Picos Wild Flowers (3) Western St John's Wort

Holiday in the Picos de Europa, Northern Spain ,  Day 4   July 2018.

Walking through the Garganta del Cares ( Cares Gorge) from the tiny and remote village of Cain was a spectacular walk and quickly produced a species of St John's Wort I had never seen before.

Western St John's Wort ( Hypericum nummularium )  

First Impression:   Flower was typical SJW but the leaves were very unusual.

Open Flower and bud showing sepals. 4th July 2018

Yellow petals without any streaks, margin with black glands on short stalks regularly arranged along margin (ciliate).  Petals long 8-18mm according to the Hypercium online site. This plant approached the 18mm in length.

http://hypericum.myspecies.info/taxonomy/term/849/descriptions short, amazing site by Natural History Museum professionals.

Sepals, short less than a third or quarter of the petal length, can be unequal in length, blunt ended and with margin with ciliate black glands. Bracts (tiny leaves just below flower) had ciliate black glands.

Leaves, small round discs, green on top, pale glaucous underneath with a red edge, very short stalk about 1mm long. Stems red.

Overall appearance of plant

This plant really stood out due to its very strange leaves. At least ten plants were growing right beside the main path through the gorge. I am confident in the identification as the leaves and flowers line up with the excellent description on the Hypercium online site and it is also covered in the Alpine Flowers of Britain and Europe.  It has quite a limited distribution taken from the online site map with the Picos and the Pyrenees being its main haunt and a few sites in South Western Alps in France.



Peter Leonard   6th September 2018