I received a request from Kew Herbarium to collect some specimens of the morels that can be found at the Ainsdale Sand Dunes Reserve. They are recorded as Morcella elata (Black Morel), an uncommon species. A recent European molecular study has revealed some new species. There is a distinct possibility that the Ainsdale dune collections...
http://www.rspb.org.uk/reserves/guide/m/marshside/about.aspx Marshside is located where the sand dunes of the Sefton Coast give way to the salt-marshes, mud-flats and reclaimed land of the Ribble Estuary.
The driest autumn and winter in living memory continued for the first part of the month with measurable rainfall on only three days up to the 17th. Finally, more normal Atlantic conditions reasserted themselves, with high winds of storm “Doris” rattling in on 23rd. At last, some proper rain fell on each day from 21st...
The driest autumn and winter in living memory continued throughout January with only six rain-days. Total precipitation for the Northwest was said to be 50% of normal but I suspect it was much less than that here. At the end of the month, the Devil’s Hole water-table was 16cm (6 inches) below the ground surface,...