The Croft at 1 & 2 Kilmore's Journal

Journal archives for August 2024

08 August, 2024

Invasive Exotic Plants

There are a couple of introduced plant species which have invaded the native plant communities on the croft. Here are a few that I have noticed impacting the character or function of the habitat:

Himalayan Balsam, Impatiens glandulifera

Common Rhododendron, Rhododendron ponticum

Sycamore Maple, Acer pseudoplatanus

Sitka Spruce, Picea sitchensis

Observations from the project with the 'introduced' tag

Posted on 08 August, 2024 15:14 by meliphaga meliphaga | 0 comments | Leave a comment

15 August, 2024

Species observed in the greater southern skye area

I accessed the National Biodiversity Network Atlas record database and created the following list (3838 records, some of which represent multiple records for the same taxa or species) for the Sleat Peninsula:

Google Sheets view-only spreadsheet

Resources:
Southwest Skye Important Plant Area Factsheet from Plantlife International identifies two threatened bryophytes in the area

  • Radula carringtonii a bryophyte/scalewort found on wet, base-rich rocks, often near the sea
  • Lejeunea mandonii a scalewort/pouncewort found on rocks with constant humidity near the sea. Known from three ash trees near Tokavaig

Here are the links to iNaturalist searches for circles centered on Kilmore. These are useful for searching for a quick ID of a species; click on the link, filter to the genus or family you know the species is in, and it'll give you a short list of local species. Note that these lists are far from complete, missing many species (and with many misidentifications)

389 species within 5 km of Kilmore
546 species within 10 km of Kilmore
1016 species within 20 km of Kilmore
1469 species within 30 km of Kilmore
1701 species within 40 km of Kilmore

Posted on 15 August, 2024 18:22 by meliphaga meliphaga | 0 comments | Leave a comment

28 August, 2024

Trees - Native and Introduced

Trees which grow on the Croft
Number of observations of each species links to map of observations.
This is an incomplete list

Native woodland trees

  • Rowan Sorbus aucuparia
  • European Ash Fraxinus excelsior 1
  • Downy Birch Betula pubescens 2
  • Hawthorn Crataegus monogyna 2
  • Common Alder Alnus glutinosa 1
  • Common Hazel Corylus avellana 2

Willows 4

Introduced (or likely introduced) but naturalized or not invasive

  • Caledonian Pine Pinus sylvestris (Thought to have never been native to Skye) 1
  • Horse-Chestnut Aesculus hippocastanum 1
  • European Beech Fagus sylvatica 3
  • European Aspen Populus tremula 1

Definitely human-introduced

  • Norway Spruce Picea abies 1
  • Sitka Spruce Picea sitchensis 3
  • Sycamore Maple Acer pseudoplatanus 1
  • Tasmanian Blue Gum, Eucalyptus globulus (planted by Joan Macdonald ca. 2005) 1
  • Hakeke Olearia ilicifolia 2
Posted on 28 August, 2024 00:10 by meliphaga meliphaga | 0 comments | Leave a comment

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