The Last Leaves of Autumn
In a final act of beauty, the falling leaves of deciduous trees in late autumn create ephemeral works of natural art by bringing a splash of colour to their landing sites.
 Downy birch leaf (Betula pubescens) on the bark of a fallen Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris)
 This aspen leaf (Populus tremula) still shows the last traces of green, as the chlorophyll hadn't been fully withdrawn before the leaf fell, due to the effects of the leaf mine visible near the base of the leaf, caused by the aspen green island leaf-miner moth (Ectoedemia argyropeza). |
 Fallen oak leaves (Quercus petraea) covered in hoar frost in Glen Affric.
 Rowan (Sorbus aucuparia) and hazel (Corylus avellana) leaves in the gorge of the Allt na Imrich stream in Glen Affric.
 Silver birch leaf (Betula pendula) amongst common haircap moss (Polytrichum commune) in Glen Affric. |
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