Annual meeting 1929: Killin & Crianlarich

HomeEventsAnnual meeting 1929: Killin & Crianlarich

27 July 1929 - 10 August 1929

Meeting report

(Extracted from the Journal of Botany, January, 1930. p. 26).

The British Bryological Society held its Annual Meeting and Excursion in Mid-Perthshire from July 27th to August 10th, 1929. In the absence of the President, Mr. W. E. Nicholson, F.L.S., the Vice-President, Dr. W. Watson, took the Chair at the Meeting. About forty members and friends were present during most of the period. The weather in that hilly region was naturally variable, but only on three occasions did heavy rain prevent the excursion taking place, while several days were fine, with clear views. From Killin, Ben Lawers was ascended twice, and Cam Chreag, Creag Lochain, and Creag Mhor were explored. From Crianlarich, Ben More and Ben Lui were climbed, and interesting work was done on Ben Dourean both in v.c. 88 and v.c. 98. Coire Coille Chium, the old Pine and Birch wood near Tyndrum, the rocks of Cruach Ardran and the gorge of the Falloch held good plants. Ben Cruachan in Argyll (v.c. 98) was also visited.

V.c. 88 has been so thoroughly worked that only a few new records were obtained, though a great many Bryophytes were noted. It may be well to put on record that, in the opinion of bryologists who have known the Lawers Flora for many years, several of the local plants were in less quantity than before, and that the same observation applies to the Phanerogamic Flora. With regard to the latter, the bryologists were most scrupulous only to point out the rare plants, and they were not gathered. The cause of the diminution might possibly be some change in climate and lessening rainfall with consequent drying-up of swampy areas, but observations on this point would have to be carried out over a period of years before any definite conclusion could be reached.

The following short list only includes the more noteworthy plants; new records for v.c.’s 88, 98, and 99 are starred: –

SPHAGNA.-The recent paper in this Journal (June, 1929) by Dr. Johannes Lid, describing two species found by himself near Crianlarich stimulated a search for them and several gatherings of S. americanum (molle var. limbatum) were made, and S. strictum was found in v.c. 98*, on Ben Cruachan. S. subtile, once found on Schiehallion, was met with on the slopes under Cruach Ardran. Many other species were noted, including S. girgensohnii, russowii, warnstorfii, quinquefarium, molle, teres, contortum, imbricatum var. cristatum, and medium.

TRUE MOSSES.-There are two important finds to record. Fissidens curnowii, near Ardlui, v.c. 99* (Dumbarton), is new to Scotland, its distribution in England and Wales being mainly in the West; and Trichostomum hibernicum on Creag Mhor (88*), which, out of Ireland, was only known from Stirling (v.c. 86) and West Inverness (v.c. 97). Nearly all the very rare Perthshire (and especially Ben Lawers) plants were seen, and this was satisfactory, even if some were in less evidence than formerly. Among them the following deserve mention:- Polytrichum sexangulare, Ditrichum zonatum, and var. scabrifolium (v.c. 98*), Cynodontium virens, Blindia caespiticia, Dicranum molle and asperulum, Rhacomitrium sudeticum and ramulosum, Leptodontium recurvifolium, Splachnum vasculosum, Aulacomnium turgidum, Timmia norvegica, Plagiobryum demissum, Mnium lycopodioides and spinosum, Habrodon notarisii (no one was allowed to gather any of this moss from the original habitat on the old sycamore at Killin), Myurella apiculata, Pterigynandrum filiforme var. heteropterum, Heterocladium dimorphum, Brachythecium plicatum and starkei, Eurhynchium cirrosum, Amblystegium curvicaule, Hypnum halleri, hamulosum, bambergeri, and trifarium.

HEPATICS. – New records for v.c. 88 are Cephalozia catenulata* andLepidozia reptans vars. tenera* and julacea*. For v.c. 98 Cephaloziella myriantha*, Herberta adunca* and Pleuroclada albescens*. A large number of the very rare Mid-Perthshire species were seen, such as Gymnomitrium varians (v.c. 98*), G. alpinum, Marsupella sullivantii, jorgensenii, Alicularia breidleri, Lophozias heterocolpa, longidens, quadriloba and obtusa; Sphenolobus hellerianus and politus, Cephalozia loitlesbergeri, Cephaloziella striatula, Herberta hutchinsiae, Mastigophora woodsii, Diplophyllum taxifolium, Scapania degenii, &c.

At the Annual Meeting the officers were elected and the publication of the new Hepatic Census Catalogue was authorised. Any further records should be sent in at once. Next year’s Excursion will be at Wareham, Dorset, beginning on Wednesday, April 23rd, 1930.

Eleonora Armitage

Location:

Killin & Crianlarich