fresh. The area comprised mainly of fixed sand dunes with plenty of dune slacks, some with standing water in them and others that dry out leaving a damp area. Perfect for many of our rarer plants to thrive.

Whilst waiting to get started, I noticed a big stand of Babington's Leek, a large plant and one that can't be missed when in flower. They are relatively common around coastal areas and I saw some flowering today (20/08/22 at the time of writing) much further north at Crackington Haven too.

Allium ampeloprasum var. babingtonii

 One of the first areas we looked at had Marsh Helleborines, but as we went to look for them, I couldn't help noticing lots of Southern Marsh Orchids. I had a closer look at some and found them to be the hybrid between Heath Spotted and Southern Marsh Orchids, a new record for this monad. I think they are far more common than many realise and it is easy to overlook them as just another Southern Marsh Orchid as one walks by.

They really are quite stunning and mostly much bigger than either parent plant.
Dactylorhiza x hallii

It took a while to find the Marsh Helleborines, even though we knew where they should be. This was because only a few had come into flower, with the rest still in bud. This made it very hard to see them and to avoid crushing budding plants, we trod in each other's footsteps to minimise habitat damage. These flowers were narrower than usual, but I think that was because they were very fresh and had just opened.

We did find some and another small colony in a nearby dune slack too. I think Rock dunes are the only other place they are found in Cornwall.

Epipactis palustris

Portland Spurge is a very attractive native plant and it was dotted around the dunes in the drier places.

Euphorbia portlandica

Near the helleborines were hundreds of the rare Flat Sedge, a plant I'd not seen before. It really is flattened and compressed in fruit, so it's easy to identify. However, it is also confined to this site only within Cornwall, so it is unlikely I will find it elsewhere in the county.

Blysmus compressus

Someone then spotted the most tiny Gentian I'd ever seen in the short turf. On looking closer we found lots more. It was the Early Gentian, a species I had searched for and failed to find in Kent in years gone by, so another new species for me. This used to be classified as a very rare endemic species only found in the UK, however, taxonomists have since downgraded it to a subspecies of Autumn Gentian. Regardless, it is quite different to Autumn Gentian in appearance being much shorter and it flowers much earlier and is thus worthy of protection.

Gentianella amarella subsp anglica

My small eye loupe to give some scale.

Of course, there was an abundance of common flowers too, most of which do not get photographed. One of these was Common Centaury, which looked so bright and cheerful in the sun, I gave in and took its portrait anyway.

Centaurium erythraea

Most Eyebrights are difficult to identify, but the four sided structure of Western Eyebright is distinctive. Only found in coastal locations (to date) it was abundant here.

Euphrasia tetraquetra

There was another orchid to see and it was just coming into flower. It was another new species for me, the Marsh Fragrant Orchid. This species is most likely absent in Kent and I never did find any. It does look quite different to Chalk Fragrant and even the smell is different too.

Gymnadenia densiflora

In one of the drying up ponds was a arge stand of Watercress. Mixed in with it was the rarer One-Rowed Watercress, another new species and one I hadn't heard of before. There are hybrids here, but I couldn't find any mature enough seeds to find it.

Nasturtium microphyllum

Also in this pool were hundreds of plants of Common Clubrush with their distinctive heads and blue green stems. This is now mostly confined to this area of Cornwall too.

Schoenoplectus lacustris

 Our VC2 county recorder amongst the Common Club Rush

Another plant that likes to keep its roots wet and grows around the draw down line of ponds is this Lesser Water Plantain below. The leaves shown however, belong to another plant, Marsh Pennywort.

 Baldellia ranunculoides

The final plant we went to see was Variegated Horsetail and we walked quite a way across the dunes to find it. When we arrived at the right place, we were all on our hands and knees looking for it and it took some minutes before we did find it. It was very small and intertwined around Creeping Willow, so really hard to see and to photograph too. Another first for me too.

Equisetum variegatum

 

 There was also an abundance of butterflies, beetles, grasshoppers and crickets and insects in general, here are just a few of those seen.

Female Silver Studded Blue

Great Green Bush-Cricket

5 Spot Burnet Moth - Zygaena trifolii

Poplar Leaf Beetle

So ended a memorable field trip. Not only did I see many species of plants I hadn't seen before, but I also met fellow botanists and staff from Cornwall Wildlife Trust, thus making contacts too. I can't recommend strongly enough that you seek out your own local botany group and go along to a field trip or two. You will learn so much more than on a solo trip and also have access to locations you otherwise couldn't visit. The same applies to specialist groups looking for all types of insects, birds, mosses and bryophytes and so on.

For plants you can find your own local group at bsbi.org and click on your county on a map of the UK and Ireland. Good luck!

Until next time.

You can also follow me on Twitter: @Botany2021

Dave

Botanical Finds in Cornwall - Early July 2022

 July started with a heatwave and it continued for most of the month. However, native plants are quite resilient and many are also drought tolerant. I had a look around a brownfield site near Bodmin and found Common Cudweed, which was responding to the lack of water by simply growing a flowering head and not much else. It's enough to provide seed for next year and thus ensuring the species survival through a difficult time. In better conditions it could be a foot tall with multiple branches each bearing a flowering head.

 Filago germanica

 Garden Ladies Mantle had also self seeded over part of the site.

Alchemilla mollis

 

 There were at least a dozen Jersey Cudweed plants present too. This species is spreading very fast.

Laphangium luteoalbum

 

 That was it for the brown field site.

One afternoon I had a drive up to Polbrock Bridge where I saw some hefty Thick-lipped Grey Mullet in the River Camel below. These are sea fish that travel right up to freshwater to the limit of the tides to feed on algae and mud.

Chelon labrosus

 

 I took a walk near Tregoss Moor and the road verges were stuffed with Southern Marsh Orchids like this one below. As I write (in August) they are now all gone to seed, so it's nice to remember them here.

Dactylorhiza praetermissa

 I don't know if Tutsan plants turn red as they age or if they do so if stressed. This was before the drought kicked in, so it's likely not caused by drought. The red leaves offset by the brilliant yellow flowers was very eye catching though.

Hypericum androsaemum

 

Bog Pondweed is prolific on Bodmin Moor and all the other moors in Cornwall too. Here it is in flower.

Potamogeton polygonifolius

Flower arranging by nature. A Heath Spotted Orchid with a Bog Asphodel on Tregoss Moor.

Dactylorhiza maculata and Narthecium ossifragum

On some disused ground on a farm track where I parked, were hundreds of Corn Spurrey plants. What made it hard to identify them was that all the flowers were closed when I got there. They only open in the sun. Thankfully, it was sunny by the time I returned to the car and then I recognised them straight away.

 

Spergula arvensis 

The unusual leaf arrangement for this plant.

Below is a typical example of fasciation. This was Hedge Bedstraw near the County Showground.

Galium album

I'd only seen this plant below once before, but it is instantly recognisable as being Balm-leaved Figwort, native to Cornwall, but absent from most other counties.

Scrophularia scorodonia

Growing out of a roundabout on the A39 was a Field Woundwort, a scarce plant and usually an arable one.

Stachys arvensis

On the north Cornwall coastal cliffs, new flowers had emerged, including these Meadow Cranesbills.

Geranium pratense

Some prostrate Dyer's Greenweed was still in flower, though most were now in seed.

Genista tinctoria subsp. littoralis

My part of Cornwall appears to have Greater Burdock as the dominant species, whereas Lesser Burdock is far more common elsewhere. In Greater Burdock, the flowers hardly exceed the exterior bracts and the flowerheads are all grouped at the extremities of the branches. On Lesser, the flowers easily exceed the bracts and the flowers are all over the plant. Here's a bee's eye view of the Greater Burdock flower. Also, the basal leaves are solid in Greater and hollow in Lesser, a useful tip for Winter ID of these plants.

Arctium lappa

Corn Marigold was a bird seed escape in Kent, but here it is still a viable crop plant. Where herbicide use is none or limited it thrives, as here at West Pentire farm near Newquay.

Glebionis segetum

At least a thousand Corn Marigolds flowering on this field edge by the sea.

The fields were very dry, but this didn't bother Bugloss very much. It's quite drought tolerant and flowered quite happily here by the sea. If you look for it, bear in mind that the blue flowers are actually very tiny.

Anchusa arvensis

For some reason Sharp-leaved Fluellen is quite common on the north coastal areas, again, the flowers are very small, but very pretty.

Kickxia elatine

On the cliffs of West Pentire and elsewhere, I found what I thought was Rock Sea-lavender. However, it transpired that these plants were in fact Western Sea-lavender, a South West species of Sea Lavender I hadn't heard of before.

Limonium brittanicum subsp brittanicum

 

On an evening stroll near Wadebridge (Polmorla), I stumbled upon a purple Meadowsweet. This was of course perplexing as I'd never seen one that wasn't white flowered before. I researched it and found it to be literally called Purple Meadowsweet, a rare garden escape and a first for Cornwall as a whole and possibly all of the UK too. Quite a find and clearly not planted where I found it. As with many plants naturalised, it probably originated from fly tipped material years before.

Filipendula purpurea

Given its scarcity, if you find one in the wild, please let a botanist know, (this is easy to do using social media) to ensure it gets recorded.

Some plants attracted more insect interest than others, and a firm favourite was Hemp Agrimony, here with an attendant 6 Spot Burnet Moth.

Zygaena filipendulae on Eupatorium cannabinum

Drought conditions stressed this Common Field Speedwell resulting in the flower turning a deep blue. This made it look rather like a Grey Field Speedwell which has deep blue flowers but it is smaller than Common Field Speedwells. The best way to tell them apart is by the seeds. In the corner of the photo below are the seeds attached to this plant. They are attached to each other at around 90 degrees, whereas Grey (and Green) Field Speedwells are more or less parallel.

Veronica persica

I hope I never tire of these views, it certainly makes botanising the area even more amazing.

Until next time.

Take care

Dave