News
New discoveries on County Louth wetland
A noteworthy species recorded during the field survey at Rockmarshall in September was Scutellaria galericulata (Skullcap) which is a New County Record for the species.
Identification of this member of the Labiate family was confirmed by Dr Tom Curtis, who reported that “it is usually a species of fens and rich marshes whereas the other species (Scutellaria minor) is a bog flush/poor fen inhabitant”.
Following discovery of the plant a striking sawfly larva believed to be Athalia scutellariae (A. galericulata) the Skullcap Sawfly was seen feeding on Scutellaria galericulata. This may be a New County Record for the species if confirmed by the National Biodiversity Data Centre (NBDC). It has previously only been recorded in Monaghan, Cavan, Wexford and Galway to date (O’Connor et al. 1997).
