Monday 2 September 2019

Splachnum season

Marsh Fritillary larval web surveys can only mean one thing (apart from the obvious) - the chance to look for Splachnum species on herbivore dung in wet pasture. Today I came across a patch of young S. ampullaceum plants, on cattle dung in a valley mire on Fairwood Common. The only other Gower record of this moss is from pony dung in the same mire system three years ago.


Incidentally, having seen quite a bit of non-fruiting Splachnum in South Wales, I was delighted to chance across a splendid fruiting patch in the New Forest in July.