Ranscombe Farm reserve...

This very warm Sunday afternoon was spent casually walking around Ranscombe Farm reserve  in the company of Richard, a botanist from Plantlife. I count myself very lucky to have this area so close to home, as it is a veritable oasis of interesting plants and wildlife. This area of woodland and arable fields is managed by Plantlife and an enlightened and supportive local farmer, Andrew Lingham.

More information on this flagship reserve for Plantlife can be found here...

From the edge of Kitchen Field, looking east across Southern Valley...

I have no doubt that I missed many of the treasures that Ranscombe had to offer that day, but here are some of the ones I managed to catch on camera...

The butterflies were very numerous. In the grassland areas opposite Longhoes there were dozens of Marbled Whites, newly emerged.  The hot weather made them very restless and active, but this one stayed still just long enough for a slightly out-of-focus photocall...

Marbled White...

I saw four Large Skippers that afternoon. Here's one...

Large Skipper...

This rather splendid Comma took a break from laying her eggs on nearby nettle tips and settled on an adjacent bramble leaf long enough to be photographed..

Comma...

A couple of White Admirals were spotted on the boundaries of Great Wood, as well as one or two fast-flying Silver-Washed Fritillaries.  The Speckled Woods could also be found in the shady woodland margins...

Speckled Wood

A few (I counted three on the wing, there could well have been more) of the numerous grassland Meadow Browns were missing the otherwise distinctive black spot on their forewings: these are subspecies aberrations known as anommata. This one was enjoying a drink from a knapweed flower...

Meadow Brown, var. anommata...

Some of the plants were also rarities, for which Ranscombe is a known stronghold. The striking blue flowers of Meadow Clary were a welcome sight...

Meadow Clary...

The rare and delicate-looking Rough Mallow were also found in their dozens, scattered low down in the parched grassy borders...

Rough Mallow...

There were other colourful and interesting, albeit not so rare wildflowers on show...

Viper's Bugloss...

Viper's Bugloss was once believed to be an antidote to adder venom: I guess the folk who believed that have all long since died from adder bites..

Creeping Jenny...

The little yellow flowers of the low-growing Creeping Jenny were a common site on the grassland paths...

Common Sorrel...

The striking red blooms of Common Sorrel provided a colourful contrast to the blues of the nearby mallows and knapweeds...

Cotton (Scotch) Thistle..

This singular specimen of Cotton Thistle (named for its downy coating) was about to flower...

Musk Mallow...

The large purple flowers of Musk Mallow were common in the woodland path edges, albeit mostly as single specimens...

Bee Orchid...

A few Bee Orchids were on show alongside the woodland paths...

Marjoram and Hedge Bedstraw...

Back out in the grasslands, colourful and contrasting masses of purple Marjoram and Hedge Bedstraw were on display...