Wildlife on Walls: 8. Ivy-leaved toadflax

Ivy-leaved toadflax Cymbalaria muralis, also known as Kenilworth ivy, is a well-established introduced species in our flora that's an attractive feature of walls all over Britain. It's been grown in gardens here at least since the beginning of the 17th. century and was first recorded as a garden escape in 1640, but I suspect that if it was a new arrival today the newspapers would be full of hysterical predictions about how this alien species would be about to disfigure our built environment and destroy our buildings. It comes from a restricted area of rocky subalpine habitat in southern Europe but, thanks to the construction of walls and migrations of people, has spread throughout much of the Continent. 

The delightful little snapdragon-like flowers bloom from early spring until late autumn and are visited by bees, but they self-pollinate and always set seeds prolifically.

Ivy-leaved toadflax tolerates the nutritionally challenging environment of wall crevices but if you grow it in soil with plenty of nutrients it will make rampant growth, as I discovered when I introduced it into my greenhouse, where I pull out handfuls of the plant from the gravel floor every summer.


Gilbert White, of Natural History of Selborne fame, also marvelled at the growth potential of this plant, which he knew as Antirrhinum cymbalaria, and commented on it at least twice in his journals.


Delighted by the plant, on April 30. 1780 he wrote: ‘A sprig of Antirrhinum cymbalaria, the ivy-leaved Toadflax, which was planted last year on a shady water-table of the wall of my house, grew at a vast rate, and extended itself a full nine feet; and it was in perpetual bloom ’til the hard frost came.  In the severity of the winter it seemed to die: but it now revives again with vigor, and shows the rudiments of flowers.  When in perfection it is a lovely plant. ‘


Then, five months later on 16th. September, came this excited journal entry: 'The Antirrhinum cymbalaria is grown to an enormous size, extending itself sideways 15 or 16 feet, and 7 or 8 in height!!'


You can read the rest of his fascinating journals at this simply brilliant web site..

Aside from its prolific seed set and potential for rampant growth, the other ace card that ivy-leaved toadflax holds is a mechanism for sowing its own seeds in the dark, damp crevices of walls. During flowering its blooms face the sun but as soon as seeds are set and the flower pedicel begins to  elongate the seed capsule becomes negatively phototropic, growing away from the light and towards the nearest dark crevice before the capsule bursts open. The seed capsules in the photo above are just beginning their search for somewhere shady to shed their seeds.

However did I manage to miss this ........... ?

For the last 30 years, when we've been walking along the river Tees at Egglestone we've parked within 20 metres of the spot where this Jacob's ladder Polemonium caeruleum grows but it was only a couple of days ago that I actually noticed it for the first time. I guess it must have been the first time we'd parked there when the plant was in full flower.

It's a rare native species and this was probably a garden escape, but very attractive nonetheless.

There were a few dozen plants in the population, including this white flowered, fasciated plant.

Here Today, Gone Today......

This mayfly landed on the spokes of my umbrella when we were out walking by the river Tees in the rain at the weekend and walked through a mating swarm.  When mayflies hatch from their aquatic larvae they often appear in very large numbers and there are  swarms along most of our local rivers at this time of year. Mayflies are weak fliers, merely dancing up and down in the air, and the main purpose of their flight is courtship. The males wait for females to stray into the swam, then grab them and mate with them in flight. We watched several successful 'captures' with the pair locked together and falling out of the air into the vegetation below.

Once the male’s purpose is fulfilled the females head for water, fluttering just above the surface to lay eggs  - and so providing a feeding bonanza for trout that leap to catch them. Those that escape the attentions of fish are often snapped up by swallows skimming across the water. The life of an adult mayfly can be over in a single day, lasting just long enough to produce eggs that will perpetuate the species.

I haven't identified this species yet but it does have this distinctive pale blue eye stripe.

A second slightly different mayfly, possibly the same species but the other sex, landed into the umbrella.


More pictures of mayflies here.