Cairngorms cabbage patch invasion causes a real stink

AN UNUSUAL plant that exudes a foul smell to attract flies, and generates its own heat to melt its way through ice, is threatening native species in a Scottish national park.

The low-growing American skunk cabbage, which is an endangered species in Tennessee, is worrying conservationists on the Insh Marshes nature reserve in Strathspey.

RSPB Scotland called it “an invasive species from overseas ... proving a menace and posing a threat to native wild plants”.

Karen Sutcliffe, site manager of the charity’s Insh Marshes nature reserve in the Cairngorms National Park, added: “Unfortunately it has reached Insh Marshes where there is a danger of it getting out of hand and out-competing our native species.”