The Cumbria Lichen and Bryophyte group is a self-study group for everyone interested in learning, recording, conserving or simply enjoying Cumbria’s lichens and bryophytes (regardless of experience) .
Please join us on a field trip and share your experiences with us on the Cumbria Lichens and Cumbria Bryophytes Facebook groups.
Here are our most recent blog posts:
- Scales Wood lichen trip report – 20 October 2024
Scales Wood sits on the steep north-east facing slopes opposite Buttermere village. It’s a marvellous place, the SSSI citation describes it as having “the best and most extensive example in the Lake District of a lichen community typical of upland, high rainfall oakwoods such as those found in the Scottish Highlands”. For some of us, … Read more: Scales Wood lichen trip report – 20 October 2024 - Lodore lichen trip report – 19 September 2024
Arriving early to avoid hold-ups from roadworks at Threlkeld we found the car park by Derwent Water almost empty. It quickly filled with lichenologists and bryologists all having had the same idea. Car parking for non-NT members is now restricted to 4 hours but luckily sufficient membership cards were produced (thanks, Pete) for us all… Read more: Lodore lichen trip report – 19 September 2024 - Lamps Moss lichen trip report – 24 August 2024
We seem to be making a habit of exploring borderlands, this time again at the Cumbria-Yorkshire boundary in the uplands to the south east of Kirkby Stephen: Lamps Moss, south of Nine Standards Rigg. It’s an interesting spot with both acidic peat hag habitat and gritstone rock adjacent to limestone pavement and sinkholes. As a… Read more: Lamps Moss lichen trip report – 24 August 2024 - Alcock Tarn lichen trip report – 16 July 2024
A slow climb to Alcock Tarn. Mid July and I feared that the central Lakes would be very busy; have no parking; experience torrential downpours and be full of biting insects. But none of these were true for our Alcock Tarn trip! In a break with tradition, we didn’t get distracted on our journey from… Read more: Alcock Tarn lichen trip report – 16 July 2024 - Carlin Gill Lichen Trip Report 15 June 2024
The forecast was wet and that’s how it turned out for this exploration of an upland valley cutting east into the Howgill Fells. At least at the start we had an hour without precipitation during which time we got about 200m from the road. Disconcertingly, we were in VC65 North Yorkshire the whole time as… Read more: Carlin Gill Lichen Trip Report 15 June 2024