#Mosses along farmland tracks near Aberdeen. Barbula convoluta, Bryum argenteum, Syntrichia ruralis and Didymodon fallax. Their colours and shapes are amazing.

#scottishbryophytes #scottishlichens #noticing #biodiversity

Come autumn, come #bryophytes. Climacium dendroides on the shore of Loch of Lintrathen. #scottishwildlifetrust #scottishlichens #scottishbryophytes #riverwoods #biodiversity #noticing

I've been following #CemeteryWildlifeWatch for years and even though I have been recording lichens and mosses in churchyards I would never find any ladybirds. @persmiseth.bsky.social suggested to look under under overhangs and I found these two in my local graveyard. #scottishlichens #biodiversity

Metzgeria fruticulosa on a beech nearby. Note the gemmae at the leaf tips. This #liverwort seems to spread into NE Scotland as I am finding it more and more. #scottishlichens #scottishbryophytes #biodiversity #epiphytes #noticing

The #liverwort Metzgeria furcata on a tree near Banchory. Abundant male reproductive feature (the globose features on the lobes) that I never noticed before. Have the environmental conditions changed and are new genetic makeups required? #scottishlichens #scottishbryophytes #biodiversity #epiphytes

Lochside trees at Loch Insh NNR. Intrigued by hawthorn scrub in which the branches are a cloud of #lichens, while the trunks have a thick cover of #bryophytes. The loch provides humidity, with the trunks being most humid and the domain of mosses. #scottishlichens #riverwoods #lichenGBI #biodiversity

Creag Meagaidh NNR, Scottish Highlands. Alnus glutinosa - Fraxinus excelsior - Lysimachia nemorum alderwood. Both the burn and the root nodules of #alder generate a degree of natural eutrophication that is reflected in the #bryophyte flora. #scottishlichens #riverwoods #biodiversity #bryophytes

Within birch and pine woodland, aspen provides welcome #lichen diversity as its bark is basic rather than acidic. Ramalina species are common, but there was also some nice Physconia and a crustose Lecanora species covered in the black dots of a lichenicolous lichen. #scottishlichens #lichenGBI

Pinhead #lichens on a conifer snag in Maryculter Woods - most likely Chaenotheca brunneola (pale) and Calicium viride (greenish). These tend to be dead wood specialists that are more commonly found in central and eastern Scotland. #scottishlichens #lichenGBI #deadwood #biodiversity

The Cetraria sepincola in Maryculter Woods is still hanging on. Quite literally, as this #lichen species prefers to grow on the most brittle of birch twigs that often snap when you try to have a look at it. Not finding the species that often. #scottishlichens #lichenGBI #biodiversity

The rock marking the boundary of the #Cairngorms close to Dinnet sums up the geological and lichen story of upper Deeside pretty well as it contain indicators of upland conditions, acidic and metal-rich rock, and nutrient-rich conditions. #scottishlichens #lichensGBI #lichens #biodiversity #geology

In several parts of Muir of Dinnet NNR there are areas with aspen and each of these has less common lichen and bryophyte species on them. Last year Oliver Moore found the very rare Nyholmiella gymnostoma on one of these aspen. #scottishlichens #scottishbryophytes #mosses #lichens #biodiversity

The slightly overhanging rock faces along the Vat Burn at Muir of Dinnet NNR are host to some characteristic lichen and moss species that I have not (or hardly ever) found further down Deeside. #scottishlichens #lichens #biodiveristy #scottishbryophytes #nature #geology

When you visit Muir of Dinnet NNR to prepare a guided walk and the mosses you're meant to talk about look like this ... An absolutely stunning landscape, bitterly cold, but the weather may need to change before that guided walk. #scottishlichens #scottishbryophytes #biodiversity #bryophytes #mosses

A quick visit to Garlogie Stonecircle yesterday to get ready for tonight's talk for the Scottish Wildlife Trust. The ringcairns in the centre are an introcate interplay between low boulders, gravel and soil and attract a wide range of mosses and liverworts. #scottishlichens #scottishbryophytes

On Saturday 25 January NatureScot has invited me to do a bryophyte walk along the Burn o' Vat Trail at Muir of Dinnet NNR. There may only be a few spaces left, so please book soon by emailing NatureScot at Muir_Dinnet@nature.scot.

A transect through Aberdeen in December, mainly to look at epiphytic mosses. Syntrichia papillosa was the big surprise. I had hardly any records for the species for Aberdeenshire, but it is abundant in Aberdeen, the more so in the least green neighbourhoods. Does it like dusty environments?