Abstract
A new locality for Scheuchzeria palustris L. (Rannoch Rush) in Westerness extends its extant range in Scotland. The characteristics of the site are presented in the context of the known distribution and ecology of S. palustris on and around Rannoch Moor, the only extant populations in the British Isles. An overview of the population dynamics revealed by monitoring since 1988 is given.
Highlights
Scarth (1911) suggests that by 1910, when it was discovered on Rannoch Moor, S. palustris was already extinct at all the sites in Britain where it had previously been recorded, including Methven Moss near Perth, the site where it was first discovered in Scotland in 1833
Rodwell et al (1991) give S. palustris only as a rare component of the M1 plant community (Sphagnum auriculatum bog pool community), but Tallis & Birks (1965) suggest that it occurs over a wide range of trophic levels elsewhere in Europe
AMC surveyed the vegetation of Rannoch Moor in 1988 (Coupar, 1989), and recorded populations of notable plant species, including S. palustris, not comprehensively
Summary
In the British Isles Scheuchzeria palustris L. (Rannoch-rush) is a rare and shyflowering species of acid moorland, known recently only from Scotland, formerly found in England and Ireland too. Scarth (1911) suggests that by 1910, when it was discovered on Rannoch Moor, S. palustris was already extinct at all the sites in Britain where it had previously been recorded, including Methven Moss near Perth, the site where it was first discovered in Scotland in 1833. Scarth (1911) suggests that by 1910, when it was discovered on Rannoch Moor, S. palustris was already extinct at all the sites in Britain where it had previously been recorded, including Methven Moss near Perth, the site where it was first discovered in Scotland in 1833.
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