Maps & accounts: introduction

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Select: Acknowledgements; Attributions (who's who in the Flora and in current comments); Back-story of the mapping/species-accounts pages; References/reading [content awaited].

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We gratefully acknowledge:

      • Dr Geoffrey Halliday for passing over copyright for A Flora of Cumbria to enable us to utilise the species-accounts here.
      • Stephen Trotter and Cumbria Wildlife Trust for their most generous contributions towards the setting up of the site – by which the project got off to a ‘flying start’!
      • our Working Group, as mentioned in ‘Back-story’.
      • Chris Cant for his enthusiasm, and persistence in the face of numerous requests and some re-directions: in particular of course the implementation of the coding which does the hard work of combining all the elements of the page and generates the mapping from the huge download of BSBI data.
      • James Drever/BSBI for exchanges and the data download from the ‘DDb’ – the Distribution Database.

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Names of authors of ‘Current comments’, and others mentioned therein, are initialled:

BB – Brian Burrow; DB – David Benham; FJR – Jeremy Roberts; JC – Julie Clarke; LMR – Linda Robinson; MSP – Mike Porter; PB –Pete Burton; PLB – Phill Brown; RG – Ron Groom; RWMC – Rod Corner; WN – Wendy Nelson

(Many more will be added as Current comments accumulate!)

Recorders’ names in the species-accounts from A Flora of Cumbria were initialled:

JA – J. Adams (snr.); JMA – J.M. Atkins; MB – M. Baecker; NB – N. Botham; PB – P. Burton; RWMC – R.W.M. Corner; MC – M. Coulson; AAD – A.A. Dudman; ESE – E.S. Edees; J CF – J .C. Frankland; MMG – M.M. Gill; MG – M. Gregory; REG – R.E. Groom; KAG – K.A. Gunning; GH – G. Halliday; CCH – C.C. Haworth; LH – L. Henderson; EEM – E.E. Marper; MMM – M.M. Milne; AN – A. Newton; JP – J. Parker; MP – M.S. Porter; KR – K. Raistrick; DAR – D.A. Ratcliffe; EHR – E.H. Rhone; FJR – F.J. Roberts; LR – L. Robinson; AJS – A.J. Silverside; CS – C. Smith; MS – M. Smith; CFS & JS – C.F. & J. Steeden; ES – E. Sterne; RS – R. Stokoe; PT – P. Tolfree; CEW – C.E. Wild; JW – J. Williamson; CW – C. Willink; AW – A.E. Wilson; TW & KW – T. & K. Wilson; FLW – F.L. Woodman


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Back-story….

Developing the Cumbria Botany website for individual taxon accounts and distribution maps arose from two considerations.
1: Geoffrey Halliday’s matchless account of the county’s vascular flora A Flora of Cumbria has passed its quarter-century! Published in 1997, it reports and records the state of the county’s flora based upon a survey carried out in the years 1974–1997, with detailed and illustrated introductory chapters by several authors on many aspects related to the county’s flora, and approaching 1800 species-accounts. A Flora of Cumbria is out-of-print – albeit available in the secondhand marketplace. These species-accounts have full relevance today, providing both historical context and cogent summaries of distribution, ecology, and much else. Online availability gives the potential for a wide new audience, and, we hope, longevity.
2: For Cumbrian recorders (after a couple of years of well-earned respite, post-1997!) the BSBI’s twenty-year cycle of recording, 2000–2019, usefully re-focussed efforts, and in the latter years of that round, a very large amount of re-recording was Cumbria’s contribution to the landmark publication in March 2023 of Plant Atlas 2020 – as a two-volume printed tome and also, with a slightly different set of parameters, online. Plant Atlas 2020 online offers mapping to tetrad (2×2km) scale, and much else besides, and is a hugely useful resource.
Enquiries with BSBI confirmed that we could request a complete download of the current set of mapping data for the county to monad (1×1km) scale, consisting of well over a million individual records. This brought the possibility of creating species-pages populated by: i) the up-to-date monad-scale map; ii) the accounts from the Flora; iii) comments updating the 1997 accounts where deemed necessary, or for species lacking Flora accounts, including additions to the county list since 1997; iv) illustrations of images taken within the county.

A great deal of work through 2023 and to date (April 2024) by the team from the Flora of Cumbria Recording Group initially decided on issues such as hosting, copyright, and generating interactive maps. (Initially an Advisory Group, there was a certain inevitability in its evolution via Steering to Working Group, as it remains!) There was then the large task of extracting the species-accounts from A Flora of Cumbria into digital format (as no digital version in any format was forthcoming). Some of the team have expended – and are expending – large amonts of time on the project, and I am very grateful for their persistence and commitment.
We are delighted to be able to work with Chris Cant (PHD Computer Consultants Ltd.) who has set up the mapping page, and whose coding generates the maps from BSBI mapping data. (This coding is a modification of that already in use in the maps in the ‘Resources’ sections of Cumbria Lichens and Bryophytes, and (since January 2024) interactive maps for the British Lichen Society.)

Jeremy Roberts April 2024


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French, G.C., Hollingsworth, P.M., Corner, R.W.M., Roberts, F.J. & Taylor, I. 2005. Clonal diversity in two recently discovered English populations of Carex vaginata Tausch (Cyperaceae). Watsonia 25: 389–395

 

For these four genera select from the tabs below. (NB: all genus Rubus species are here – critical and non-critical.)
In A Flora of Cumbria these have significant introductory accounts and keys by Dr Geoffrey Halliday. Since the formats of these could not be accommodated in the main species/mapping-page they have their own sections.

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Brambles: Rubus subgenus Rubus

(i.e. Rubus caesius L. and Rubus fruticosus L. sensu lato – but note that all Cumbrian Rubus species are also included here, both the critical and non-critical species – Cloudberry, Raspberry, Stone Bramble, and so on.)

The mapping/accounts page is here

Species-accounts are those from A Flora of Cumbria (1997), for species which are covered therein. Updating comments may be added in due course.

Forty-one species were covered in A Flora of Cumbria; fifty-seven are currently recorded.
(For completeness the five Cumbrian non-bramble Rubus species are included in the menu.)



Introductory account and key, A Flora of Cumbria (1997)

This account and the accompanying maps are based chiefly on records made by GH from 1980 and contributions from A. Newton (AN, from 1972), E.S. Edees (ESE, 1954–1965) and C.W. Muirhead (1943–1972). The time span is therefore appreciably longer than the 20 years of the recording scheme, although of the 42 species recorded only Rubus bertramii and R. amplificatus have not been seen during the Survey. A number of recorders have also assisted with the collection of material, notably JA, AAD and MG, and the initial stimulus leading to the recent activity was provided by a collection from south Cumbria by A.J. Sherwood in 1980 and 1981. A significant result of these efforts is a large, modern, comprehensive collection of Cumbrian specimens in LANC. Almost all the Survey records, except those of the commoner species, have been checked by A. Newton. He has also seen most of C.W. Muirhead’s collection (CLE, PLYP).
Lack of space and uncertainties regarding identification and synonyms mean that references in this account to pre-1940 literature records and first vice-county records are largely omitted. Early herbarium records, accepted by ESE and AN, are cited where these supplement recent records. Few of the records in the three county Floras were made by the authors and the only early papers which make any significant contribution to our knowledge of Cumbrian brambles, particularly of the Lake District, are those of Ley & Linton (1906) and Rogers (1907).
Despite the daunting nature of attempting to record brambles on a tetrad basis, probably the first such vice-county survey, the often well defined and varied distributions suggest that there are probably few areas which are so under-recorded as to render the maps misleading, and further that distortions due to over-collecting along roadsides is of little significance. In fact woodlands and especially heaths, the characteristic habitats in southern England, are relatively unimportant in Cumbria where brambles are very much a feature of roadside verges, the edges of stone walls, waste ground and neglected pasture. An exception is the section Rubus, the species of which occur chiefly around lowland mosses and by becksides, particularly in the Lake District.
Brambles are essentially lowland, rarely being found over 250 m, and no single species is characteristic of higher altitudes. In the south-east of the county R. robiae ascends to 305 m in Garsdale and the coastal R. ulmifolius to 270 m, north-east of Sedbergh. In the east, R. dasyphyllus and R. latifolius reach 270 m at Alston and R. adenanthoides 475 m at Nenthead. while the garden R. armeniacus grows at 210 m at the M6 service station north of Tebay. Members of section Corylifolii are noticeably absent from the Lake District, a fact which makes brambling there distinctly pleasurable! Yet these are the only brambles present in the upland limestone area between Asby and Orton.
Although 40 species of brambles may seem quite a rich flora, and it is by northern standards, it is nevertheless paltry compared with that of southern English counties. This relative paucity does however ease the task for beginners and it is hoped that the following key and the brief diagnostic notes will assist them in becoming acquainted with the species. Care is of course necessary. Material from extremes of shade or exposure should be avoided. Well-developed mature leaves and stem from new vegetative shoots and a terminal flowering panicle of a shoot of the previous year are usually both necessary. It is also important to note the colour of newly opened flowers. A particular problem is the frequency with which species intermingle making it only too easy unwittingly to collect vegetative and flowering material of different species.
This account follows the sequence and nomenclature of Edees & Newton (1988), the species being arranged alphabetically within the relevant groups. It must be stressed that within subsection Hiemales the series represent artificial divisions of a spectrum of variation and they are not therefore as precise as one would like. The following names used in earlier Floras differ from those used by Edees & Newton.
R. affinis (= mostly R. nemoralis); R. bellardii (=?); R. carpinifolius(= mostly R. polyanthemus and R. errabundus); R. corylifolius var. conjungens (= R. latifolius) var. sublustris (= R. pruinosus); R. discolor (= R. ulmifolius); R. drejeri (= R. anisacanthos); R. dumetorum var. diversifolius (= R. tuberculatus) R. fissus (= R. scissus); R. fuscus (=?); R. hirtifolius var. danicus (=?); R. hystrix (= R. hylocharis); R. incurvatus (= R. incurvatiformis); R. koelerisubsp. dasyphyllus (= R. dasyphyllus) ; var. infestus (= R. infestus); var. pallidus (= R. dasyphyllus); R. leucostachys (= R. vestitus); R. maasii (= R. polyanthemus); R. macrophyllus (=?); R. mercicus var. bracteatus (= R. cumbrensis); R. opacus (unnamed Langdale plant); R. pyramidalis (= R. incurvatiformis); R. radula var. echinatoides (= R. echinatoides); R. rhamnifolius (= R. errabundus and R. furnarius) var. cordifolius (=?); R. rogersii (= R. fissus); R. rosaceus (= R. hylocharis); R. rudis (= R. echinatoides); R. rusticanus (= R. ulmifolius); R. salteri (= R. errabundus); R. scheutzii (= R. errabundus); R. selmeri (= R. nemoralis); R. suberectus (= R. nessensis); R. umbrosus (= R. polyanthemus); R. villicaulis (= R. nemoralis)

The following species occur in neighbouring vice-counties but as yet have not been found in Cumbria.
R. rubritinctus [NB: found in Kendal area, 2002–4, A.M. Boucher] and R. sprengelii (v.c.60, W. Lancs.), although Baker cites an unsubstantiated record from Storrs, Windermere (3.9).
R. hebridensis and R. lanaticaulis (v.c.71, Isle of Man)
R. leptothyrsos (v.c.72, Dumfriess.)
R. scotticus (v.c.73, Kirkcudbrights.)


Key

Stems refer to first-year vegetative shoots

1. Stems more or less erect, not tip-rooting: Section Rubus subsection Rubus
  2. Prickles more than 10 per 5 cm, slender, not confined to stem angles:  > R. scissus
  2. Prickles usually fewer than 10 per 5 cm, more or less confined to the stem angles
   3. Petals distinctly pink:R. plicatus
   3. Petals white or very pale pink
    4. Lflets 5; ripe fruits black:  > R. plicatus
    4. Lflets sometimes 6 or 7; ripe fruits black or dark red
     5. Lflets somewhat unevenly serrate; stamens reflexed after anthesis; ripe fruits dark red  > R. nessensis
     5. Lflets finely serrate; stamens not reflexed after anthesis; ripe fruits black:  > R. fissus
1. Stems arching, often tip-rooting
  6. Stems slender; lflets 3; fruits pruinose: Section Caesii:  > R. caesius
  6. Stems not slender; lflets (3-)5; fruit not pruinose
   7. Basal lflets sessile, or almost so: Sect. Corylifolii
    8. Stems with very few if any stalked glands, prickles equal
     9. Terminal lflet rhomboidal; petals pink:  > R. eboracensis
     9. Terminal lflet broadly ovate or rounded, large; petals white
      10. Stem angled, not shining:  > R. latifolius
      10. Stem rounded, often shining:  > R. pruinosus
    8. Stems with stalked glands, prickles unequal
     11. Lflets large, broadly ovate; petals c.17 mm long:  > R. tuberculatus
     11. Lflets small, rounded-cordate; petals c.10 mm long:  > R. warrenii
   7. Basal lflets shortly but distinctly stalked: Section Rubus subsection Hiemales
   12. Panicle without conspicuous stalked glands
    13. Lvs chalky white beneath; petals pink
     14. Lvs coriaceous, terminal lflet < 10 cm long; petals c. 10 mm:  > R. ulmifolius
     14. Lvs not coriaceous, terminal lflet > 10 cm long; petals c.18 mm: > R. armeniacus
    13. Lvs not chalky white beneath; petals white or pink
     15. Fls white, rarely pink in bud
      16. Panicle as broad as long, branches patent, with many fine, pale prickles: > R. lindleianus
      16. Panicle distinctly longer than broad, branches ascending
        17. Panicle with stout, recurved prickles
         18. Lvs felted beneath: > R.lindebergii
         18. Lvs thin, not felted beneath:  > R. lacustris
        17. Panicle with mostly straight, declining prickles
         19. Lvs appearing green beneath, not obviously hairy: > R. silurum
         19. Lvs hairy beneath
         20. Lvs distinctly softly felted beneath:  > R. incurvatiformis
         20. Lvs hairy beneath, not softly felted
           21. Terminal lflet large, irregularly serrate to subentire, the base cuneate or truncate
            22. Lflets rounded, subentire  > R. cumbrensis
            22. Lflets obovate, cuspidate, irregularly serrate: > R. amplificatus
           21. Terminal lflet small, neatly serrate; cordate  > R. furnarius
15. Fls pale to deep pink
   23. Lflets deeply incised:  > R. laciniatus
   23. Lflets not deeply incised
    24. Anthers conspicuously hairy
     25. Terminal lflet large, rounded:  > R. errabundus
     25. Terminal lflet rhomboidal, cuspidate  > R. rhombifolius
    24. Anthers not conspicuously hairy
     26. Panicle with strongly recurved prickles:  > R. nemoralis
     26. Panicle with straight, usually declining prickles
      27. Lflets usually large and rounded, those of the panicle often concave and felted below; panicle narrowly pyramidal:  > R. polyanthemus
      27. Lflets flat, not felted beneath; panicle lax
        28. Prickles long and narrow; young carpels hairy:  > R. elegantispinosus
        28. Prickles broad-based; young carpels glabrous
         29. Terminal lflet rounded-truncate, finely serrate, hairs on underside along veins crisped; sepals reflexed:  > R. robiae
         29. Terminal lflet ovate, somewhat irregularly serrate, hairs on underside along veins straight and shining; sepals patent:  > R. pyramidalis
12. Panicle with conspicuous stalked glands
  30. Fls white
   31. Prickles uniform, not grading into pricklets: > R. vestitus
   31. Prickles grading into pricklets
    32. Stems rough with numerous gland-tipped acicles
     33. Panicle large, with long patent branches:  > R. pallidus
     33. Panicle narrow, dense:  > R. newboldii
    32. Stems almost smooth, with few gland-tipped acicles
     34. Lflets large, rounded, the basal often almost sessile:  > R. anisacanthos
     34. Lflets small-medium, obovate, the basal never sessile:  > R. echinatoides
  30. Fls pink
   35. Prickles uniform, not merging into pricklets
    36. Stems smooth, lacking acicles and conspicuous stalked glands
     37. Stems distinctly hairy; lflets felted beneath:  > R. vestitus
     37. Stems glabrous or almost so; lflets not felted beneath
      38. Lflets medium-sized; anthers glabrous:  > R. wirralensis
      38. Lflets large; anthers hairy:  > R. mucronulatus
    36. Stems rough with acicles, stalked glands present
     39. Stems glabrous:  > R. raduloides
     39. Stems hairy
      40. Lflets often 3, the lower often lobed; panicle dense:  > R. adenanthoides
      40. Lflets 5, entire; panicle not dense:  > R. radula
   35. Prickles unequal, merging into pricklets
    41. Terminal lflet large, rounded-cordate, the lowest often sessile:  > R. anisacanthos
    41. Terminal lflet not rounded, lflets all stalked
     42. Panicle with stout, strongly recurved prickles: > R. infestus
      42. Panicle with straight, declining prickles
        43. Lflets often 3, the lower often lobed; panicle large and dense:  > R. adenanthoides
        43. Lflets usually 5; panicle narrow and few- flowered or large and lax
         44. Panicle large, with long patent branches; petals 15-20 mm, narrow:  > R. hylocharis
         44. Panicle few-fld, narrow; petals c. 12 mm:  > R. dasyphyllus

 

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Cotoneasters ~ Cotoneaster

The mapping/accounts page is here.

Species-accounts are those from A Flora of Cumbria (1997), for species which are covered therein. Updating comments may be added in due course.

Stace (Ed. 4, 2019) describes, and keys out, ninety-three (!) species of Cotoneaster in Britain and Ireland. The Plant Crib has a useful key (1997; ‘minor update 2012’) by J. Fryer to the ‘twenty most likely species to be found in Britain’.
Tim Rich’s recent publication Identification Guide to British Schedule 9 Cotoneasters is available at cost in Kindle format. It covers the five ‘Schedule 9’ species (invasive plants under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981), bullatus, simonsii, horizontalis, integrifolius and microphyllus), with notes separating them from other closely related species.

Twelve species are mentioned in A Flora of Cumbria. The current county list stands at twenty-eight species and two hybrids… a somewhat alarming increase in twenty-seven years!



Introductory account and key, A Flora of Cumbria (1997)

Although there is only a single record in the early Floras, this genus is now known to be represented in the county by at least twelve species. Probably all but one have appeared during the last 50 years, becoming naturalised from garden throw-outs or by bird-dispersal from gardens, although plantings, especially in the Arnside area, cannot be excluded. With the exception of the three commonest species, Cotoneaster horizontalis, C. integrifolius and C. simonsii, all records have been checked by J. Fryer.
The following key is based on information which she has provided. [NB. A further species, C. rotundifolius Wallich ex Lindley, not keyed below, is listed in the Addenda page with the following information: Found by the roadside south of Uldale in 1995 (22.54, MP, 1995, det. J. Fryer). This species differs from Cotoneaster microphyllus in being more erect (-2 m) and having generally longer leaves (-2 cm) and larger flowers (1-1.3 cm across), which are always solitary.]

1. Lvs 0.5-1.5 cm
  2. Lvs sub-orbicular; petals pink; branches herringbone: > C. horizontalis
  2. Lvs obovate-elliptic; petals white: > C. integrifolius
1. Lvs more than 1.5 cm, at least twice as long as wide
  3. Lvs bullate, to 15 cm long
   4. Fruits black
    5. Lvs strongly bullate: > C. moupinensis
    5. Lvs not strongly bullate: > C. villosulus
   4. Fruits red
    6. Lvs to 7 cm, petioles 3-6 mm; calyx hairy: > C. bullatus
    6. Lvs to 15 cm, petioles 1-3 mm; calyx hairy only on the margins: > C. rehderi
  3. Lvs flat
   7. Lvs not tomentose below
    8. Lvs less than 3 cm: > C. simonsii
    8. Lvs more than 3 cm
      9. Petals erect; fruits red, becoming black: > C. laetevirens
      9. Petals spreading; fruits remaining red: > C. × watereri
   7. Lvs tomentose below
    10. Corymbs 3-7-fld; calyx lobes long mucronate; lvs 1.5-2.5 cm: > C. dielsianus
    10. Corymbs 5-15-fld; calyx lobes acute to acuminate; lvs more than 2 cm
      11. Lvs 2-3 cm; corymb shoots to 4 cm; fruits orange-red, oblong-ovoid: > C. franchetii
      11. Lvs 2.5-6 cm; corymb shoots to 1.5 cm; fruits subglobose: > C. sternianus


 

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Dandelions ~ Taraxacum

The mapping/accounts page is here.

Species-accounts are those from A Flora of Cumbria (1997), for species which are covered therein. Updating comments may be added in due course.

The BSBI has provided a great deal of recent information on the identification of (UK-wide) Taraxaca here – including keys to each Section.

123 species were dealt with in A Flora of Cumbria; 162 are currently recorded.

List of Cumbrian Taraxaca at April 2024, by Section
(See useful comments and a key to the Sections further down, in the archived section.)

Section Celtica
TT. berthae; bracteatum; britannicum; cambricum; celticum; cestrense; duplidentifrons; excellens; fulgidum; fulvicarpum; gelertii; haematicum; hesperium; inane; lancastriense; landmarkii; luteum; nordstedtii; olgae; ostenfeldii; porteri; privum; pseudonordstedtii; subbracteatum; tamesense; unguilobum

Section Erythrosperma
TT. arenastrum; argutum; brachyglossum; degelii; falcatum; fulviforme; fulvum; glauciniforme; haworthianum; inopinatum; lacistophyllum; oxoniense; parnassicum; proximiforme; proximum; rubicundum; scoticum

Section Hamata
TT. atactum; boekmanii; fusciflorum; hamatiforme; hamatulum; hamatum; hamiferum; kernianum; lamprophyllum; lancidens; marklundii; pruinatum; pseudohamatum; quadrans; sahlinianum; spiculatum; subhamatum

Section Naevosa
TT. euryphyllum; maculosum; naevosiforme; naevosum; pseudolarssonii; richardsianum; stictophyllum; subnaevosum

Section Obliqua
T. obliquum

Section Palustria
T. palustre

Section Ruderalia
TT. aberrans; acroglossum; acutifidum; acutifrons; adiantifrons; aequilobum; aequisectum; alatum; altissimum; ancistrolobum; angulare; angustisquameum; aurosulum; coartatum; cophocentrum; cordatum; corynodes; croceiflorum; cyanolepis; densilobum; diastematicum; dilaceratum; dilatatum; ekmanii; exacutum; expallidiforme; exsertum; fagerstroemii; fasciatum; hepaticum; hexhamense; horridifrons; huelphersianum; incisum; insigne; interveniens; intumescens; lacerifolium; laciniosifrons; laciniosum; laeticolor; laticordatum; latisectum; latissimum; lepidum; lingulatum; longisquameum; lucidum; lunare; macrolobum; maculatum; melanthoides; multicolorans; necessarium; nigridentatum; nitidum; oblongatum; ochrochlorum; pachylobum; pachymerum; pallescens; pallidipes; pannucium; pannulatiforme; pannulatum; pectinatiforme; piceatum; planum; polyodon; procerisquameum; rhamphodes; sagittipotens; scotiniforme; sellandii; sinuatum; stenacrum; stenoglossum; subcyanolepis; subexpallidum; sublaeticolor; subundulatum; sundbergii; tanyphyllum; trilobatum; tumentilobum; undulatiflorum; undulatum; vastisectum; xanthostigma



Introductory account and key, A Flora of Cumbria (1997)

[Reproduced with permission]
“[This account is substantially that prepared by Chris Haworth in 1989 shortly before his untimely death. It has been revised by Andrew Dudman to incorporate subsequent records and recent taxonomic work (Dudman & Richards 1997).]

The genus Taraxacum poses considerable problems for the Flora writer. Like Hieracium and Rubus, this largely apomictic group abounds in species (microspecies), about 250 being currently recognised in the British Isles. This fact alone creates obvious problems of coverage as well as of identification. Dandelions are, however, even commoner and more widespread than hawkweeds or brambles, and the weedy nature of many species in some of the sections compounds the recording problem. Yet this very abundance demands some serious treatment in a Flora.
However, there are further difficulties, which have led to the genus still being by far the least understood of the ‘difficult’ genera that are represented in these islands. It seems worth outlining why. Firstly, in contrast to the intensive attention that most of our flora has received for a hundred years and more, Taraxacum has been strangely neglected. British botanists were reluctant (some still are!), despite the obvious genetic variation of these ubiquitous plants, to accept the special taxonomic problems present. The treatment in the Atlas of the British Flora (Critical Supplement) (Perring & Sell 1968), for example, actually impeded progress. Secondly, the material is not ‘easy’: the collecting season is short and only practicable during the spring flush from mid-March (in sheltered lowland places) to the end of June (in the uplands), collecting and herbarium preparation must be done with great care, and there is a daunting phenotypic plasticity. Thirdly, there appear to be many rare species (including some yet unpublished). Many are doubtless local endemics, but, with over 2000 species worldwide, there is a large pool of potential casuals, especially in section Ruderalia. These rarities cloud the identification process. Reflecting these difficulties is the fact that Richards’s (1972) Taraxacum Flora dealt with only about half the species now known in Britain. Nevertheless, A.J. Richards and I now agree that there are about 100 ‘important’ species in Great Britain, i.e. those that are common, at least regionally, and are well understood taxonomically. Many of these have been recorded in Cumbria.
All these factors, then, have influenced the treatment here. Fig. 19 indicates the number of species recorded in each 10 km square. Clearly the cover is inadequate and uneven. No records from v.c.65 (N.W. Yorkshire) are included and only some squares in west Cumbria can claim to approach a representative coverage. What the map does suggest, however, is that one might expect the average number of species per square to be about 50. The total number of species in this account is 123, and this accords with the picture for other well-studied areas.
It is inevitable that there will be some errors of omission and commission with such a fluid and complex genus. Nevertheless, the writer is convinced that this report represents a fairly accurate picture of Cumbrian dandelions. It is unlikely that any significant species has been overlooked. Further work could doubtless change the picture for some of the apparently uncommon species and there will always be problems of misidentification and misinterpretation. The author has made the majority of records (many in the field) and determinations; most of the other records are those of A.J. Richards and A.A. Dudman. Collections of modest size have been made by a number of Survey workers. These contributions have been included here and the author is grateful for these efforts. Species with more than ten 10 km square records are mapped. Representative material is in OXF and LANC.
Regarding the Sections, it should be understood that, of their nature, the concept is ‘multidimensional’. In other words, anyone using the keys should use as many characteristics as possible. Ecological ones are given more weight than is perhaps usual. It should be noted that some species occur at the boundaries of sections. This underlies the somewhat arbitrary nature of sections, which are meant to reduce the genus to more manageable groups, as well as to engender taxonomic meaning.
Maybe these finer points will not concern the average Flora user, but are made both to underline the relative youth of British Taraxacology, and perhaps more importantly, to act as a stimulus to encourage botanists to meet the many challenges yet to be encountered in this, the last major frontier of British floristic botany.
The task of constructing keys to the species has, so far, proved beyond the author’s skill and energies! Attempts to use the familiar and simple, one-character dichotomous keys provided by workers in other large and critical genera have convinced him of the limitations to such keys. One might suggest that they are at best often misleading, and at worst mischievous, where they can give the average botanist what may be false concepts, which may then prove difficult to eradicate. To be more positive, however, most of the following accounts include a description of some distinguishing features of each species. Most attention has been given to those species which the author feels warrant this. At the end of the day, if the student admits that there is something that can be said beyond ‘hic sunt dentes leonis, the writer will be gratified!
Finally, a few acknowledgments: Without the constantly stimulating encouragement over the years from my co-worker John Richards, on whose shoulders all British taraxacologists stand, most of the advances evinced below would never have occurred. My friend Andrew Dudman has been ever supportive in ways too numerous to mention, both in the field and in particular with the production of this account. My wife Bertha has proved to be a patient word-processor in the face of outrageous demands and changes of mind. In addition, without her domestic succour through some difficult times, the account would never have appeared. Words, being inadequate for thanks, the following account will, I trust, suffice instead. I lay a firm claim to the errors of all types which certainly remain.

C.C.H. October, 1989 (Chris Haworth died December 2, 1989)

Comments on Sections (A Flora of Cumbria, 1997)

Section 1. Erythrosperma: This largely native section is well represented in Cumbria. The main characteristics and habitats are indicated in the above key.

Section 2. Obliqua: This section has few species and is seemingly very discrete and natural. The species have a superficial resemblance to section Erythrosperma but the leaves have a different texture and the achenes are very different.

Section 3. Palustria: There are only a handful of British species in this section which morphologically is very distinct. All are uncommon or rare and grow in wet, nutrient-rich places and there is little doubt that many British populations have been extinguished over the years with the draining of suitable habitats.

Section 4. Spectabilia: Recent work has suggested a narrower concept than hitherto for members of this section. The achene shape and size alone clearly separate the species from those of other sections. A study of holotypes and the plasticity of British material through experimental work has suggested that there is essentially only one very variable but very common species in Britain with, at most, a couple of very restricted rarities. Plants previously called Taraxacum eximium Dahlst. and T. spectabile Dahlst. are now all included within Taraxacum faeroense.

Section 5. Naevosa: This is a largely native section with many endemic species. These are mainly confined to western and northern Britain in grassy places in the uplands. Not surprisingly then, there are some common Cumbrian species. With a few exceptions (e.g. Taraxacum subnaevosum), the plants are robust with large capitulae. Pollen is often absent. The chief morphological characteristic of this section is the presence of pigment spots on the upper leaf surface. The unwary can confuse these with disease or the midrib blotch of many species belonging to other sections.

Section 6. Celtica: As the name suggests, the species of this section are concentrated in oceanic areas and thus Cumbria is well represented by members, some of which are abundant. All the species are thought to be native and some are endemic. It is a somewhat heterogeneous section and merges into several others, in particular section Hamata. However, it seems to be a very convenient grouping which serves to reduce the genus to more manageable chunks.

Section 7. Hamata: This section forms a fairly coherent grouping morphologically. The species also share a chromosomal peculiarity. Their status in Britain is somewhat difficult to ascertain as most tend to behave in a weedy fashion. Some, if not most, are nevertheless undoubtedly native. They include some of Britain’s most abundant species and the Cumbrian picture mirrors this. Collectors (and referees!) should avoid small and immature material with even greater determination than usual, for this is the most ‘critical’ of the sections.

Section 8. Ruderalia: On the open road on a sunny mid-April day, the carpet of yellow along road-verges and on roundabouts speaks to the botanist and layman alike, that spring is truly here again. For the taraxacologist, in addition, there is challenge – even potential panic. For almost all these dandelions will belong to the section Ruderalia. Since this section contains more than half the known (and unknown!) British dandelions, and there being a considerable pool from the Continent to draw upon as introductions, it is perhaps not surprising that difficulties of identification loom large. Moreover, their generally robust size can understandably deter even the most ardent collector. Even when not so deterred, the authority to whom the student sends his collection all too often finds himself faced with poorly presented and ill-dried material. Small wonder then that this section poses most problems for the taraxacologist and flora-writer.
Yet much can be said to redress this gloomy introduction. The really common British (and Cumbrian) dandelions are relatively few and quite well understood. There is little doubt that many of these are native too, for whilst straying into ruderal habitats, they present certain clues which suggest this status.
In order then to simplify the matter, the author has decided to treat this section in a different way from the others. The first part will deal with the more significant species (as far, that is, as the author feels them to be so). These will generally be common. Most too are probably native and can be assumed to be so unless stated otherwise. The second part will deal much more briefly with a motley collection comprising species with few records, or those which are not well-understood, or even in some cases as yet unpublished. In this part it ca n be assumed that the species is probably introduced unless otherwise indicated. [NB: these two ‘parts’ refer to the treatment in the Flora,but not followed in the online treatment.]
For most dandelions (and indeed for many British plants) there are problems of ascertaining the status of each species and the whole spectrum of problems can be illustrated in this section. However, some are known to be pan-European (e.g. Taraxacum alatum); some are certainly common natives, though not confined to these islands even though we may be the main centre of distribution (e.g. T. cordatum); some appear to be widespread endemics (e.g. T. stenacrum); some, one can be fairly certain, are introductions even if widespread in Britain, for they never seem to be found away from the edge of main roads (e.g. T. undulatiflorum). In other cases, determining the status is more difficult: for example, one does not know whether one is looking at the remnants of a relict native species or a casual introduction. 2 In other instances (e.g. T. fasciatum and T. sellandii), the species can be abundant on roadsides but is occasionally found in semi-natural grassland. Further studies should help elucidate at least some of these problems.


Key to Sections (A Flora of Cumbria, 1997)

For details of the terminology used, see Dudman & Richards’s Handbook (1997). The species are arranged alphabetically within each section, the sections following the sequence in the Handbook and in Kent (1992). Besides leaf morphology and achene colour, the outer involucral bracts (here referred to just as ‘bracts’) are very important. In the newly opened inflorescence their orientation is particularly characteristic for each species. Three species are keyed out, these being the only representative of their sections in Cumbria.
Only one of the nine British sections, Section Taraxacum, is not represented in Cumbria. It contains very few British species which are known only from high Scottish mountains, but it is not totally inconceivable, though unlikely, that small relict populations may lurk in the Welsh or Lake District hills.

1. Small plants with small capitulae <3 cm; leaves usually highly dissected; inner and outer bracts often with corniculate appendages
  2. Achenes grey-brown, pyramidal cone <0.5 mm; lvs often with > 6 pairs of lateral lobes  > T. obliquum, Section 2. Obliqua
  2. Achenes usually reddish to yellowish-brown, cylindrical cone c.l mm; lvs rarely with > 6 pairs of lateral lobes    Section 1. Erythrosperma
1. Plants not as above, generally more robust and with achenes with a shorter conical cone
  3. Leaves grass-like; outer bracts broad, tightly adpressed and with a scarious border, plants of basic, wet habitats  > T. palustre, Section 3. Palustria
  3. Plants not as above
   4. Plants small but capitulae relatively large; leaves ovate to lanceolate, almost entire or with many recurved lobes, often spotted; bracts ovate and erect to adpressed; achenes (with cone) at least 5 mm; oblong; very variable plants of moist or boggy habitats  > T. faeroense, Section 4. Spectabilia
   4. Plants generally more robust and with achenes rarely more than 4 mm and then more conical
    5. Lvs usually conspicuously spotted above and hairy; bracts rarely reflexed; pollen sometimes absent; robust plants of damp, grassy habitats, often upland    Section 5. Naevosa
    5. Lvs very rarely spotted, if so, then glabrous; bracts various; pollen usually present
     6. Lvs with red or colourless petiole and midrib; upper surface of midrib lacking green and coloured streaks. If shape complex; bracts rarely erect; pollen nearly always present  Section 8. Ruderalia
     6. Lvs with coloured petiole and midrib, upper surface of midrib with interwoven streaks (use lens), lvs generally rather flat and simple in shape; bracts seldom long or reflexed; pollen sometimes absent
      7. Lf lobes usually hamate (hooked) and rather obtuse, petiole seldom either green or brilliantly purple/red; bracts arched, short, dark, often suffused purple and pruinose; pollen always present; rather weedy in habit    Section 7. Hamata
      7. Lf lobes more triangular, patent and acute; petiole often brightly coloured; pollen sometimes absent; plants of more natural, damp habitats    Section 6. Celtica


 

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Hawkweeds ~ Hieracium

The mapping/accounts page is here.

Species-accounts from A Flora of Cumbria (1997), for species which are covered therein, appear below the map. 62 species appear in A Flora of Cumbria; 138 are currently recorded.

BSBI Referee for the genus Brian Burrow has very kindly offered comments for a number of species where the taxonomy has advanced from the accounts in A Flora of Cumbria. These are attributed in the ‘Current comments’ pane as ‘[BB]’. Comments attributed as [JR], or lacking attribution, are by Jeremy Roberts. Further comments will be added in due course.



Introduction and key, A Flora of Cumbria (1997)

‘As novices, provokingly ignorant of hawkweed problems, and without a description of decolor (it is not indexed in Linton’s work and so we missed it) we ran this plant down to H. Leyi and feel encouraged. But what a liquid genus must Hieracium be if a plant can be put back into a ‘better hole’ behind fifty intervening species (see Lond. Cat.) without the ruffling of a ligule!’
Bucknall & White, BEC Rpt (1920) 5:827

No serious attempt was made during the Survey to investigate the hawkweed flora until 1985 although numerous specimens had been collected, in a rather desultory way, during the previous ten years. Since then, much additional material has been accumulated and, together with specimens seen at BM and CGE, considerably more information is now available than ever before. Preparation of this account has revealed a number of errors in the Critical Atlas, errors arising from misplaced dots, omissions and misidentifications. A particularly acute problem has been the unrealistically large number of species previously reported from some sites. Familiarity with the plants in the wild suggests that environmental variation is of more significance than is generally allowed for; it also engenders healthy caution in relying too much on leaf-spotting. For all its undoubted shortcomings this account at least sets out the current position and indicates the nature of the remaining unsolved problems. Considerable help was received during the early years of this study from P.D. Sell and J. Bevan. and latterly from D. McCosh, who has seen the bulk of the herbarium material. Ultimate responsibility for the taxonomic conclusions must, however, rest with the author.
As with Rubus, earlier published accounts, for example Ley & Linton (1905) as well as the previous Floras, pose serious problems of interpretation. This account is therefore based entirely on Survey material and herbarium specimens. With the exception of the rarer species, records prior to the Survey ones are only given where they are from additional 10 km squares.
The account lists 62 species which are considered to occur or to have occurred in the county. Although seven fewer than are shown in the Critical Atlas, this number still leaves Cumbria with by far the largest hawkweed flora of any county south of the Scottish Highlands. Much remains to be done. There is at least one possible new species which requires further study and many unvisited crags and gullies still beckon. The upland hawkweeds have undoubtedly declined considerably this century, chiefly as a consequence of ever-increasing sheep stocking, but it is encouraging that the Survey rediscovered the elusive Hieracium itunense and, briefly, H. mirandum, failing only with H. subintegrifolium. These last two species should now be considered extinct.

The following key is an attempt to facilitate identification of most of the species seen during the Survey.

1. Stem with more than 5 stem lvs; basal rosette usually absent at flowering
  2. Involucral bracts densely glandular, lvs strongly amplexicaul: > prenanthoides
  2. Involucral bracts eglandular or with sparse glandular hairs, or microglands
   3. At least the lower lvs with a tapering base, upper lvs with a rounded but not amplexicaul base
    4. Lvs narrow, with recurved margins, toothed; inner inv. bracts glabrous: > umbellatum
    4. Lvs ovate-lanceolate, inv. bracts rarely glabrous
     5. Lvs entire or weakly toothed
      6. Inv. bracts with very few glandular hairs; peduncles lacking long hairs: > vagum
      6. Inv. bracts with many microglands and long simple hairs: > sabaudum
     5. Lvs distinctly toothed
      7. Infl. of many heads, dense, subumbellate: > salticola
      7. Heads usually <5, if more, infl. elongate
       8. Lvs spotted: > sparsifolium
       8. Lvs not spotted
        9. Basal rosette of lvs present at time of flowering; inv. bracts + glabrous: > lissolepium
        9.Basal rosette absent at flowering; inv. bracts hairy
         10. Inv. bracts with long, simple hairs only: > placerophylloides
         10. Inv. bracts with glandular and simple hairs: > eboracense
   3. Base of upper lvs semi-amplexicaul
    11. Styles yellow: > latobrigorum
    11. Styles dark
     12. Inv. bracts with mainly simple hairs: > strictiforme
     12. Inv. bracts with rather few simple and glandular hairs: > subcrocatum
1. Stem with less than 6 lvs; basal rosette present when flowering
 13. Inv. bracts with conspicuous long simple hairs
  14. Heads large, rarely solitary
   5. Lvs with stellate hairs on upper surface: > flocculosum
    15. Lvs without stellate hairs on upper surface
     16. Stem leaf petiolate; inv. bracts with conspicuous stellate hairs: >  ampliatum
     16. Stem leaf sessile; inv. bracts without conspicuous stellate hairs: > anglicum
  14. Heads solitary; lvs and inv. bracts with long, simple hairs
    17. Lvs entire; heads shaggy with long white hairs: > holosericeum
    17. Lvs slightly toothed; heads not shaggy, hairs dark: > subgracilentipes
 13. Inv. bracts lacking conspicuous long simple hairs
  18. Inv. bracts with long, flexuous glandular hairs only; lvs spotted: > clovense
  18. Not as above
   19. Lvs often glaucous; heads medium to large, usually few; styles usually yellow
   20. Stem lvs 2-4; lvs rough above with scattered short hairs: > orimeles
    20. Stem lvs 1 or 2; lvs glabrous above
     21. Lvs spotted
      22. Robust plant; lvs often broadly ovate; heads rather large: > hypochaeroides
      22. Less robust; lvs lanceolate to oblong-lanceolate; heads medium
       23. Lf base subtruncate; lvs narrowly ovate, strongly spotted: > saxorum
       23. Lf base narrowed; lvs oblong-lanceolate, somewhat obtuse, lightly spotted: > sommerfeltii
     21. Lvs not spotted
      24. Lvs strongly toothed: > vagense
      24. Lvs entire or weakly toothed
       25. Lvs narrowly lanceolate or elliptic, glaucous; stem lf narrow, patent: > argenteum
       25. Not as above
        26. Inner inv. bracts obtuse, tips often flushed pink: > caledonicum
        26. Inner inv. bracts acute, tips not pink
         27. Lvs with long setose hairs on margin and both surfaces: > lasiophyllum
         27. Upper leaf surface glabrous
          28. Lvs with prominent, neat, short setaceous teeth; inv. bracts long and pointed: > dicella
          28. Not as above
           29. Lvs glaucous; inv. bracts with conspicuous white margin of stellate hairs: > decolor
           29. Lvs rarely glaucous; inv. bracts without conspicuous white margin
            30. Lvs with stellate hairs beneath: > stenopholidium
            30. Lvs without stellate hairs beneath: > leyi
19. Lvs rarely glaucous; heads small to medium; styles usually dark
  31. Stem lvs 3 or more; peduncles and inv. bracts with glandular hairs
   32. Inv. bracts with dense stellate hairs: > acuminatum
    32. Inv. bracts with few if any stellate hairs
     33. Lvs ovate; inv. bracts usually with glandular hairs only: > diaphanum
     33. Lvs ovate-lanceolate; inv. bracts and peduncles with a few simple hairs > diaphanoides
  31. Stem lvs usually 1 or 2
    34. Inv. bracts with short, black glandular hairs only; stem lf 1
     35. Lvs glabrous, entire, often purplish below: > pellucidum
     35. Lvs not as above
      36. Lvs softly hairy, strongly toothed, the lower often deflexed: > grandidens
      36. Lvs subentire to shortly toothed
       37. Styles yellowish; lvs subentire: > sublepistoides
       37. Styles fuscous or dark; lvs often large and somewhat toothed at the base: > subcrassum
    34. Inv. bracts with simple and usually some glandular hairs
     38. Lvs spotted
      39. Inv. bracts with long white simple hairs, few glandular hairs, and many stellate hairs: > maculoides/maculosum
     39. Inv. bracts and peduncles conspicuously glandular hairy

      40. Peduncles with dense stellate hairs and conspicuous simple ones: > scotostictum
      40. Peduncles with few stellate or simple hairs: > glanduliceps
     38. Lvs not spotted
      41. Inv. bracts with many glandular hairs
       42. Glandular hairs rather long and flexuous
        43. Lvs narrow, elliptic; heads small: > duriceps
        43. Lvs oblong-lanceolate, often strongly toothed at the truncate base heads medium: > pseudostenstroemii
      42. Glandular hairs short
       44. Glandular hairs pale; stem leaf broadly triangular: > oistophyllum
       44. Glandular hairs dark; stem leaf narrow
        45. Lvs oblong, with spreading or deflexed teeth at the base; panicle lax; heads with wide base: > auratiflorum
        45. Lvs more pointed, weakly toothed at base; panicle rather narrow; heads narrowed to base: > crebridentiforme
    41. Inv. bracts not conspicuously glandular hairy
     46. Lvs small, boat-shaped with stellate hairs on upper surface: > cymbifolium
     46. Lvs not boat-shaped, lacking stellate hairs above
      47. Older lvs broad, obtuse, with a subtruncate base; panicle often umbellate: > silvaticoides
      47. Lvs not as above
       48. Inv. bracts with short, crisp simple hairs: > vulgatum
       48. Inv. bracts with long white, simple hairs
        49. Inv. bracts without glandular hairs; heads medium: > cravoniense
        49. Inv. bracts with glandular hairs; heads large
         50. Inv. bracts with glandular hairs in upper half; stem leaf rarely strongly toothed: > rhomboides
         50. Inv. bracts with glandular hairs confined to lower half; stem leaf often strongly toothed: > rubiginosum

 

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These species-accounts, taken directly from A Flora of Cumbria (1997), are of historical interest. The records date mainly from the nineteen and early twentieth century, and there have been no more recent Cumbrian occurrences of the species. The BSBI Distribution Database currently holds no Cumbrian data for them.



Adonis annua L.    Pheasant’s-eye
A rare and decreasing species of southern and south-eastern England recorded by Hodgson as a garden weed at Aspatria (1.4) and in a flax field at Flimby (0.3).
    R     (C)

Amelanchier ovalis Medikus
A Continental species recorded in 1927 by W. Keble Martin from a crag above Longrigg Brow (BEC Rpt (1928) 8:397).
    (W)

Amsinckia lycopsoides (Lehm.) Lehm.
A yellow-flowered North American species known only from Silloth (1.5, CLE, conf. J.M. Mullin), where it was collected by J. Leitch in 1889.

Anchusa azurea Miller
A species of southern Europe collected from gravel beds by the River Eden at Grinsdale, Carlisle in 1902 (3.5, T.S. Johnstone, CLE).

Anchusa undulata L.
A Mediterranean plant collected with the previous species at Grinsdale. Carlisle (3.5, T.S. Johnstone, CLE) in 1902.

Anisantha madritensis (L.) Nevski   Bromus madritensis L. 
A widespread grass of southern and western Europe found at Silloth (1.5, CLE) by E.J. Glaister in 1877 and J. Leitch in 1882.
    R     (C)

Anthriscus cerefolium (L.) Hoffm.
The only records are that given by Baker from a lane near Patterdale church (3.1, 1864) and a slightly later one from Silloth (1.5, R. Wood, 1880, CLE).

Artemisia ludoviciana Nuttall
A North American species found by W.H. Pearsall in 1912 at Dalton-in-Furness (2.7, BEC Rpt (1913) 4:16).

Artemisia scoparia Waldst. & Kit.
Noted by Hodgson in the early 1890s at the Derwent Tinplate works, Workington (9.2) and at Maryport (0.3). It is a native of central and eastern Europe.

Asperugo procumbens L.    Madwort
A widespread Continental species recorded by Hodgson from Maryport (0.3), Silloth (1.5, J. Leitch, 1891, CLE) and Kirkbride (2.5) at the end of the 19th century.

Asperula arvensis L.
A Continental species listed by Hodgson from Camerton (0.3) and Silloth (1.5, J. Leitch, 1889, CLE) and seen by H. Britten in 1926 at Beck Mill, Skirwith (6.3, BEC Rpt (1927) 8:116).

Avena strigosa Schreber
The only records for this uncommon and decreasing cornfield weed are the 19th century ones cited by Hodgson from St Bees (9.1, R. Wood, 1879, CLE) and Workington (9.2), a specimen from Silloth docks (1.5, J. Leitch, 1884, CLE) and Baker’s from Kirkby Lonsdale (6.7s), where it was said to be frequent in cornfields.

Berberis sp.
A non-flowering garden hybrid occurs extensively in woodland below the Long Meg mines at Great Salkeld (56.36, RWMC, 1991, LANC) and by a streamside south of Cartmel Fell (40.84s, CEW, 1995, LANC).

Berteroa incana (L.) DC.
Listed by Hodgson from the Derwent Tinplate Works, Workington (9.2), Maryport and Flimby (0.3) and Silloth (1.5, J. Leitch, 1889, BM, CLE), and by Handley (1898) from near Tebay (6.0). In 1913 it was found by W.H. Pearsall at Barrow-in-Furness docks (1.6s/2.6s, BM, BEC Rpt (1914) 3:402) and there are additional Cumberland records from by the River Eden at Great Salkeld (5.3, H. Britten, 1900-1908) and from Silloth where it was seen by C.W. Muirhead from 1934 (PLYP) until 1938.
This species is widespread in Europe although native only in the centre and east.

Bivonaea lutea (Biv.) DC.
A native of Sicily collected by Hodgson at Silloth (1.5) in 1890.

Bromus arvensis L.
Hodgson gives records from Gilgarran (0.2) and Workington (9.2); there is one from Silloth (1.5, J. Leitch, I890, CLE) and later ones from Thwaites, near Millom (2.8, M. Cross, 1907), Seascale (0.0, R.H. Williamson, 1927, CLE). Buttermere (1.1, G.A.K. Hervey, 1922) and Gilsland (6.6, G.A.K. Hervey, 1945, v.c.67/70). The Atlas shows post-1930 records for the Seascale (0.0) and Millom (1.8) squares and there are also field records made during the 1950s by the Barrow-in-Furness N.H.S. from the Broughton-in-Furness square (2.8).
This southern species has declined considerably in Britain during the present century.

Bromus japonicus Thunb. ex Murray
Material of this eastern and central European species in CLE and collected at Silloth (1.5) by E.J. Glaister in 1877 and by J. Leitch in 1882 has been identified by P.M. Smith (Watsonia (1986) 16:197) as this species.

Campanula patula L.
A declining species of southern and central England known in Cumbria only from Hodgson’s record from Ullock Moss, Keswick (2.2) and the inclusion of v.c.69 by Druce (1932) in his Comital Flora.

Carduus crispus × nutans   Carduus × stangii H.Buek ex Nyman 
The only record of this hybrid is a specimen collected by J. Leitch at Silloth docks (1.5, CLE) in 1882. Both the parent species used to occur in the area but there are no Survey records from there. It is surprising that the hybrid has not been reported from the upper Eden valley where the parents are frequent.

Carthamus lanatus L.
A Continental species collected at Silloth in 1891 (1.5, J. Leitch, CLE).

Centaurea atropurpurea Waldst. & Kit.
A native of the Balkans, this, or possibly Centaurea kotskyanaHeuffel ex Koch, is probably the plant listed by Hodgson as Centaurea calocephala and found on the Maryport (0.3) ballast tips in 1887.

Centaurea calcitrapa L.    Star thistle
A southern species known in Cumbria only from the 19th century records cited by Hodgson from the shore at Workington (9.2) and at Silloth (1.5), and a slightly later one from the gravel of the River Eden at Grinsdale. Carlisle (3.5, T.S. Johnstone, 1902, CLE).
    R     (C)

Centaurea melitensis L.
A southern European species listed by Hodgson from Workington (9.2), Egremont (0.1), Maryport (0.3), Silloth (1.5, J. Leitch, 1889, CLE) and Floshgate, Ullswater (4.2).

Cerinthe minor L.
A Continental species recorded in 1902 from the gravel beds of the River Eden at Grinsdale (3.5, T.S. Johnstone, CLE).

Chenopodium capitatum (L.) Asch.
Known only from a collection from Silloth (1.5, CLE, det. J.M. Mullin) where it was seen by J. Leitch from 1890 to 1892.

Chenopodium hybridum L.
A rare southern species recorded in Cumbria only once, in 1951, from a Carlisle garden (3.5, D. Stewart, CLE, det. J.M. Mullin).

Chenopodium opulifolium Schrader ex Koch & Ziz
A rare alien known only from Hodgson’s records from the Derwent Tinplate Works, Workington (9.2) and Maryport (0.3).

Chorispora syriaca Boiss.
An extremely rare alien collected at Silloth in 1889 and 1890 (1.5, J. Leitch, CLE).

Conringia orientalis (L.) Dumort.
Listed by Hodgson from the usual alien hunting grounds at Workington (9.2), Maryport (0.3) and Silloth (1.5, E.J. Glaister, 1877, CLE). and by Wilson from near Maulds Meaburn (6.1). There are later Cumberland records from the River Eden at Etterby (3.5, T.S. Johnstone, 1902), Brampton (5.6, H. Britten, 1900-1908), Gamblesby (6.3, W.W. Mason, 1918). Thwaites, Millom (1.8, M. Cross, 1929) and Edenhall, Penrith (5.3, T.R. Gambier-Parry, 1923, BEC Rpt (1924) 7:168). The last record of this central and eastern European species was from Silloth in 1950 (R.C.L. Howitt, CLE).

Consolida ajacis (L.) Schur   (Consolida ambigua auct.)    Larkspur
A Mediterranean species listed by Hodgson as a cornfield weed at Dean, near Cockermouth (1.2), Maryport (0.3) and Silloth (1.5, J. Leitch, 1883, CLE) and from the Duddon woods (1.8/1.9). It was also seen in 1872 at Grune Point (1.5, J. Leitch, CLE) and in 1932 at Thwaites, near Millom (1.8, M. Cross).

Consolida regalis Gray
A widespread Continental species reported by Hodgson from Silloth (1.5, J. Leitch, 1889, 1890, CLE).

Crambe cordifolia Steven
A single plant was found in 1990 in coastal turf at East Cote, Silloth (10.54, REG, LANC). This is the first record north of the Midlands for this rare Russian casual.
    1     C

Crepis nicaeensis Balbis
A Mediterranean plant once found in a field between Seatoller and Seathwaite, Borrowdale (2.1, I. Adams, BEC Rpt (1920) 5:664).

Crocosmia paniculata (Klatt) Goldblatt
Found in 1992 well established in Muncaster Park (08.94, MMG, LANC, Watsonia (1993) 19:295), and by A. Cannell by the old railway at Harrington (24.98, 1994) and at Raisbeck (64.06, 1993).
    3     WC

Cuscuta epilinum Weihe
A widespread Continental species known only from the record cited by Hodgson from Westward, Wigton (2.4) and a later one from Melmerby (6.3, W.W. Mason, 1928, BEC Rpt (1929) 8:748).

Cynosurus echinatus L.
The only localities for this southern, weedy alien grass are the three given by Hodgson from Workington (9.2). Penrith (5.2/5.3) and near Silloth (1.5, E.J. Glaister, 1889, CLE), where it was later seen by C.W. Muirhead in 1943 (CLE), and the ones from ‘Brackenthwaite’ (1.2/2.4, R. Wood, 1878-9), Dalton-in-Furness (2.7, D. Lumb, 1913, BEC Rpt (1914) 3:397) and Kirkby Lonsdale (6.7s, C.G. Trapnell, 1923, BEC Rpt (1924) 7:222).

Echium italicum L.
A southern European species found on the gravel beds of the River Eden at Grinsdale, Carlisle in 1902 (3.5, T.S. Johnstone, CLE).

Eruca vesicaria (L.) Cav. subsp. vesicaria
A plant of Spain and North Africa collected by J. Leitch at Silloth in 1887 (1.5, CLE, BSBI News  (1991) 58:38). This is the first and only British record of this subspecies.

Euphorbia waldsteinii × cyparissias   Euphorbia × gayeri Boros & Soó 
The only record is from Egremont (0.1, J. Adair, BM, LANC, YRK, del. A.R.-Smith), where it was collected during the 1890s. This is presumably the plant referred to by Hodgson under Euphorbia cyparissias. It may be the first British and only English record.

Gastridium ventricosum (Gouan) Schinz & Thell.
This distinctive grass is native only in the southern half of England and Wales where it has decreased considerably this century. The only Cumbrian record is Hodgson’s from the Derwent Tinplate Works, Workington (9.2, J. Hodgson, 1889, CLE).

Geranium collinum Stephan ex Willd.
A very rare alien and native of southern Russia and Romania collected in a meadow at Caldbeck in 1949 (3.3, Mrs Ashridge, det. A.J. Wilmott, P.F. Yeo, CLE).

Glaucium corniculatum (L.) Rudolph
A southern European species listed by Hodgson from the Derwent Tinplate Works, Workington (9.2) and Silloth (1.5).

Grindelia squarrosa (Pursh) Dunel
A rare North American casual collected at Silloth in 1889 (1.5, J. Leitch, CLE).

Gypsophila pilosa Hudson
An Asiatic species found on the gravel beds of the River Eden at Grinsdale, Carlisle in 1901 (3.5, T.S. Johnstone, CLE).

Hemizonia kelloggii E. Greene
A western North American weed recorded once from Silloth (1.5, J. Leitch, 1889, CLE).

Hemizonia pungens Toney & A. Gray
A western North American plant seen in 1889 and 1890 at Silloth (1.5, J. Leitch, CLE) and again in 1920 (C. Waterfall, BEC Rpt (1921) 6:129).

Heracleum canescens Lindl.
A native of the Himalayas found by Hodgson at Silloth docks in 1869.

Hypecoum aequilobum Viv.
A North African species found at Silloth saltworks in 1890 (1.5, J. Leitch, CLE).

Lactuca tatarica (L.) C. Meyer
An eastern European species recorded by A.W. Westrup on waste land by the docks on Walney Island (1.6s) in 1952.

Lamium confertum Fries  Lamium molucellifolium auct.    Northern Dead-nettle
A northern species reported by Handley (1898) from the Sedbergh area apparently having been introduced with corn. There is an Atlas record from the Arnside square (4.7s. v.c.60/69).

Lamium garganicum L.
A southern European species collected in 1937 outside an abandoned farmhouse near Haweswater (4.1/5.1, Mrs Pemberton-Pigott, det. J.F. Chapple & A.J. Wilmott, BEC Rpt (1938) 11:498).

Lappula squarrosa (Retz.) Dumort.
A widespread Continental species known only from the late-19th century records cited by Hodgson from the ballast-tips of Workington (9.2), Maryport (0.3) and Silloth (1.5, J. Leitch, 1883, 1889, 1890, CLE) and a collection from the gravel beds of the River Eden at Grinsdale, Carlisle (3.5, T.S. Johnstone, 1901, CLE (Thomson 1902)).

Lathyrus sativus L.
A species of southern and south-eastern Europe found by Hodgson on the Maryport ballast tips (0.3) in 1894.

Lathyrus sphaericus Retz.
This Continental species was recorded by Hodgson (p.93) by the River Derwent just above Workington (0.2) in 1896.

Lepidium densiflorum Schrader
A widely naturalised North American species seen by A.W. Trethewy at Silloth in 1919 (1.5, BEC Rpt (1920) 5:640) and by A.B. Cobbe on Walney Island in 1924 (BEC Rpt (1925) 7:558).

Lithospermum purpurocaeruleum L.    Purple Gromwell
A handsome species, native in Britain only in the south and known in Cumbria only from the record given by Hodgson from a Workington garden (9.2) and a later one from Metal Bridge, north of Carlisle (3.6, J. Parkin, 1935).
    R     (C)

Lolium remotum Schrank
This central European grass is known only from the 19th century records given by Hodgson: Workington (9.2), Leegate (1.4, E.J. Glaister, 1877, CLE) and Westward, Wigton (2.4, R. Wood, 1881, CLE), Maryport (0.3) and Silloth (1.5) and a more recent one from near Abbeytown (1.5, C.W. Muirhead, 1951, CLE).

Lotus angustissimus L.
Of the Cumberland records cited by Baker, Hodgson repeats only his own, from the railway cutting near Bullgill Station (0.3) where it appeared after the opening of the line but became extinct c.1886. Baker’s other records he includes under Lotus glaber.
This species is now restricted in Britain to the coasts of south-west England and Kent.
    R     (C)

Madia sativa Molina
An annual species of western North America and Chile listed by Hodgson as having been collected by him at Floshgate, Ullswater (4.2, 1882) and by J. Leitch at Silloth (1.5, 1889, CLE).

Malcolmia crenulata Boiss.
Found at Silloth by J. Leitch in 1890 (1.5, CLE, BSBI News (1991) 58:38). This is the only substantiated British record for this casual.

Malva parviflora L.
A Mediterranean species listed by Hodgson from Silloth (10.52, J. Leitch, 1889, CLE), where it was later collected by C.W. Muirhead (c.1940, CLE).

Malva pusilla Smith
An uncommon Continental species listed by Hodgson from Silloth (10.52, J. Leitch, 1889, CLE) where it was growing with Malva parviflora and Malva neglecta.

Malva setigera K.F.Schimp. & Spenn.   Althaea hirsuta L.   Rough Mallow
Recorded by Hodgson from Silloth (1.5, E.J. Glaister, 1887, CLE), probably the northernmost record in Britain.

Medicago minima (L.) Bartal.
The only records are from Silloth (1.5), where it was seen by Hodgson and in 1935 by J. Parkin, and Seascale (0.0, R. Hellon, 1920, BRC Rpt (1921) 6:118). It was thought to have drifted ashore at the latter site on the carcasses of sheep or rabbits from a torpedoed vessel!
This species is native in Britain only in south-east England.
    S     (C)

Medicago soleirolii Duby
A Crimean species collected at Silloth (1.5) by J. Leitch in 1889 (CLE).

Melampyrum cristatum L.    Crested Cow-wheat
Reported by Hodgson as having been collected at Silloth (1.5) in 1875. This distinctive and beautiful south-eastern species can hardly have been misidentified; it may, perhaps, have been introduced with corn.
    S     (C)

Mentha requienii Benth.    Corsican mint
A diminutive and very aromatic mint of Corsica and Sardinia collected in 1890 by Hodgson at the Derwent Tinplate Works cinder tip at Workington (9.2).

Moenchia erecta (L.) Gaertner, Mayer & Scherb.
The only records are those given by Baker from St Bees (9.1) and Coulderton (9.0), one in Wilson, attributed to Baker, from Grange-over-Sands (4.7s) and a collection from Silloth (1.5, E.J. Glaister, 1876, CLE).
These sites are at the northern limit of this species’ range on the west coast of Britain.

Moricandia arvensis (L.) DC.
A Mediterranean casual found at Silloth in 1887 and 1919 (1.5, J. Leitch, CLE; A.W. Trethewy, CLE, BEC Rpt (1920) 5:640, BSBI News(1991) 58:38). There are only about six British records for this species.

Neslia paniculata (L.) Desv.
A central and southern European species reported by Hodgson from Maryport (0.3) and Silloth (1.5, J. Leitch, CLE), where it was later seen by C.W. Muirhead in 1939 (CLE). It was also reported in 1913 by D. Lumb from Dalton-in-Furness (2.7, BEC Rpt (1914) 3:403).
The Silloth plants are of Neslia paniculata sensu stricto (BSBI News(1991) 58:37).

Oenothera sp.
A specimen collected at Silloth (1.5, J. Leitch, CLE) in 1890 and labelled ‘Oenothera tenella’ has been referred by J.C. Bowra to Series Devriesia.

Ononis reclinata L.    Small restharrow
There is a single record from Seascale (0.0, J. Curwen, CLE) where it was collected c.1890. This species is now restricted in Britain to the Channel Islands, Devon, Wales and the Mull of Galloway.
    R     (C)

Orlaya grandiflora (L.) Hoffm.
The only record for this uncommon alien is from Silloth (1.5, W. W. Mason, 1930).
This species has a wide distribution on the Continent from the Mediterranean northwards to the English Channel.

Ornithogalum nutans L.
A native of the south-eastern Balkans listed, somewhat sceptically, by Hodgson from Isel Woods, near Cockermouth (1.3). The only subsequent records are from Great Salkeld (5.3, H. Britten, 1908) and near Gosforth (0.0, M. Cross, 1940).

Petrorhagia nanteuilii (Burnat) P. Ball & Heyw.
A rare British casual collected by C.W. Muirhead at Silloth in 1931 (1.5, PLYP).

Phacelia cf. ciliata Benth.
A North American species recorded from Silloth (1.5, J. Leitch, 1889, 1890, CLE; W. Muirhead, 1930, CLE, all det. E.J. Clement; H. Stewart, 1930, BM).

Photinia davidiana (Decne.) Cardot  (Stranvaesia davidiana Decne ) 
Known only from a single bush, probably planted, in Grubbins Wood, Arnside (44.78s, MB, 1975).
    1     W

Phyllostachys sp.
A single clump was found in estate woodland at Heversham (48.84s, MB, c. 1980; LANC) but lacking the young culms necessary for identification.
    1     W

Plantago arenaria Waldst. & Kit.
A Continental species known only from Hodgson’s records from Workington (9.2), Maryport (0.3) and Silloth saltworks (1.5, J. Leitch, 1889, CLE), and one from the docks at Barrow-in-Furness in 1913 (1.6/2.6s, W.H. Pearsall, BEC Rpt (1914) 3:402).

Polygonum maritimum L.    Sea knotweed
Seen at Silloth docks (1.5) by Hodgson and others from 1890 to 1896, and in 1897 on ballast at Maryport (0.3, Hodgson, (1899). This rare coastal plant has been recorded from several counties in the south of England but is now known only from Cornwall and Sussex.
    R     (C)

Ranunculus cf. hederaceus × peltatus
A curious plant with distinctive, acute-lobed leaves was collected by W.H. Pearsall in 1913 from a peaty drain close to the River Leven at Haverthwaite (5.8s, YRK). It has been tentatively identified by S.D. Webster as this hybrid. Material was distributed by Pearsall (BEC Rpt not traced). The cutting appended to the sheet indicates general agreement that Ranunculus peltatus was one of the parents and E.S. Marshall surmised that R. omiophyllus might be the other. Cook (in Stace 1975) gives no record for the R. hederaceus hybrid and only one for that involving R. omiophyllus.

Ranunculus parviflorus L.
The only record is that given by Hodgson for Silloth docks (1.5, J. Leitch, E.J. Glaister, 1878, CLE), although Druce (1932) lists it for v.c.69 and Wilson comments that it occurs in Furness. The Silloth record is the most northerly in Britain.
    S     (FC)

Rosa rubiginosa × sherardii    Rosa × suberecta (J. Woods) Ley 
Known only from Hartsop (4.1, A. Ley, CGE, det. G.G. Graham) where it was collected in 1910.

Salix amygdaloides Anderss.
A North American willow collected at Wetheral in 1950 (4.5, C.W. Muirhead, PLYP, det. Meikle). Unfortunately no further information is known about the location or habitat.

Salvia viridis L.
A southern European annual collected on a tip at Silloth in 1889 and 1890 (1.5, J. Leitch, CLE).

Sideritis montana L.
A southern European species found at Silloth in 1889 (1.5, J. Leitch, CLE).

Silene conica L.
Hodgson gives two localities for this south-eastern species, the Derwent Tinplate Works, Workington (9.2) and Silloth (1.5, J. Leitch, 1889, CLE). The Atlas record for the Arnside square (4.7s) is from v.c.60.
    S     (C)

Silene csereii Baumg.
A south-east European species found by D. Lumb at Askam-in-Furness ironworks in 1915 (2.7, YRK, BEC Rpt (1916) 9:545).

Silene dichotonia Ehrh.
An eastern European species listed by Hodgson (pp.47, 380) as growing with Vaccaria hispanica at the Derwent Tinplate Works, Workington (9.2). There are also records from Silloth docks (1.5, J. Leitch, 1883, CLE, 1891).

Silene inaperta L.
A species of the western Mediterranean known only from Hodgson’s records from the Derwent Tinplate Works, Workington (9.2).

Sisymbrium irio L.    London rocket
Recorded by Hodgson from Cockermouth Castle (1.3), Silloth (1.5) and High Head Castle, Ivegill (4.4). The only other records are from Silloth docks (N.W. Simpson, 1949) and the valley of the River Roe (3.4, J. Curwen, c.1890s, CLE), although this may refer to High Head Castle.
    R     (C)

Trifolium aureum Pollich
Recorded by Baker as a field weed at Witherslack (4.8s) and Plumpton, Ulverston (3.7s), by E.J. Glaister at Black Dyke, Silloth (1.5, 1878, CLE) and by W.W. Mason at Melmerby (6.3, 1913-1916).
This clover is not native in Britain although widespread on the Continent.

Trifolium echinatum M. Bieb.
Hodgson comments, under Trifolium maritimum, that he collected this Balkan species at Floshgate, Ullswater (4.2) in 1882.

Trifolium lappaceum L .
A southern European species recorded by Hodgson from the Derwent Tinplate Works, Workington (9.2) in 1890 and collected in 1910 at Stainton, Carlisle (3.5, T.S. Johnstone, CLE).

Trifolium retusum L.
A clover of central and southern Europe seen at Silloth docks in 1891 and 1892 (1.5, J. Leitch, CLE).

Trifolium squamosum L.
A maritime clover of southern Britain listed with reservation by Hodgson from the shore at Braystones (0.0). However, there is a later substantiated record from Stainton Cross, Carlisle (3.5, T. S. Johnstone, 1910, CLE).
    S     (C)

Trifolium subterraneum L.    Subterranean clover
A species of southern and south-eastern England recorded from Grune Point (1.5, E.J. Glaister, CLE) in 1900.

Trigonella caerulea (L.) Ser.
A Continental fodder plant found on the gravel beds of the River Eden below Carlisle in 1902 (3.5, T.S. Johnstone, CLE).

Trigonella corniculata (L.) L.
A Mediterranean species known only from Hodgson’s 1889 record from the Derwent Tinplate works, Workington (9.2).

Trigonella foenum-graecum L.    Fenugreek
A fodder plant found at Silloth docks in 1891 (1.5, J. Leitch, CLE).

Trigonella monspeliaca L.
A species of southern and central Europe found at Silloth in 1889 (1.5, J. Leitch, CLE).

Trigonella polyceratia  L.
An Iberian species found by Hodgson in abundance at the Derwent Tinplate Works, Workington (9.2) in 1889 and 1890.

Vaccinium macrocarpon Aiton    American cranberry
This large-fruited North American cranberry was found in 1943 growing in Sphagnum by a small tarn between Nethertown and Braystones (9.0, C.D. Pigott; BM, CLE, BEC Rpt (1946) 12:736) where it was last seen in 1945.

Vicia bithynica (L.) L.
The only record for this southern species is that given by Wilson from Windermere (4.9, M. Wilkinson).
    S     (W)

Wahlenbergia hederacea (L.) Reichb.    Ivy-leaved bellflower
This attractive and delicate bellflower was reported by W.H. Pearsall from both sides of a rill at Winster over the boundary line of North Lancashire, so that it is in both v.c.69 and v.c.69b (4.9, 1925, BEC Rpt (1926) 7:883). No herbarium specimens are known and the site has never been refound. There is another record, which is best treated as doubtful, of a find in the Coniston Fells (2.9) made during the B.S.B.I. field meeting in 1951.
The only extant sites in north-west England are in west Durham and the Forest of Bowland.

Xanthium spinosum L.    Spiny cocklebur
A cosmopolitan weed and native of South America reported by Hodgson as having been seen at Silloth docks (1.5, R. Wood, 1884, CLE) several times during the last half of the 19th century.


In development! Illustrations and current comments are being prepared and will be uploaded in batches.

Update, 4 July 2024: hectad records in this download of distribution data are those which are fully within the Cumbria county boundary – hence a boundary ‘gap’ you may notice. We are awaiting a fresh download of data from BSBI Database, to include hectad records where these spill across the county boundary. There are also some thirty thousand (!) iRecord entries already confirmed by us, and which we now hope to transfer across to the main database workspace in time for them to be included on our maps in the next download.

Your first visit? – check out the Guide next, and perhaps the other tabs above, before selecting the ‘MAIN page’ tab to go the maps/species-accounts page.

Guide: to ‘MAIN page’ maps/species-accounts
For clarity: hectad is a 10×10km Ordnance Survey square, tetrad is a 2×2km square, and monad is a 1×1km square. A few older records are at quadrant scale, 5×5km. (Note: the maps here using BSBI map data are to monad scale at best. If you are seeking more precise information, see ‘Resolution’ at the bottom of the page.)
Three input boxes:
On any device (but especially on mobiles!) select Box 3. The keypad raises on mobiles. Start to type. The site cleverly decides between a scientific or a vernacular name, and shows, in Box 1 (scientific) or Box 2 (vernacular), the alphabetic first name that matches your typing so far. Click the box displaying the name, or tap the up/down arrows, to show the full list of matches, and select from that. Typing further obviously shortens the list until the name you seek appears, along with its map/account.


Alternatively…
A: on big screens with keyboard, select either of the first two Boxes: 1 (scientific) or 2 (vernacular). Full lists of Cumbrian species appear.
Then either – scroll to the name you seek and select, when its species-map/account appears below, or – simply start to type the name over the list (nb: without pause! – if you pause, you lose!): now the first name matching your typing is highlighted at the bottom. Type more to reduce the list further, or it may be easier to scroll to the one you seek. In large genera, e.g. Juncus, it is quicker to type beyond the genus into the specific names.
B: On mobile devices, tap either of Boxes 1 or 2, then scroll, and select. Scrolling can be tedious on mobile, although there is a narrow and short-lasting scrollbar that you might with some practice be able to pick up and drag, when it is very quick.

No name matches? If not your spelling or typos, probably a name-change. Go to Plant Atlas 2020 and put the name you seek into the search box: the superseded name will be recognised, and its current name displayed.

When you open the drop-down list in Box 1, note especially the top two items ‘All species’ and ‘All records’. These are extremely useful! [nb: these may take some time to load for the first time (hence the “Please wait” message), but are more rapid on repeat.]
When ‘All species’ has loaded, check/uncheck the checkboxes to select any combination of hectad, tetrad, monad or quadrant to show or be hidden.
pastedGraphic.pngSelect one square of interest to bring a popup with the number of species and the year-range of the records. Scroll down, to find the species recorded!
(You can drag-select and copy-and-paste from this list across to a text-editor. Convert to an actual list using ‘Find-and-replace’ : search for “ | ”  and replace by a line-feed or return character appropriate for your system.)
In ‘All records’, select the hectad, tetrad or monad scale you want, and select a square to see the number of records and year-range in the popup. (The latter is a very useful indication of how recent, or not, is the information for that square.) Note that, for hectad or tetrad squares, the number of records displayed is for records at that scale, and does not include records at the finer monad scale (hence tetrad NY45S reports 414 records, whilst monad NY4654, one of the four monads within that tetrad, reports 700 records).

Mapping   With an individual species, use the checkboxes to select which scale of squares are shown. Select a square at any scale to find the number of records of the species and the year or year-range.pastedGraphic_1.pngAs you zoom in on the map, the resolution of the underlying map display increases. (If the ‘grid’ checkbox is selected, a one-kilometre grid appears beyond a certain zoom-level.)
The ceremonial boundary of Cumbria is indicated in black. The internal boundaries of Vice-county 69: Westmorland (to the southeast) and of Vice-county 70: Cumberland (to the northwest) are indicated in blue. Sedbergh parish, actually part of Vice-county 65: North-west Yorkshire, is in the southeasternmost portion of Cumbria.

Year-ranges   The recording survey for A Flora of Cumbria (see ‘Back-story’ below) covered the years 1974–1997. Years 1998–9 were something of a break in recording, after the intense years of the Flora survey; these years have been appended to ‘the Flora years’, hence the range 1974–1999.The ranges 2000–2019 and 2020–present are the years of the previous and current recording cycles of the BSBI. In general terms, if ‘tetrads’ only is selected the map will show (within a close approximation) the survey results from the Flora, in blue. Tetrad was the scale used for much of the recording in those years. Selecting ‘monads’ will show, in the great majority of cases, the two more recent year-ranges, in red or green, as the change from tetrad- to monad-recording was introduced through the 2000–2019 period. NB: where there are records straddling several year-ranges, the tint of the resultant square (of whatever scale) reflects only the most recent range. 

Illustrations   These are being collected at the time of writing and will be loaded in batches going forward. Where there is an illustration, the button(s) at lower left indicate how many images are available. Click/tap/swipe as appropriate to cycle through them. The small ‘four arrows’ icon at the lower right expands the image to full-screen. ‘Escape’ to return. 

Species-accounts   [To see what the species-pages should look like when completed, follow this link to Lathyrus linifolius.]
If A Flora of Cumbria includes a species-account for your selected species – as it does for the majority – this account appears below the map, after any illustrations. The last line of the Flora account, such as ‘Map 1109 1687  LWFCY’ references: i) its distribution map in the Flora; ii) the number of tetrads in which it was recorded during the Flora survey years; and iii) the vice-counties within which recorded in that survey (C = Cumberland, v.c.70; F = Furness, v.c.69b (part of VC69); L = part of West Lancashire, v.c.60; W = Westmorland, v.c. 69; Y = part of North-west Yorkshire, v.c. 65).
We anticipate in time also lodging on the website the introductory chapters and other material from the Flora.

Current comments   Texts for this pane are being prepared and will be installed at intervals. A few genera and species already have current comments: see Carex and Lathyrus.


Resolution  As mentioned above, mapping from the BSBI database is to monad (1km × 1km) scale. Remember that there is much more information, often to more precise resolutions, for rare and scarce species in The Rare Plant Register of Cumbria (Halliday & Porter, 2014), still in print. Work on updating the information is ongoing.