COUNTRY ROUNDUPS: England
COUNTRY ROUNDUPS Compiled by Pete Stroh peter.stroh@bsbi.org
ENGLAND
A
side from the spectacular discovery of Serapias vomeracea (Long-lipped Tongueorchid) in the wilds of Kent (see article, p.7), perhaps the biggest botanical find in England this summer was for the small in stature Helosciadium repens (Creeping Marshwort). A new population of this Endangered species was reported by Mark Webster and Ian Woodward near to the Little Ouse in Thetford, West Suffolk, and fruiting material was later confirmed in the field by Fred Rumsey. I’ll leave Ian and Mark to say more about their discovery elsewhere in this issue (p.3). Rather like waiting for a bus (or more topically, a vaccine), no sooner had the Thetford plants been reported than news reached me via Judy Webb that H. repens had been found at Walthamstow Marshes SSSI in South Essex after an absence of 11 years. While the Thetford discovery was a combination of disturbance, considerable luck and sharp eyes, the Walthamstow resurrection was conservation at its best: a review of the species’ ecological requirements, consultation with experts and the implementation of targeted grazing management. Thanks to Eamonn Lawlor and his team at the Lee Valley Regional Park Authority, and the cows of course, H. repens flowered and fruited in poached areas this year, meaning that the seed bank has again been replenished. 2020 started with one extant native site nationally, and ended with
three – a little good news in such a troubling year. Keeping our feet wet and the plants dynamic, Lythrum hyssopifolia (Grass-poly) has appeared from the seed bank at a pond in Heydon, East Norfolk following restoration works, after being absent (above ground) from the county for over 100 years. You can read more about the find here www.bbc.co.uk/news/scienceenvironment-55104153 and on p.11 of this newsletter. The splendid discovery by Graham Waugh of a reservoir drawdown dominated by Alopecurus aequalis (Orange Foxtail) at Colt Crag Reservoir, South Northumberland, has extended the English range northwards by almost 100 miles. The site supports a nice drawdown assemblage, including Bidens tripartita (Trifid Bur-marigold) which has been found at only one other site in the county this century. John Richards’ regular Newsletters detailing outstanding finds in the county can be found at bsbi.org/
Alopecurus aequalis (Orange Foxtail). Pete Stroh
northumberland. Whilst recording a water meadow at Shalford in Surrey, Bill Stanworth, David Streeter and Ann Sankey found A. aequalis, new to the hectad, in the middle of a dense stand of Persicaria maculosa (Redshank) interspersed with P. hydropiper (Water-pepper), and a few days later Helena Crouch and Judy Moss, enticed by the spectacle of the pool vegetation, found another patch of A. aequalis further south. I do wonder if the Foxtail may be lurking in other suitable areas – it’s easily missed if not in flower. See the Scotland Roundup for more Foxtail news. Plants that persist as viable seeds underground for extended periods can be difficult to detect, even for BSBI members. Fallopia dumetorum (Copse-bindweed) is a classic example of a genuinely scarce species with a restricted distribution whose seeds can lie dormant in the soil for decades. It had not been recorded in Kent since the 1970s, but Geoffrey Kitchener reports that not only was it found in its last, and classic, locality this year but it was also located in sites with last records 72 and 145 years beforehand! Geoffrey’s annual newsletter bsbi. org/kent is always an interesting read, as is the draft online Rare Plant Register – do have a look, it’s a goldmine of information. In West Gloucestershire, another rare species with a (probably) persistent seed bank, Stachys alpina (Limestone Woundwort), was discovered by David Hawkins on a canal towpath not very far from Daneway Banks. The debate on its British status fell down on the side of neophyte, but regardless of your point of view, it is a very rare species in the wild in England, and an excellent record.
BSBI NEWS 146 | January 2021
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