1922. Stelfox — Bees and Clovers. 8g 



BEES AND CLOVERS. 

 A Day on the Murrough of Wicklow. 



BY A. W. STELFOX, M.R.I.A. 



On the 29th of May last I spent the day collecting 

 Hymenoptera along the Murrough from Wicklow to 

 Newcastle. Leaving Wicklow station I crossed the railway 

 bridge over the river and turned southwards to visit the 

 classic habitat for the clovers Trifolium suhterraneurn and 

 T. glomeratum. The spit between the sea and the river 

 is at this point about a quarter of a mile in width and 

 composed mainly of fine shingle mixed with sand, and rises 

 from three to, perhaps, ten feet above high water mark. 

 Along the river there is an '' escarpment " about three to 

 five feet high, which slopes down to high water. This slope 

 is the stronghold of the Clovers, for being annuals they have 

 a better chance here of seeding themselves than in the 

 close sward on the flat behind, a large part of which is 

 used as football grounds. A few hundred yards south of 

 the railway I encountered large patches of T. subterraneum 

 made conspicuous at a distance on this date by the small 

 white flowers. Trifolium slriaUim, T.filiforme and Trigonella 

 ornithopodioides were also present and all four species 

 continued southwards in abundance, till opposite the old 

 railway station on the spit, where they were joined by a 

 profuse growth of the pretty little pink flowers of T. 

 glomeratum. Beyond this point they seem to die out ; but 

 I did not pursue t'hem further. Turning towards the sea 

 I crossed the football grounds which were covered with 

 Trigonella and found a nice patch of T. glomeratum, between 

 the playing pitch and the old railway, with T. striatum, 

 T. filiforme, and Trigonella. 



Seaward of the railway, especially at the chemical 

 works, Trigonella and T. filiforme completely dominate the 

 sparse vegetation, probably more so this year than usual 

 following the dry summer of 1921, which killed a certain 

 percentage of the perennial plants forming the sward. 

 Turning northwards and again crossing the railway and 

 following the inner side of the spit by the shore of the 



