Trainee ecologist , David Freeman, gives us an update on his summer in the field...

Station to Station

Since my last blog just over a month ago I have been rushed off my feet! I’ve been flitting about the entirety of Scotland, taking the train from station to station and watching country roads slide by car windows. I will attempt to describe some of the highlights here, although one blog can not hope to do justice to all the amazing places I’ve been to!

View of the lovely Inversnaid reserve.

The first place to mention has to be the enchanting Inversnaid. I only spent a brief time at this reserve, which is well loved by hikers following the West Highland Way. It has spectacular scenery and a fantastic assemblage of species which are of interest to both birders and botanists. This does however include a few species I was less than happy to be introduced to and Inversnaid sticks in my memory as my first real encounter with the relentless menace of midges, cleggs(horseflies) and ticks.

Crystal and Chris survive the midges!

Inversnaid did however teach me some valuable lessons and for my next visit to Wood of Cree I was well prepared for the biting fauna. My visit to Wood of Cree was particularly interesting as it gave me andChris (the other trainee) a chance to explain a bit about Bryology (mosses) and Mycology(fungi) to the area warden Crystal Maw as she showed us around the reserve. This was a really rewarding experience and I felt that I learnt a lot. The reserve itself is a great place. It’s a huge area of beautiful ancient woodland situated in the south west of Dumfries and Galloway filed with a fantastic range of habitats and some scenic waterfalls. Well worth braving the midges for.

Chris and David at Inversnaid.

The week after this I was swept off to the British Bryological Society’s field meeting on the remote island of Raasay off the coast of Skye. This time represents possibly the most enlightening and useful week I have spent during my contract. The week was spent recording the bryophyte flora of a range of habitats present on the island, with a group of experts and amateurs. Raasay proved to be a diverse place for bryophytes. I benefited greatly from seeing a range of new species and getting expert advice in identification techniques. One particular tip which sticks in my mind is the distinctive taste of Pressia quadrata an otherwise unassuming thallose liverwort. This plant, when nibbled, has strikingly hot peppery taste which lingers for a good few hours. It has proved to be a disgusting but reliable way to identify P.quadrata. The highlight of my time at Raasay has to have been seeing the rare Geocalyx graveolens. This small and unremarkable looking liverwort again has a distinctive identifying feature. It has an unusual smell of turpentine and this gives it itss common name of Turpswort. I feel I should point out while I find all these unusual and frankly at times disgusting smell and tastes fascinating, there are plenty of more appetising bryophytes about. The example that comes to mind is Frullania fragilifolia which when rubbed gives off a wholesome perfumed smell which is quiteremarkable.

View of the Raasay coastline.

This is really just a snapshot of the places I have been to in recent weeks. Places deserving of a quick mention include Glenborradale, Crannach, Loch Leven and Insh Marshes. Each one deserves a blog all to it’s self. Looking to the next few months I’m going to be just as active with a FSC course in Wales next week, field work at Forsinard the week after and almost the entirety of September up in Orkney.