Apres-Sam sightings

After bumping into Sam, Bea and Johnny we spent a good part of the day wandering around various archaeological gems in the Parkmill area of Gower.  I tried to avoid looking at bryos - not too difficult at this time of year there is lots of other stuff to get engrossed in - as it was family day out.  Several chiff-chaffs calling in the woods added to the other spring migrant, a wheatear, seen earlier in the day nearer home.

At Parc le breos (which would be a nice place to visit if it wasn't plastered in dog faeces - although many folks had kindly packaged them up in little plastic bags before tossing them about the park) - I noticed that there a few small tufa seepages by the approach road - which might repay a closer look.    We wandered up to Cathole cave - famous for apparently having palaeolithic cave art and brown bear scratch marks beyond the locked gate -  the small cave below this had a tiny patch of Marchesinia mackaii just to right of the entrance.  Cathole itself was mainly notable for a lesser horshoe bat dangling in a small crevice near the entrance with a herald moth for company.   There didn't seem any point in jotting down the common bryos I saw in the park, as if the site hasn't already received a proper bryo survey, then it certainly deserves one as there is a lot of good habitat around.

By lunchtime we had ended up at Pennard Pill where surprised to see Frankenia - I hadn't realised it grew here,  - the only bryo of note, which stuck out like a sore thumb on the dunes, was Racomitrium canescens - the real thing.   I have never visited the castle before and it was only as we approached it that I suddenly remembered that it was home to Draba azoides - not difficult to spot as it was flowering well.  It was such a nice day that much of rest of time was spent looking at vascular plants, more archaeology, the scenery, walking on the beach, inhaling the sea air and eating ice cream - that's the problem with the visiting the Gower - too many things to distract you from bryos.

An old pic of mine of Fulgensia as mentioned in additional comment below - I expect that there have been searches for the species previously at Pennard Burrows, but the rare lichen Fulgensia fulgens may be something to bear in mind when walking around the dunes  - I took this pic at Stackpole, so it not too far away.  Apologies for straying away from bryos in this blog.