PROCEEDINGS OP THE PERTHSHIRE SOCIETY OP NATURAL SCIENCE. 
217 
Station, the party proceeded to Edinample, and thenee 
ascended Glen Ample for some miles till the glen be¬ 
tween Ben Voirlich and Stuc a Chrbin was reached. 
Up to this point neither the fauna nor the flora had 
presented any special features of a mountain character, 
though one or two good plants had been picked up. These 
included Galium erectum, Vaccinium oxycoccos (the cran¬ 
berry), Scirpus pauciflorus , and Carex pauciflora, all of 
which occurred near Lochearnhead. 
Leaving Glen Ample, one of the spurs of Stuc a Chrbin 
was ascended, and when an altitude of about 1500 feet 
had been reached the alpine flora began to appear in 
considerable abundance. As the ascent was continued, 
plants new to many members of the party were con¬ 
stantly met with, and from their beauty or comparative 
rarity elicited many expressions of admiration. The most 
beautiful of all was the Mossy Campion, an alpine plant 
which grows in dense cushions, often a foot or more in 
diameter, and of a dark green colour, over which the rosy- 
red blossoms are thickly scattered. 
Hitherto the day had been comparatively fine, but now 
the mist descended on the party, completely shutting out 
any view of the hill that was being ascended. Still 
upwards the enthusiasts press, till at last the top of the 
peak is apparently reached, but when the aneroids are con¬ 
sulted it is found that they are yet 800 feet below the sum¬ 
mit. A slight descent is made till an ascending saddleback 
—a steep slope on one side and a yawning gulf enveloped 
in mist on the other—is found, and up this, climbing pain¬ 
fully from one rock to another, the mountaineers proceed, 
and at length stand on the summit of Stuc a Chrbin. 
Here, amidst the driving mist and pelting rain, a meeting 
of the Mountain Club was held, at the exact hour for 
which summonses had been issued. In the absence of the 
Cairnmaster, the cairn was occupied by the Scribe and 
Annalist, and the Geometer having declared the altitude of 
the hill to be 3189 feet above sea-level, a number of new 
members were initiated, the Quaighbearer being in at¬ 
tendance with the quaigh. After the toasts peculiar to 
the Club had been duly celebrated, and other business 
transacted, the members proceeded to investigate the 
botany of the peak so far as the mist permitted. A preci¬ 
pice, the extent and depth of which could not be seen, 
bounds two sides of the summit, and was examined as far 
as practicable, the result being that several rarities were 
detected, sufficient to indicate that under more favourable 
circumstances much more might have been found. The 
best plant seen here was Saxifraga nivalis, the discovery 
of which added a new “ vice-county ’’ to the record of its 
distribution in Britain. 
The descent was now begun on the opposite side from 
which the ascent was made, and some likely - looking 
rocks having been found, some time! was spent in examin¬ 
ing them with good ”results ■— a hawk - weed, probably 
Hieracium holosericeum, being the most notable find, and 
a very good one. Near the same spot, in marshy 
ground, Juncus biglumis, another great rarity, was also 
detected. After a short inspection of Lochan a Chi bin 
—a small lakelet that lies in the bosom of the moun¬ 
tain, and which produced nothing remarkable—a return 
was made to Glen Ample. In Glen Ample the party 
divided- some electing to go back to Lochearnhead Station, 
others to cross the ridge that separates Glen Ample from 
Strathyre, and the rest to go to the head of Glen Ample 
and descend on Loch Lubnaig. Most of the members met 
again at Strathyre Station. 
In addition to the plants already mentioned, about 
150 flowering plants and ferns were noted during the day. 
Insects were scarce, but the rare Scoparia, alpina was 
captured. Amongst molluscs the only species observed 
was the common black slug (Arion uterj. Of birds almost 
the only species seen were red grouse, black grouse, ptar¬ 
migan, and ring-ouzels; and of mammals, red deer, moun¬ 
tain hares, and rabbits. Frogs were as usual common at a 
high altitude, and in Lochan a Chibin tadpoles were seen. 
July 25th. 
5. To West Bank of Tay, from Grandtully to Lalguise. 
As the flora of the banks of the River Tay is one of the 
richest in Perthshire, it has always been considered desir¬ 
able that one or more of the season’s excursions should 
each year be made to some part of the course of the river. 
The whole length, from Loch Tay downwards, has now 
in this manner been investigated, but the portion between 
Grandtully Station and Logierait had not previously been 
visited by the Society. The right bank only of the river 
was traversed on this occasion, and the flora found on the 
whole pretty similar to what it is in the other parts of 
the upper course of the Tay. The most notable plant 
observed was one of the sedges, Carex aquatilis, which 
has not hitherto been recorded from this part of the 
county. 
