The Cairngorms Up-Close: Gallery
[CAIRNGORMS UP-CLOSE] [DEEPGREEN.EARTH]
Group: ARCTIC ALPINE PLANTS
Alpine lady's-mantle (Alchemilla alpina)
Where and when encountered: Bathaich Fionndag on 17 June 2022
About: Alpine lady's-mantle is a plant most often found in montane grassland and rocky places. Other than a significant population in the Lake District, the Scottish Highlands encompass almost all of the plant's recorded distribution in Great Britain.
Bearberry (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi)
Where and when encountered: Craigellachie NNR on 27 June 2022
About: Bearberry is a low-growing shrub and can be found on upland heaths and moorlands, generally over well-drained gravelly or rocky ground. In Great Britain, the plant's distribution is limited almost entirely to the Scottish Highlands.
Dwarf cornel (Cornus suecica)
Where and when encountered: Bathaich Fionndag on 17 June 2022
About: Dwarf cornel is a low-growing plant of wet, non-alkaline, peaty soils at moderate to high altitudes. In Great Britain, the plant is almost entirely confined to the Scottish Highlands.
Bog asphodel (Narthecium ossifragum)
Where and when encountered: Glenbeg on 9 July 2022
About: Away from lowland England, bog asphodel can be found in many parts of Great Britain. The plant thrives in wet soils, is intolerant of heavy shade, and, while slightly toxic, may be significantly affected by grazing in the uplands.
Alpine bistort (Persicaria vivipara)
Where and when encountered: Rothiemurchus Estate on 22 June 2025
About: Alpine bistort is a perennial herb with a preference for base-rich soils in habitats such as montane pastures and upland flushes. The Scottish Highlands cover the majority of the plant's distribution in Great Britain.
Woolly fringe-moss (Racomitrium lanuginosum)
Where and when encountered: Ben Macdui on 21 August 2023
About: Woolly fringe-moss is a common moss of the uplands and is characteristic of mountain ridges and plateaux that are open, stony, and wind-swept.
Cloudberry (Rubus chamaemorus)
Where and when encountered: Cairngorms north-western slopes on 24 June 2024
About: Cloudberry is a plant of moorland and blanket bog. Typically growing above 600 metres of elevation, the species is mostly restricted to the uplands of Scotland and the high spine of England.
Downy willow (Salix lapponum)
Where and when encountered: Cairngorms National Park on 21 June 2024
About: Downy willow in a low-growing montane shrub of rocky mountain slopes and cliffs. In Great Britain, the plant is almost entirely restricted to the Scottish Highlands.
Editor's note: The photographed plant was not yet wild-growing, being a shrub raised from seed in a nursery in the Cairngorms.
Moss campion (Silene acaulis)
Where and when encountered: Ben Macdui on 21 August 2023
About: Moss campion is a long-lived, cushion-forming flower, found up to 1300 metres or so above sea level. In Great Britain, the plant is restricted almost exclusively to the Scottish Highlands.
Editor's note: The plant photographed here was a few metres below the summit of Ben Macdui, at 1305 metres of elevation.
Selected galleries
[ALL-TIME HIGHLIGHTS] [ARCTIC ALPINE PLANTS] [BUTTERFLIES] [COLOURFUL MOTHS] [DRAGONFLIES] [FORBS] [GALLS] [GRASSLAND ORCHIDS] [HOVERFLIES] [INSECTS OF EXPOSED RIVER SEDIMENT] [LONGHORN BEETLES] [PINE-ASSOCIATED FUNGI] [PLANT BUGS] [SHIELDBUGS] [UNCOMMON PINEWOOD HERBS] [WOODY PLANTS]