Loch Coulter

56°03′5.6″N 3°59′13.3″W / 56.051556°N 3.987028°W / 56.051556; -3.987028

Loch Coulter is a loch and reservoir in Stirlingshire.[1] It lies to the north-west of Denny and north-east of the Carron Valley.

The Loch flow towards Stirling along the Loch Coulter Burn and provides drinking water for the area.[1][2] It is feed from the Auchenbowie burn from the River Carron.[2] The loch is also used for angling and is leased to LASAC, the Larbert and Stenhousemuir Angling Club.[3][4][5] The waters of the loch also supply the nearby Howietoun Fishery established by James Ramsay-Gibson-Maitland in the 19th century.[6]

History

Historically in St Ninians parish, the loch was affected by an earthquake in 1755 that disturbed the morphology of the loch.[7]

The loch occurs naturally but was raised and extended in the 19th century.[8] At this time, an island at the western end of the loch was submerged revealing the potential remains of a crannog.[8]

In 2011, the loch was affected by toxic algae.[9]

In 2025, a rare moss, Ptychostomum cyclophyllum (Round-leaved bryum), was transported to the loch to revive the species.[10][11] The moss was found only in one other place in the UK until established at Loch Coulter and Threipmuir Reservoir.[10][11]

References

  1. ^ a b "Loch Coulter Reservoir from The Gazetteer for Scotland". Gazetteer for Scotland. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
  2. ^ a b "River Carron catchment profile" (PDF). Scottish Environment Protection Agency. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
  3. ^ Club., Stenhousemuir Angling. "Loch Coulter". lasac.org.uk. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
  4. ^ "Larbert & Stenhousemuir Angling Club". Angling Scotland. 2023-07-06. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
  5. ^ unfamous (2014-06-26), Loch Coulter, retrieved 2025-12-09
  6. ^ London, Linnean Society of (1898). Proceedings of the Linnean Society of London. Linnean Society of London. p. 42. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
  7. ^ Nimmo, William (1880). The History of Stirlingshire. Hamilton, Adams & Company. p. 207. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
  8. ^ a b "Loch Coulter". trove.scot. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
  9. ^ Tregaskis, Shiona (2011-08-05). "British lakes and canals hit by toxic algae scum". The Guardian. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
  10. ^ a b "Scotland's Rarest Moss Finds New Home at Stirling Reservoirs". Scottish Water. 2025-09-18. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
  11. ^ a b "Conservationists boost survival chances of Scotland's rarest moss". NatureScot. 2025-09-18. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
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