Quest Nature Tours - page 5 of 5

Wildflowers in Iceland

Wild Thyme is very common. An excellent book is Flowering Plants and Ferns of Iceland by Horour Kristinsson.

Arctic Poppy grows in a few spots, often beside the main road.

Purple Saxifrage near Selfoss on 10 July 2014.

Irish Saxifrage near Akureyri on 5 July 2014

Northern Green Orchid on Hrisey Island on 7 July 2014. The lower central lip on the flower is longer than that of the Small Green Orchid below.

Heath Spotted Orchid near Selfoss on 10 July 2014

Small White Orchid at Lake Myvatn on 6 July.

We saw Alpine Lady's-Mantle almost every day.

Roseroot at the turf village in Skogar on 9 July.

Water Avens at Lake Myvatn on 6 July

Selfheal grows around thermal hotsprings where the ground is warm. Geysir on 8 July.

Common Scurvygrass grows on bird cliffs such as at Svortuloft, Snaefellsnes Peninsula on 4 July.

Stone Bramble at lunch stop on 2 July

Scots Lovage, Snaefellsnes Peninsula on 4 July.

Bartsia

Mountain Avens is the national flower of Iceland.

Lady's Bedstraw was common

Slender Bedstraw on 2 July

Kidney Vetch on the coast, 11 July

Sea Campion was common

Crowberries are a favourite food of some birds

Bearberry with fruit. Birds like these berries

Angelica is very common in Iceland.

Moonwort is an unusual looking fern. Pseudocraters, Lake Myvatn on 6 July

Common Polypody at Skogar sod village on 9 July.

Brittle Bladder Fern at Skogar sod village on 9 July

Common Cottongrass was seen regularly in wetter areas.

End