Ardmore was a shore with something for everyone and is my favourite (new) site on Skye. Walking down the hill from the parking area (a tricky corner on the road), I could see long wide flats, with a ridge of rock and boulders on the centre left hand (eastern) side. The spit curved out to low water, sheltering mud and sand flats, gravel, runoffs, and a huge shallow lagoon-like pool in the centre.
The boulders housed a very rich marine fauna, particularly crabs and echinoderms. Amongst many other delights (Rissoella spp., Berthella plumula, Mangelia coarctata, Musculus costulatus), I was pleased to find 3 specimens of Geitodoris planata there (see Mollusc World 21) – a relatively rare nudibranch on the shore. I walked along the ridge exploring under Coraline algal maerl the boulders and then down to the kelp fringe. Here there were a number of runoffs, water draining from the beach, and a change in habitat to sand and sandy mud. Digging yielded live Ensis arcuatus, Cochlodesma praetenue and the usual tellin and venerid suspects. The sea potato Echinocardium cordatum was common, but sadly no small bivalves were seen attached.
Rosemary then directed me to another habitat she and Ron had discovered which was a very large area of maerl (pink twiggy free-living coralline algal species) in the centre of the area. This habitat is uncommon and protected. It lay on top of gravel and muddy gravel where Gibbula magus roamed freely. However, there was insufficient time left on that tide to fully explore this new habitat. The weather was not ideal, being overcast, cool and occasionally rainy; and I feel that this site would have much more to offer on a repeat visit.