Scotland

2.3 Scotland

2.3.1 County

2.3.2 Region

2.3.1 County

Aberdeen

Dinnet

W.lSo. DINNET OAKWOOD, ABERDEENSHIRE

NO 4698. 20 ha

Grade i

This small stand of both pedunculate and sessile oaks is one of the few examples of oakwood in the eastern Highlands. Though almost certainly planted, it has the character of a semi-natural upland oakwood and differs from examples of this forest type in the west of Britain mainly in having northern field layer associates such as Trientalis europaea, Pyrola minor and Rubus saxatilis. The soils range from leached brown earths to more basic types with mull humus, so that the field layer is more varied than in a typical oak- dominated upland wood, and species such as Fragaria vesca and Rhytidiadelphus triquetrus are present. The field communities nevertheless show a strong resemblance to those of typical sessile oakwood, and have local dominance of bracken, bilberry and Holcus lanatus. Other trees represented are birch, rowan, hazel, ash, aspen and alder. The dominant oaks are mostly well-grown, tall trees over 100 years old.

Crathie

W.lSl. CRATHIE WOOD, ABERDEENSHIRE

NO 2795. 125 ha

Grade i

This is a mixed wood of birch (Betula verrucosa mainly), Scots pine and juniper, with the first species the most abundant. The birch is less even-aged than in Craigellachie birchwood, but more robust and well-grown than in the Morrone Wood. Juniper is locally dense and also grows to a much larger size than in the Morrone Wood, which lies at a higher altitude. The pines are of different ages, so that the whole wood has a rather uneven appearance, and approaches more closely than many woods to the hypothetical heterogeneous structure of a natural woodland. The soils are derived in part from calcareous schists, and carry local abundance of species such as Fragaria vesca, Veronica chamaedrys, Prunella vulgaris, Ranunculus acris, Cirsium heterophyllum and Rhytidiadelphus triquetrus. At the top of the wood, at the west end and under more open conditions, there are Saxifraga aizoides, Helianthemum chamaecistus, Ramischia secunda, Potentilla crantzii and Arctostaphylos

uva-ursi. On the whole the woodland field communities are less species-rich than those of Morrone, and the most frequent types are Agrostis-Anthoxanthum odoratum grassland with Calluna vulgaris and Erica cinerea, Vaccinium myrtillus-V. vitis-idaea-moss, or dense Pteridium aquilinum.

Argyll

Carnach

W.igi. CARNACH WOOD, ARGYLL

NN 0958. no ha

Grade i

This is an ash-alder wood, which has developed on basic flushed soils on a steep, north-facing hillside, and represents a rare woodland type in Britain. The underlying rocks are calcareous schists and limestones which have produced a clayey, light brown loam of high base-status but low permeability to water. The tree layer is variable but dominated by an irregular mixture of alder and ash, with an abundance of hazel and hawthorn in the shrub layer. Birch and bird- cherry are scattered throughout.

The field layer is dominated by Brachypodium sylvaticum, Deschampsia cespitosa, Prunella vulgaris, Oxalis acetosella with Circaea lutetiana, Geranium sylvaticum, Sanicula europaea and other basiphilous herbs. It is grazed, but there are numerous small outcrops which give some protection in places. Interesting elements in the flora are Cystopteris fragilis, Athyrium filix-femina, Carex sylvatica, Ckryso-splenium oppositifolium and Saxifraga aizoides. Hymeno-phyllum wilsonii and the oceanic bryophytes, Hylocomium umbratum, Riccardia palmata, Nowellia curvifolia, Plagio-chila spinulosa and Scapania gracilis occur, but as Atlantic bryophytes are mostly calcifuge, this element is not well represented. Glendaruel and Glasdrum are similar woods, but are dominated by ash, with alder forming a separate woodland type on wetter ground.

Drimnin

W.IQ2. DRIMNIN, ARGYLL

NM 5654. 75 ha

Grade i

This is an extensive area of hazel-dominated deciduous woodland along the east shore of the Sound of Mull with a canopy only 2.4-3 m high m the most exposed places. Rowan, eared willow, and blackthorn occur with the hazel; occasional wind-cut oak, ash, birch and holly are also found. The field layer is basiphilous on a mull and loamy soil and includes Sanicula europaea, Circaea lutetiana, Fragaria vesca, Asperula odorata and Allium ursinum. The rare orchid Cephalanthera longifolia has been reported in the area. The woodland becomes double canopied on the less exposed slopes with intermediate stages between. Over areas of boulder scree, Dryopteris borreri, Athyrium filix- femina and mosses such as Thuidium tamariscinum, Rhytidiadelphus loreus, Hypnum cupressiforme, Polytrichum formosum, Pleurozium schreberi and Dicranum majus are dominant. In the centre of the site a wooded gorge adds diversity.

Meall Nan Ghobar

W.I95- MEALL NAN GOBHAR, ARGYLL

NN 103445. 385 ha

Grade i

Several blocks of birchwood (Betula pubescens) lie over granite block screes on the south-east-facing slopes above Loch Etive. There is a little sessile oak but the woods are mainly pure birch. The most notable feature is the rich development of bryophyte and fern communities on the extremely rocky floor of these woods. Ferns such as Thelyp-teris limbosperma, T. phegopteris, T. dryopteris, Blechnum spicant and Hymenophyllum wilsonii are in great abundance, and the blocks are crowned with carpets of moss and liverwort containing the common heath mosses (especially Rhytidiadelphus loreus), Thuidium tamariscinum, Sphagnum quinquefarium, Hylocomium umbratum, Scapania gracilis and Plagiochila spinulosa. The trees have an abundance of P. punctata and Frullania spp.

Taynish

W.I96. TAYNISH WOOD, ARGYLL

NR 7384. 330 ha

Grade i*

There are 3 km of almost continuous deciduous woodland on the west side of Loch Sween on the Taynish Peninsula, south of Tayvallich. There is a marked north- east/southwest orientated system of ridges and hollows formed along the strike of the underlying Dalradian schists. This topographical variability results in a range of soil types, with little or no soil on sheer cliffs and steep, block- strewn hillsides, to shallow podsols on steep slopes, and basic brown earths on gentle slopes. Valley peats occur in the waterlogged hollows. Three main woodland types occur, with oak wood on block scree and well-drained slopes, mixed deciduous wood on the lower slopes near sea-level, and birchwood on the upper slopes and in exposed sites.

Oak, Quercus petraea, is predominant, with a fine growth up to 20 m high in favourable situations. Associated trees and shrubs include ash, hazel, birch, and rowan, and with some honeysuckle, ivy, and holly. The ground layer is dominated by bilberry on steep, broken areas, with Des-champsia flewosa, Oxalis acetosella, and Holcus lanatus. Bracken predominates in more open areas. Boulders in the wood support a luxuriant growth of bryophytes, including several rare Atlantic species such as Adelanthus decipiens, Harpanthus scutatus, Lepidozia pinnata, and Dicranum scottianum. Hymenophyllum wilsonii, H. tunbrigense, Cory-dalis claviculata, Sedum anglicum, and Sphaerophorus melanocarpus are further notable species. There are several steep cliffs within the wood, and in intermittently flushed areas several local bryophytes occur, including Radula aquikgia, Grimmia hartmanii, Harpalejeunea ovata, and Frullania germana. There is a rich and luxuriant epiphyte growth of lichens on the larger trees, with Lobaria spp., Sticta spp., and several other Atlantic species such as Microphiale lutea, Normandina pulchella, and Nephromium lusitanicum. Mylia cuneifolia occurs locally.

On gentler slopes the woodland is more mixed, with oak, ash, wych elm, alder, and hazel. Basiphilous ground species include Brachypodium sylvaticum, Circaea lutetiana, and Ajuga reptans. Birch becomes increasingly prominent on exposed ridge sites and on north- facing slopes, with an acidophilous field layer dominated by heather, bilberry, and grasses. In wetter sites Sphagnum palustre and Polytri- chum commune are prominent. Ferns such as Dryopteris aemula, D. borreri, and Thelypteris dryopteris are locally frequent, especially in open birchwoods, and there are extensive bryophyte communities.

The waterlogged hollows within the wood are of interest, with rich- fen communities of Eriophorum latifolium and Carex hostiana. Lochan Taynish has an extensive C. rostrata swamp at the southern end, and with Juncus acuti-florus flush bogs on shallower peat. Notable species in this area include Fossombronia foveolata, Pellia neesiana, and Sphagnum squarrosum.

The peninsula to the west of Taynish carries an extensive area of juniper scrub which extends the range of woodland types here and is included in the grade i site. This area is of outstanding floristic interest as well, with the Mediterranean-Atlantic species Cephaloziella turneri, Epipterygium tozeri, and Targionia hypophylla growing in or near their northernmost known localities.

The area as a whole is considered to be of outstanding ecological and floristic importance as one of the most extensive oakwoods surviving in Scotland.

Inverneil Burn

W.I()8. INVERNEIL BURN, ARGYLL

NR 8381. 10 ha

Grade i*

This is a deep, wooded gorge cut through schists and epi-diorites which are locally strongly calcareous. The woods on the more level ground above the ravine consist of well-grown birch and oak with a Faeemz'ww-moss-dominated field layer. On the blocks there is a good bryophyte growth, with abundant hepatics such as Plagiochila spinulosa, P. punctata and Scapania gracilis. Epiphytes of note include Mylia cuneifolia and Aphanolejeunea microscopica.

There is some beech (presumably planted) around the foot of the glen, but most of the steep slopes above the gorge are covered with an ash- hazel-wych elm wood with some birch, rowan, and willows. The ground cover is herb rich with Deschampsia cespitosa, Filipendula ulmaria, Asperula odorata, Geranium robertianum, Stellaria holostea, and Thelypteris phegopteris, and basiphilous bryophytes are abundant, with Hylocomium brevirostre, Plagiochila aspleni-oides and Eurhynchium striatum. There is an excellent growth of epiphytic lichens and bryophytes on the hazel and ash, with Lobaria spp., Sticta spp., Parmeliella atlantica, Microphiale lutea, Normandina pulchella, Ulota vittata, U. phyllantha, and Frullania germana. Rotting logs support a rich flora, including such rarities as Tritomaria exsecta and Harpanthus scutatus.

The ravine provides a range of moist shaded habitats and supports a rich assemblage of Atlantic bryophytes, including Hygrohypnum eugyrium, Radula aquilegia, Plagiochila tri-denticulata, several members of the Lejeuneaceae, and Metsgeria hamata. Other notable species in the gorge include Seligeria recurvata and Hygrobiella laxifolia. There is an interesting north-facing basic cliff with tufaceous springs. This supports several calcicolous species, including Rubus saxatilis, Asplenium viride, Saxifraga aisoides, Cololejeunea calcarea, Mnium marginatum and Gyakcta jenensis. Similar habitats are represented in the north by Corrieshalloch, Allt nan Carnan, and Allt Mor (Rassal Ashwood) gorges, but Inverneil Burn is a more open gorge and supports a richer, more southerly flora.

The area is considered to be of outstanding interest in view not only of its rich and diverse flora but of the fine and

extensive stand of mixed deciduous woodland which is otherwise rare in south-west Scotland.

Doire Donn

W.2l6. DOIRE DONN, ARGYLL

NN 0570. 180 ha

Grade 2

This rich woodland, on rocky, almost precipitous slopes, has sessile oak, ash, birch, alder and wych elm in the canopy. The understorey and shrub layers, unlike many Highland woods, are well developed, with abundant hazel, rowan, holly and sallow. Occasional guelder rose, bird- cherry and hawthorn are also present. Scots pine becomes an important element in the otherwise broadleaved deciduous woodland on knolls and the higher colder slopes showing a transition towards native pinewood which occurs nearby in Conaglen. The ground flora is variable but fern dominated, with basiphilous and acidophilous facies. The higher slopes in which pine, oak and birch are present carry a more heathy ground flora of Calluna in varying mixtures with Molinia, Pteridium and Vaccinium myrtillus.

Kinuachdrach

W.2l8. KINUACHDRACH, JURA, ARGYLL

NR 7097. 115 ha i

Grade 2

On steep rocky slopes of Dalradian schist there are two blocks of mixed birch-rowan wood, with an abundance of Dryopteris aemula, Hymenophyllum tunbrigense and H. wilsonii and a rich Atlantic bryophyte flora which includes Adelanthus decipiens, Lepidozia pinnata, Frullania ger-mana, Plagiochila punctata, Harpanthus scutatus, Metzgeria hamata and Dicranum scottianum, besides more common species. Below, there are areas of swampy alderwood with willows, Iris pseudacorus, Carex paniculata, C. laevigata, Crepis paludosa and Lythrum salicaria. On the raised beach cliff slopes rather stunted oak also occurs in the woods. The rocky shore has good marine algal communities.

Clais Dhearg

W.2I9- CLAIS DHEARG, ARGYLL

NM933I. 750 ha

Grade 2

Clais Dhearg, in the Lorne district of Argyll, lies to the south of Connel at the mouth of Loch Etive. The site occupies some 600 ha of land varying between 30 and 120 m in altitude, on an uneven plateau of Andesitic lavas and draining into the Black Lochs to the north- west.

The uniform bedrock and land-use produce a small range of floristic variation, comprising a complex of acido-philous communities including sessile oakwood amounting to about 200 ha, acid grassland and grass heath, bracken fern meadow, blanket bog, and small soligenous mires associated with the pattern of drainage.

The woodland has developed for a long period under relatively heavy grazing by cattle and sheep. Most of the area is oakwood, with trees up to 18 m in height and of small girth forming a single canopy. Hazel, rowan, hawthorn, blackthorn, and occasionally birch, introduce diversity in the canopy and sparse shrub layer but there are no young trees or shrubs. Alder and willows are of restricted distribution. The ground flora under open canopy conditions is dominated by bracken but elsewhere there are associations of Deschampsia flexuosa, Oxalis acetosella, Anthoxanthum odoratum, Polytrichumformosum, Hylocomium splendens and Thuidium delicatulum. Also abundant in these associations are Potentilla erecta, Galium saxatile and Holcus lanatus. Species present locally are Vaccinium myrtillus, Melampyrum pratense, Stellaria holostea, Pteridium aquili- num, and the moss Rhytidiadelphus loreus. Plants sensitive to grazing such as species of fern and tall herbs are absent, and Vaccinium myrtillus, Luzula sylvatica, Primula vulgaris, Endymion non-scriptus and even Calluna vulgaris are very local or exist in very depauperate forms. The marshy communities of damper depressions under closed canopy woodland comprise Poa trivialis, Filipendula ulmaria, Deschampsia cespitosa and Oxalis acetosella, with Sphagnum- Polytrichum hummocks locally.

Tree bases in closed woodland are frequently covered with epiphytic bryophytes and lichens, usually dominated by Hypnum cupressiforme, but the oceanic species characteristic of humid western woods appear to be restricted in abundance and variety.

Glendaruel

W.2I7- GLENDARUEL WOOD, ARGYLL

NS 0290. 55 ha

Grade 2

This oak-ash woodland has a well-developed understorey of hazel and other woody species. The field layer varies from areas of Thelypteris oreopteris or Brachypodium sylvaticum to dominance of herbs. Carex remota and Juncus articulatus predominate beneath the alder. This site adjoins limestone exposures at 180 m which have a good upland flora.

Cranach

W.2I5- CRANNACH WOOD, ARGYLL

NN 3545. 280 ha

Grade 2

This is a native Scots pinewood with trees at least 120 years old, but with poor stocking and full canopy closure only in small patches. Regeneration of Scots pine is hindered by grazing though two fenced areas now contain trees up to 10 years old. Birch and rowan are present and there is a birch zone above the pine. The ground flora is mainly Calluna vulgaris-Vaccinium-Deschampsia flexuosa with Luzulapilosa, Potentilla erecta and Sphagnum. Railway fires often occurred in the past, but this is no longer a hazard.

Choille Mor

W.2I3- CHOILLE MOR, COLONSAY, ARGYLL

NR 4197. 40 ha

Grade 2

This coastal oakwood on Torridonian phyllites has a wind-sculptured canopy of broad-crowned trees with height development limited by exposure to under 6 m. Pure oak-wood is confined to the seaward strip which trends through oak-birch mixtures to pure birch scrub on higher ground. Hazel and rowan are important constituents in the canopy but grazing by cattle, sheep and goats has restricted the development of shrub and field layers. Herb-rich Agrostis- Anthoxanthum communities predominate under the oak-wood canopy, with Pteridium or Calluna towards open or birch dominated areas. Sphagnum- Molinia communities occupy flushed ground with Myrica gale, Hydrocotyle vulgaris, Mentha aquatica, or alternatively in heavy shade, Chrysosplenium oppositifolium. A fern flora in localised shaded areas is rich in species including Dryopteris borreri, D. aemula, D. carthusiana, Thelypteris limbosperma and Athyrium filix- femina.

Mealdaroch/Point Skipness

W.I97- MEALDARROCH POINT-SKIPNESS, ARGYLL

NR 8868-9260. 370 ha

Grade i*

The moorlands of this part of Knapdale are bounded by an inaccessible coastline, where steep slopes are broken by numerous rock outcrops and extensive block-strewn slopes. The slopes are mainly wooded with scrubby birch (probably serai), with some oak (perhaps representing the remnants of a former cover of climax woodland), rowan, hazel, and holly. In places there are larger patches of wood, and numerous small cascading streams have cut deep ravines.

The major feature of interest of the area is the extremely rich and luxuriant development of fern- and bryophyte-dominated communities rather than the woodland itself, but the site is most suitably classified under this formation. The fern and bryophyte communities are essentially of a woodland type and are notable for the strong representation of Atlantic species. The southern Atlantic ferns Hymenophyllum tunbrigense and Dryopteris aemula probably occur here in greater quantity than anywhere in Britain, and they approach the profusion of these species characteristic of the Killarney woods in Ireland. There are large quantities of H. wilsonii and several other Atlantic species occur widely such as Scapania gracilis, Plagiochila punctata, Lepidozia pinnata, Adelanthus decipiens, Dicranum scottianum, and Hylocomium umbratum.

The cascading streams provide habitats for several local Atlantic species, including Jubula hutchinsiae, Aphanolejeunea microscopica, Drepanolejeunea hamatifolia, Harpalejeunea ovata, Cephaloziella pearsonii, Plagiochila tridenticulata, and Grimmia hartmanii. Ledges in the ravines support Hypericum androsaemum and a variety of basiphilous ferns and bryophytes. Mylia cuneifolia is locally frequent on birch trees.

Open areas with little or no tree cover are densely over-grown with bracken. Moist humus banks, largely unburnt, abound and provide habitats for several interesting bryo-phytes including Harpanthus scutatus, Riccardia palmata, and Scapania umbrosa. Shaded rocks by the sea support Frullania microphylla, F. germana, Radula aquilegia, and Lophocolea fragrans.

The area is of outstanding bryological interest, and although the tree component of the woods cannot be regarded as important in their present condition, the range and abundance of bryophyte communities are of high quality. The richness of the flora depends partly on shade and high humidity, which are conferred here by aspect and the rocky nature of the terrain. Tree cover is obviously not necessary for these plants here but, conversely, afforestation with conifers, as is so widespread in Knapdale today, would undoubtedly damage their chances of survival.

Glen Nant

W.I94- GLEN NANT WOODS, ARGYLL

NN 0128. 200 ha

Grade i

This site comprises a narrow ravine in andesite and basalt lavas of Old Red Sandstone age, with drifts of glacial origin. The valley contains a north-western type of mixed deciduous woodland over a range of soils. An ash-hazel association is dominant on the calcareous volcanic rocks, with a sparse shrub layer of hawthorn, blackthorn and guelder rose. Elsewhere sessile oak and birch are most abundant with a scattering of rowan, holly and bird-cherry. Other woody species include wych elm and gean, with alder and sallows in the less steep areas. Coppicing has been widespread and large mature trees are rare. Acidophilous ground flora communities are most widespread particularly on the higher slopes. Two main types occur, a fern-dominated one with Dryopteris borreri, Thelypteris oreopteris and Athyrium filix-femina; and a heathy facies with Vaccinium myrtillus, Calluna vulgaris, Pteridium aquilinum. The basiphilous patches have an abundance of herbs including Allium ursinum, Primula vulgaris and Fragaria vesca, but are dominated by Brachypodium sylvaticum and Deschampsia cespitosa. Some of the flowering plants of particular interest include Melica nutans, Trollius europaeus and Neottia nidus-avis. There is a rich Atlantic bryophyte flora which includes Hylocomium umbratum, Adelanthus decipiens, Plagiochila punctata and Herberta hutchinsiae with the ferns Hymenophyllum wilsonii and Dryopteris aemula.

Glas Drum

W.I93- GLASDRUM WOOD, ARGYLL

NN 0545. 65 ha

Grade i*

This wood lies on the south-east slope of Ben Churalain overlooking the head of Loch Creran and rises from sea-

level to 180 m. Dalradian rocks, with calcareous beds along the lower sections passing to acidic rocks above, produce variable soil conditions. Near the road there is a flat, narrow strip of alder woodland with Crepis paludosa and Carex remota on wet mull soils. A hanging ash-hazel wood occupies the middle zone. This is broken by a line of calcareous schist outcrops drained by bryophyte-rich rills. Some ash standards reach 24 m, but patches of dense young growth also occur. Hazel forms a tall scrub layer throughout and alder occupies the damper pockets on the higher slopes. Wych elm, birch, rowan and hawthorn also occur.

The dominants of the field layer are Brachypodium sylvaticum, Mercurialis perennis and ferns (mainly Dryopteris filix-mas, Thelypteris oreopteris and Athyrium filix-femina), but the flora is herb rich and includes Allium ursinum, Anemone nemorosa and Circaea lutetiana. Grasses such as Poa trivialis and Deschampsia cespitosa are common.

Above the escarpment with its calcicolous flora, the soils are more acidic, and the prevailing woodland type is sessile oak with some birch which grades into birch scrub and moorland at about 270 m. The field layer is grassier with Holcus lanatus, Melampyrum pratense and Potentilla erecta. Many oceanic species of bryophytes occur on the screes, blocks and trees; these include Adelanthus decipiens and Hylocomium umbratum.

The NNR lies within a large Forestry Commission area, and, like Glen Nant, it is a good example of a northwestern mixed deciduous woodland, but approaches closely to ash-hazel wood on limestone.

Lock Sunnart

W.IQO. LOCH SUNART WOODLANDS, ARGYLL

Grade I*

(a) Ariundle

NM 8464. 120 ha

This is a sessile oakwood on a moderately steep slope facing east- south-east above the Strontian River (OW.Qo). The oak varies from 40 to 150 years in age and is mostly of coppice origin, forming a fairly pure stand, though there is a little wych elm, ash and hazel on more basic soils. The field layer has the usual mixture of bracken and acidic grassland with Deschampsia flexuosa, but there is local dominance of Molinia caerulea, and Calluna vulgaris is abundant at the upper edge of the wood. The few patches of basic soil have basiphilous species but on the whole, the Moine rocks of the area here give a prevalence of acidic soils. The ground is block strewn over much of the woodland floor and there are small outcrops.

Ariundle is an important member in the south to north series of bryophyte-rich oakwoods in western Scotland, and both mosses and leafy liverworts are luxuriant on the woodland floor, especially where it is rocky. There is a luxuriant carpet with the common woodland mosses, including Thuidium tamariscinum and T. delicatulum, but on the blocks there are dense cushions with Plagiochila atlantica, P. spinulosa, Scapania gracilis and filmy fern Hymenophyllum wilsonii. The strongly Atlantic bryophytes of the wood include Adelanthus decipiens, Radula aquilegia, Hylocomium umbratum, Hypnum callichroum, Plagiochila punctata and Frullania germana. It is unusual for a woodland on a sun-exposed aspect to be so rich in Atlantic bryophytes, and this is probably to be explained both by the extremely high atmospheric humidity of the district, and the probable persistence of continuous woody cover at the site. Some mature oaks on wetter sites are showing incipient die-back in their crowns.

The more open tree growth between the west end of the wood and the river is extremely important for lichens with an oceanic distribution, and is included within the grade i site for this reason. These species seem to favour the more exposed conditions of open woodland and scattered tree growth, and the lichen flora of Ariundle Wood proper is less rich than that of this adjoining area.

(b) Salen-Strontian

NM 687647-784612. 580 ha

The slopes above the north shore of Loch Sunart have a considerable though discontinuous extent of sessile oak-wood, with variable amounts of birch, holly and rowan. The Camasine wood is a very fine example of western oakwood, with a more uneven aged structure than Ariundle, though rather similar field and ground layers; there is an altitudinal gradient in stature and form of the oaks, and the lower ground has some very large and well-grown trees. There is also a good variety of tree and shrub species. The soils are mainly leached brown earths derived from acidic Moine Schists, but in places, especially in stream ravines, such as that of the Resipol Glen, there are exposures of calcareous parent materials, which give richer soils with patches of ash-wych elm-hazel wood. Some of these woods are interesting in their own right, but their main importance is as the habitat for an extraordinarily rich assemblage of mosses, liverworts and lichens with an Atlantic distribution, as well as a profusion and luxuriance of the more widespread species.

The area has long been famous bryologically from the early studies of S. M. MacVicar (1926). Some rare bryo-phytes have their British headquarters here, e.g. Semato-phyllum novae-caesareae, Acrobolbus wilsonii and Radula carringtonii. The recent survey by the British Lichen Society has shown that the lichens have even greater importance, and there is probably the richest concentration of Atlantic species in Europe, including many rarities. The Camasine oakwood is an especially rich and important locality. As well as having many rare species, the woods and scattered trees have profuse growths of large lichens (Sticta spp. and Lobaria spp.) with a more widespread distribution, and the development of this Lobarion community is probably unequalled in Britain. Other lichen communities such as the Graphidion alliance, and those with Pseudocyphellaria spp., Parmelia laevigata and P. caperata-perlata, are finely represented. The important lichen habitats include the rough bark of well-grown oaks and other trees, the smooth bark of holly and rowan, decaying logs, willows and other shrubs in boggy carr, rocks (including those within the inter-tidal and spray zones), and lead mine spoil heaps.

The particular richness of the area for these oceanic plants seems to result from an optimal combination of conditions - Loch Sunart is more sheltered than the open coast, but the area is still far enough south to experience very equable winter temperatures, and it is probably the warmest part of the zone of extreme wetness in the western Highlands.

While this is only an interim account of the area, and woodlands are only one of the habitats involved, the area of Loch Sunart would seem to be of considerable international importance botanically. The north shore of the loch from Kilchoan to near Strontian is also regarded as a grade i rocky coast site (C.gS, gr. i).

(c) Laudale-Glen Cripesdale NM 760595-650588. 1010 ha

These woods occupy the slopes forming the south side of Loch Sunart, opposite the Salen-Strontian woods already described. The general steepness of slope and north to north-west aspect give shady and extremely humid conditions, which are still further amplified in the numerous stream ravines which cut down through the hillsides. The rock is again Moine Schist and ranges from acidic to calcareous. The woods on this side of Loch Sunart are mainly of birch, but with scattered blocks of oak, and a good deal of ash and hazel on the richer soils.

The outstanding ecological feature is again the great profusion of Atlantic bryophytes and lichens, and on this north-facing slope the extremely humid conditions favour a general luxuriance of widespread mosses and liverworts, and abundance of rare or local species. There are several stations for Acrobolbus wilsonii and Sematophyllum novae- caesareae, and the rare Mylia cuneifolia is abundant on birch trunks. The rare Lejeunea mandonii has at least two stations in this area. Atlantic bryophytes growing in profusion on blocks, banks and tree bases include Plagiochila spinulosa, P. atlantica, P. punctata, Scapania gracilis, Saccogyna viticulosa, Mylia taylorii, Breutelia chrysocoma and Hylo-comium umbratum, while less abundant species are Dicrano-dontium uncinatum, D. denudatum, Frullania germana, Bazzania tricrenata, B. trilobata, Herberta hutchinsiae, Douinia ovata, Nowellia curvifolia and Anastrepta orcadensis. There is a great deal of Sphagnum on the blocks and ground, and the ferns Hymenophyllum wilsonii and Dryopteris aemula are plentiful in places. The lichens of these north-facing slopes and woods are also of great interest.

The field communities of these woods are of the usual Agrostis- Anthoxanthum type, becoming species-rich on more fertile soils and grading into soligenous mire on wetter ground.

(d) Ben Hiant

NM 5263. 40 ha

The wood at Uamha na Creadha on the steep seaward slope of Ben Hiant is of a mixed deciduous type, mainly oak, but with a good deal of ash and hazel. Some of the trees are quite tall for an exposed west coast situation. The soils are base-rich brown loams derived from the crumbly calcareous basalt of which this hill is composed. The field layer is mainly of the Brachypodium sylvaticum type, with an abundance of Primula vulgaris, Senecio jacobaea and Teucrium scorodonia. The main interest of the wood is the profusion of large corticolous lichens (the Lobarion 104 Woodlands alliance) which richly clothe the tree trunks and limbs, e.g. Lobaria pulmonaria and L. laetevirens. This is another of the important lichen-rich woods of the Ardnamurchan-Sunart area. Close to the shore are damp, rocky gullies, and cliffs with caves of an old raised beach, and here there is a more varied flora with species such as Hypericum androsaemum, Polystichum aculeatum, Phyllitis scolopendrium, Hymeno- phyllum wilsonii and Marchesinia mackaii.

Ayr

Maidens Heads

W.I74- MAIDENS-HEADS OF AYR, AYRSHIRE

NS 2209-3219. 400 ha

Grade 2

This is a series of rather broken and extensively wooded coastal cliffs formed of Old Red Sandstone sediments and lavas, and is probably the best example of this habitat in Scotland. The prevailing mixed deciduous woodland has sycamore, aspen, ash, wych elm and scrub with hawthorn and blackthorn and a varied woodland herb layer and cliff edge flora including calcicolous species such as Scabiosa columbaria and Vicia sylvatica. The friable nature of the cliffs precludes much algal, lichen or spray zone flowering plant growth, but vestigial dune and shingle beach deposits add variety locally. The more exposed cliffs to the north rise to 90 m and carry paramaritime grassland or bracken on less steep but exposed slopes with incipient deciduous woodland development on boulder clay talus in hollows.

Fife

Earlshall Muir

W.l88. EARLSHALL MUIR, FIFE

NO 4822. 60 ha

Grade 2

This site, consisting of a series of ditches and open ridges, is near the Tentsmuir sand-dune and flat NNR. It consists of a mixed alder- birch wood showing increasing ageing from east to west. Willow is locally abundant around Cannel Loch and on the open ridges gorse is common. Two types of field layer occur on the dunes, one dominated by grasses, Deschampsia cespitosa, D. flexuosa, Holcus mollis and H. lanatus with Blechnum spicant and Galium hercynicum on

the slopes. The damp depressions contain such species as Juncus spp., Sphagnum spp., Cirsium palustre, Galium palustre and Ranunculus repens. See also C.93-

Bute

Glen Diomhan

W.I7I. GLEN DIOMHAN, ARRAN, BUTESHIRE

NR 9246. 10 ha

Grade I

This is an open hill woodland extending for about 1.6 km along an upland river gorge cut through granite and schist. The chief interest of the site is the presence of the very rare endemic whitebeams, Sorbus pseudofennica and S. arranensis, which are restricted to north Arran. The main concentration of these small trees occurs at the junction of the Diomhan Burn and a larger tributary where there is also a luxuriant growth ofjfuniperus communis ssp. nana, Salix aurita and S. atrocinerea. The most densely wooded parts of the site are the steeper margins of the northern part of the glen. Here, however, there are relatively few endemic Sorbus spp., the dominant species being rowan and birch with a few holly and aspen. Juniper is fairly evenly distributed throughout the length of the site, with particularly fine specimens growing from stable rock faces at between 150 and 210 m. The larger specimens of willows (Salix atrocinerea and S. aurita) are similarly located, particularly along the margins of the largest lateral burn and some of the smaller laterals immediately to the south. Amongst other shrubs, only a very few plants of Rosa pimpinellifolia remain.

Dumfries

Tynron

W.l67- TYNRON JUNIPER WOOD, DUMFRIESSHIRE

NX 8292. 5 ha

Grade i

This is a scrub of juniper Juniperus communis on a moderately steep south-east-facing slope of Silurian greywackes at c. 120 m, in a tributary valley of the River Nith. The junipers are tall, averaging 3-3.7 m high, and with some individuals reaching 6 m; there is a wide variety of growth forms from broad and spreading to narrow and columnar. There are a few, scattered and rather small trees of other species, mainly ash and gean, but this is essentially a tall scrub rather than a wood, and there is a variety of other shrubs amongst the dominant juniper. There are two main field communities, the first being a dry grassland of Agrostis tennis, Festuca ovina, Deschampsia flexuosa and Anthox-anthum odoratum, mixed with varying amounts of heather; this occupies open spaces within the scrub. The second type is a mixed bracken-bramble community occurring mainly where the junipers are moderately dense. The grassland has species such as Carex pilulifera and Luzula campestris which belong to treeless ground, but there is a woodland flora including Oxalis acetosella, Lonicera periclymenum and Veronica officinalis, and where the shade is dense beneath the junipers a moss carpet takes over. Towards the foot of the slope there is flushed ground with a marshy vegetation. The flora is quite varied, but no really unusual species is recorded. The site is noted for several local insects including moths such as the juniper carpet Thera juniperata and juniper pug Eupithecia pusillata.

Stenhouse

W.I73- STENHOUSE WOOD, DUMFRIES-SHIRE

NX 7993. 20 ha

Grade 2

This is a woodland on a north-east-facing slope above Shinnel Water, also on rather calcareous Silurian rocks. It exhibits a varied ground flora and an irregularly stratified canopy which indicates an unusual absence of grazing, trampling and intensive management. The canopy contains ash, wych elm and oak, with some beech. The scrub under- storey is well developed and includes rowan, hazel, gean, bird-cherry and hawthorn as well as some younger individuals of the dominant trees. The field layer is similar to that of Chanlock Foot, with a mixture of grasses, forbs and ferns. There is an abundance of dog's mercury and other mesophilous species, with Dryopteris filix- mas and abundant bryophytes.

Chanlock Foot

W.I72. CHANLOCK FOOT, DUMFRIESSHIRE

NX 8099. 12 ha

Grade 2

This is the remaining block at the south-east end of a narrow belt of ash-oak-hazel woodland, on steep southwest- facing slopes above the Scar Water in upper Nithsdale. Much of the former wood has been clear- felled and replanted with conifers, but the site includes an interesting riverside strip of ash wood, and blocks of hazel scrub at the northwest end. Oak, birch and wych elm are scattered throughout. The Ordovician/Silurian rocks of the area give rather base-rich soil, and as the wood is mostly ungrazed, herbaceous field communities are well developed. These include fine examples of the Mercurialis perennis and Allium ursinum types, but grasses such as Brachypodium sylvaticum, Zerna ramosa and Melica uniflora are locally abundant. There are patches of scree and here, especially, ferns are well represented, including Thelypteris phegopteris and T. dryopteris, besides more common woodland species. The flora includes TrolKus europaeus, Geranium sylvaticum and Orchis mascula, as well as more constant woodland basiphiles such as Geum urbanum, G. rivale, Primula vulgaris and Asperula odorata. More acidic patches of soil on the river bank strip have dominance of Luzula sylvatica, and Endymion non- scriptus and Conopodium majus are plentiful in places. Some older trees have lichens such as Lobaria pulmonaria and Sticta sylvatica, and the bryophyte flora is moderately rich, though not in western species. The Scotch argus butterfly occurs in the more open places and woodland edges.

Inverness

Aviemore

W.l83. AVIEMORE WOODLANDS, INVERNESS-SHIRE

Grade i

(a) Craigellachie NH 8812. 385 ha

This is a fairly large birchwood consisting mainly of Betula pendula but with some B. pubescens, and lies on the lower east-facing slopes of the Monadhliath, overlooking Avie-more. The trees on the more gentle lower ground are fairly tall, but stature decreases as the slope steepens into crags above. The soils are derived from Moine Schist, and are mainly acidic but have more fertile brown loarns in places, and are generally richer than the granite soils of the Cairngorm pinewoods. The field layer is of the grass-moss type, but with an abundance locally of small forbs and ferns. On rocks there are local species such as Geranium lucidum, Chrysosplenium alternifolium and Ramischia secunda. Other tree species include rowan, aspen, hazel, oak, wych elm, bird cherry and juniper, but these are all rather sparse and scattered. Richer grasslands with Polygonum viviparum and Helianthemum chamaedstus occur within the wood, and there is soligenous mire, with Myrica gale and Sphagnum spp. A lochan has interesting aquatic communities and fringing alders.

The Craigellachie Wood is famous as the haunt of northern insects, notably extremely local moths such as the Rannoch sprawler, Kentish glory, great brocade, scarce prominent and angle-striped sallow. The cliffs within the wood are famous as the haunt of peregrines and the pair breeding here is consistently one of the most successful in Britain.

(b) Kinrara Woods (Torr Alvie)

NH 8708. 225 ha

Farther south from Craigellachie and across the road/railway, is an extension of this woodland, rising from low ground beside the River Spey to the steep sided hillock of Torr Alvie, which has north and south-east aspects. Torr Alvie has extensive birchwoods, with Scots pine abundant and localiy dominant in the west. Both species of oak occur in a group at the south end, and are one of the few occurrences of oak in the middle Spey Valley. Eetula pendula predominates, but there is a good deal of B. pubescent. Much of the birch is moribund or old, but in places are stands of young trees, especially on the west side. Juniper forms an open underscrub through much of the pine and birch, and other tree and shrub species include wych elm (rare), alder, rowan, aspen, gean, bird-cherry and willows (Salix cinerea, S. capraea, S. aurita).

The field layer varies from acidophilous Calluna or Vaccinium heath, and Deschampsia flexuosa-Festuca ovina grassland to basiphilous herb- rich Agrostis—Antkoxanthum grassland. On the steep eastern slopes basiphilous communities with Brachypodium sylvaticum and Mercurialis perennis form a mosaic with the acidophilous types, and local species include Helianthemum chamaedstus and Melica nutans. On the steep north face, Deschampsia cespitosa and Cirsium heterophyllum occur with Brachypodium sylvaticum. The upper part of the hill has much Luzula sylvatica and the widespread Pteridium aquilinum reaches dominance locally.

A few flushes and little marshes with Juncus spp., Sphagnum and Myrica gale occur, and north of Torr Alvie, an old arm of the Spey is occupied by a sizeable valley mire with large pools. This has some of the poor-fen communities, especially of Carex, found in the Insh Fens, and is an important bonus wetland habitat. This swamp, the fringing birch scrub, and the birch/pine woods along the railway are of high entomological interest, and are localities for several rare insects.

Loch Morar Islands

W.20O. LOCH MORAR ISLANDS, INVERNESS-SHIRE

NM 7091. 25 ha

Grade i

Stands of Scots pine cover the islands in this loch. Eilean a'Phidhir is a rock island about 20 ha in extent rising to 39 m above water level and has a mor humus soil. The pine is mainly tall and well grown although some trees are stunted and wind cut. In the north-east corner the pines are mixed with common lime, sycamore and yew (probably self sown though traces of old walls indicate past human influences). In the remaining woodland, birch and rowan share the pine canopy and yew, birch, willow, rowan form an under-storey. The woodland floor has abundant Oxalis acetosella with Listera cordata, Blechnum spicant, Calluna vulgaris and hypnaceous mosses. Patches of Luzula sylvatica, Deschampsia flexuosa and Polytrichum formosum are present. Boulders and Sphagnum are more abundant at the southern end.

Eilean nam Breac has pioneer pines, again surrounded by a dense stand of younger trees showing good sequences in the disappearance of heather, Vaccinium and mosses as the canopy thickens up. Oak and alder are present as shrubs in the more open areas.

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