Vaccinium vitis-idaea, Cowberry or Longonberry for #WildflowerHour. It's name translates as vine of mount ida.
Neil Forbes
@treebeard793.bsky.social
Ecologist, based in South Cumbria, working across NW England and SW Scotland. Mostly focused on coastal, wetland, limestone and upland habitats; botany, birds & Natterjacks. Views my own.
Carline Thistle, Carlina vulgaris for #WildflowerHour It often gows #ByTheSea on fixed dunes, here on limestone grassland, this being one of the few weeks of the year when I haven't had an opportunity to go to the coast either for work or pleasure.
Lesser Meadow-rue, Thalictrum minus - a true calcicole, here on limestone scree outcrops at Helsington Barrows. A few hundred years ago this site would have been right #ByTheSea, & the Lyth Valley would have been an amazing mosaic of saltmarsh grading in raised mires. #WildflowerHour in #Cumbria
Knotted Pearlwort often grows #ByTheSea (as well as inland). Here it is growing in the uplands by a track next to some degraded blanket bog that some would call heather moorland. A slight digression for #WildflowerHour
One of (the many) cool things about limestone habitats is the variety, like these patches of Heather etc, growing in decalcified areas, where minerals have leached from the soil. Looking quite vibrant following a little rain over recent weeks. Looking forward to #WildflowerHour later.
Just 6 or 7 years ago, this was a clear-felled Sitka plantation. NONE of these native trees were planted, they all self-seeded. And, in contrast to Sitka, this is a natural ecosystem that WON'T burn, and WILL be fantastic habitat for 1,000s of native species. Nature knows what to do, if we let it.
Prolifery is particularly common in Bulbous Rush, Juncus bulbosus. Instead of producing flowers in the normal way, it produces mini clones of itself which then drop off and root. This amazing adaptation still blows my mind. @bsbibotany.bsky.social #Wildflowers #Nature
Finally, *finally*, a bit of rainforest weather. If an ecosystem could breathe a sigh of relief...
Here it is. My manifesto for the 2026 Clacton By-Election. It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Join me, clean up Clacton and let's make 13th August Bin Day! #VoteBinface #VoteyMcVoteface #YesWeTinCan
We're hiring! We have a new Local Change project, building on previous monitoring projects, to provide crucial data on the state of our wild plants. Here's the background: bsbi.org/take-part/pr... We're now looking to recruit a Project Coordinator: could that be you? bsbi.org/about/news/l...
Local Change: Project Coordinator vacancy
bsbi.org
The first Cinnabar Moth caterpillars that I've seen all year. Hopefully some other areas are doing better. #Ragwort is brilliant for #Biodiversity 💚 #Invertebrates #Moths #Wildflowers
Yellow Loosestrife, Lysimachia vulgaris - a species of permanently wet habitats. #WetlandPlants #WildflowerHour #RSPBMersehead
The superb strandline flora is now getting going at #RSPB #Mersehead on the Solway. Ray's Knotgrass, Prickly Saltwort, Frosted & Grass-leaved Orache, Sea Rocket, Curled Dock subsp. littoreus etc. Such a special and specialised flora. #WildflowerHour
Thrift, Armeria maritima. #RSPB Mersehead on the Solway / Sulwath Estuary. #WetlandPlants #WildflowerHour #Saltmarsh #Coastal #Botany @rspbscotland.bsky.social
Great Burnet, Sanguisorba officinalis, growing on the shore of Coniston Water. #WetlandPlants for #WildflowerHour #Cumbria #Botany
Lovely Sneezewort, Achillea ptarmica. A plant of wet meadows, rush-pasture, flushes, streamsides etc. here, growing in rush-pasture in amongst dune grassland at #RSPB Mersehead. #WetlandPlants #WildflowerHour @rspbscotland.bsky.social
Oreopteris limbosperma, Lemon-scented Fern. Most frequently associated with damp and wet habitats, especially the edges of watercourses in the uplands #WetlandPlants for #WildFernHour / #WildflowerHour
This week, I have mostly been exploring the magnificent #RSPB Mersehead nature reserve. Some #WildflowerHour spoilers here 😁
When the story of why humanity didn't stop climate change is written, it will feature front pages like this. Even as the skies blacken with climate change-induced wildfires, right wing media continue their relentless crusade against measures to tackle it.
It’s time to accept that the American Experiment failed. The King needs to reclaim the territories. For the sake of humanity.
Last one for tonight, Marsh Willowherb, Epilobium palustre. #StillFlowering at #RSPB Campfield Marsh, in both lagg fen and upper saltmarsh/freshwater transitional habitats. #WildflowerHour
A fine upstanding specimen of Restharrow, Ononis repens. #StillFlowering on the #Solway #saltmarshes #WildflowerHour #Cumbria
Wood Dock, Rumex sanguinius (cool name). Late-flowering, seed-rich & deep-rooted, the Dock family are brilliant for #biodiversity and are much under-rated just because a couple of species can become "problematic" in intensively managed (i.e. damaged) swards. #StillFlowering #WildflowerHour
Bifid Hemp-nettle, Galeopsis bifida #StillFlowerimg at #RSPB Campfield Marsh. #WildflowerHour @rspbengland.bsky.social
#StillFlowering for #WildflowerHour - this wildlife garden is full of seed and nectar sources for bees and butterflies. The ponds are bringing in Dragonflies, Hoverflies and Bats. Loads of species in flower despite the ongoing drought. Diversity = Resilience (in so many ways) 💚💚💚
