Wall lettuce new to the North-West Highlands
Naturalists are privileged in the north-west of Scotland. Once off road we can explore landscapes little affected by human activity, often coming across plants or animals where no-one has previously noted them. Occasionally, however, the roadsides themselves spring surprises, as was the case on 18th July 2023.
Something odd caught our eyes at Glac Mhor, just north of Lochinver. We parked the car opposite the site of a former Highland Council road depot at the start of the single track B869 (NC099235). This area was landscaped after removal of buildings and other structures. On a stony bank facing the road (photo 1) were numerous plants of a slender yellow-flowered composite (photo 2). This was identified as wall lettuce Mycelis muralis.
The flowering heads are arranged in a large open panicle (photo 3). Each head is about 1cm across and usually contains just five flowers (photo 4), spreading out above a narrowly cylindrical involucre. The thin leaves are cut into jagged lobes and largest below.
Wall lettuce has not previously been recorded from Assynt or anywhere else in West Sutherland. It is a wintergreen perennial, widespread in England and parts of lowland Scotland, where it is usually found on walls and rocks, often on base-rich soils and, increasingly, in man-made habitats. We shall never know how it reached Lochinver, but probably on a digger or some other vehicle. It will be interesting to see if it persists.
Ian M. Evans and Gwen Richards