Week 43: Blackthorn (‘Prunus spinosa’)

Blackthorn was @SpeciesofUK from 9^th to 22^nd December, 2013.

The blackthorn is a small deciduous tree native to the UK and indeed most of Europe.[1] It is known for its blue-black fruits called ‘sloes.’

Blackthorn
[Flickr Creative Commons © Nuuuuuuuuuuul]

Week 5: Native Oyster (Ostrea edulis)

The Native Oyster was @SpeciesofUK from 30th December 2012 to 5th January 2013.

There are hundreds of species of oyster in the world. They are split into two main families – true oysters (which include edible oysters) and pearl oysters. There are also a few other smaller families.

The Native oyster is a species of true oyster.

Oysters are a type of bivalve mollusc. They're a mollusc because they have a mantle (or shell), and they are bivalve because the shell comes in two halves or 'valves.'

Week 2: Common Ash (Fraxinus Excelsior)

Common ash was @SpeciesofUK from 9th to 15th December 2012.

Common ash belongs to the genus 'Fraxinus,' a group of 50-odd species famous for their 'helicopter' seeds.¹ It is one of the most (3rd or 4th) common trees in the UK, and one of the largest, growing up to 45m tall.

Common Ash
[Source: Jean-Pol GRANDMONT]

The UK has 80 million ash trees covering 5% of our woodland.² Ash is such a good coloniser of open ground it has attracted the nickname 'the weed tree.'