Rare whale strands on St Kilda

Sowerby's beaked whale and calf strand on remote Scottish Island

September 2013. Conservation charity, the National Trust for Scotland, has reported that a rarely-seen Sowerby's beaked whale and calf became stranded in the shallow waters of Village Bay, Hirta (St Kilda) last week. 

Sad end

The 5m long adult female and 1.5m long calf were seen in distress just before 11am on Thursday 12 September. Staff from the National Trust for Scotland and QinetiQ immediately attempted to refloat the animals but, despite their quick response and strenuous efforts, were unable to successfully move the mother before it passed away. The calf freed itself without assistance and was last seen swimming out to open water. It is, however, unlikely to survive without its mother, which was still lactating.

Sowerby's beaked whale

The Sowerby's beaked whale (Mesoplodon bidens) is a rarely-seen whale about which very little is known. It is small (about 5m long) with males slightly larger than females, they have a rounded melon (forehead), and slender long beak. Only the adult males have erupted teeth or tusks in this species half way along the lower jaw. The female's teeth do not erupt.

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New species of dandelion discovered on St Kilda island

A new species of dandelion has been discovered on a remote Scottish isle.

Botanists from Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) and Northumberland have been involved in studies of the flower found growing on Hirta.

The island is the largest in the St Kilda archipelago, which was abandoned by its last residents in 1936.

The flower may have originated in Iceland and was carried to Hirta by birds, or the Vikings. It has been named after a retired RBGE employee.

Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh said the dandelion - named Taraxacum pankhurstianum in honour of Richard Pankhurst - could be one of Scotland's rarest plants.

Sheep and seabirds are believed to eat it.

Seeds from four plants were collected two years ago by Jim McIntosh, a recorder of flora for the Outer Hebrides, during survey work on Hirta.

The seeds were successfully grown at the garden's nursery by horticulturist Natacha Frachon and identified as a new species by Prof James Richards, of Hexham, Northumberland.

St Kilda lies 41 miles (66km) west of the Western Isles.

The last St Kildans abandoned Hirta in August 1930 following years of depopulation and also deaths that occurred during a hard winter in 1929.

Continued:  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-18628463