Lady's Slipper Orchids at Gait Barrows NNR, Cumbria - The Lady of the Limestone

The Lady’s Slipper Orchid – perhaps the most well-known and charismatic of all our British orchids. Collected from its limestone haunts to near extinction in Victorian times, just one native plant now remains in Yorkshire – guarded each year and shrouded in secrecy to ensure its survival.

Surely one of our most impressive looking native flowers, the sheer class of a Lady’s Slipper Orchid in full bloom is unrivalled – I have yet to meet anyone that doesn’t exclaim “wow” when they see one for the first time. Tall and elegant, with thick green leaves shrouding the delicate golden pouches framed perfectly by the twisting curls of rich maroon purple sepals – there is no doubt about it, the Lady’s Slipper Orchid brings a touch of glamour and the exotic to our British countryside. 

Breeding Bee-eaters in Cumbria

With the rumour mill going in to overdrive late on Thursday evening that two pairs of Bee-eaters were nesting in Cumbria, an official press release was issued by the RSPB the following morning announcing that 6 Bee-eaters were indeed frequenting Lower Gelt Quarry up near Brampton in Cumbria, and that the first of two nests had just hatched! Having never managed to catch up with Bee-eaters in the UK and being one of my all-time favourite birds, there was absolutely no doubt as to where I would be come Saturday.

Arriving just after lunch following a two hour stretch up the M6, we followed the signs leading up to the Bee-eater viewpoint set up by the RSPB to try and catch a glimpse of these most colourful of visitors. Despite the warm sunny weather, we were told the pair hadn’t been as active as the day before, swapping over nesting duties perhaps once every couple of hours – we could have been in for a long wait!

However, luck was on our side, and a mere 10 minutes or so after we had set up our scopes, I spotted an adult flying in to the nesting hole, the bright yellow and aquamarine plumage unmistakeable! Unfortunately for Alex, I was looking through his scope at the moment of arrival (he asked me to check he was looking at the right sand bank!) so it was with great relief that a few moments later the adult peeked its head out of the nest hole before flying out and off over the fence.

The birds seemed to become more frequent after this, and the adults could be seen bringing food back to the nest and flying over the quarry every 20 minutes or so. Whilst distant (the nest is on the opposite quarry bank around 350m away) you can get great scope views as the birds change over and fly off over the bank, and they will often perch on the fence post, beaks laden with bumblebee prey for the youngsters, before they head in to the hole. Whilst the birds are not feeding over the quarry itself (they seem to fly off over to the left) you can also get good views from the car park, as several birds have developed a habit of perching in the dead trees there.

Two birds together

Bee-eater living up to its name

Heading in to the nest hole

Present at the quarry in Brampton since mid-June after RSPB staff were alerted to the presence of a number of Bee-eaters flying around with the nesting Sand Martins, it has been established that there are 6 birds in total, with two breeding pairs (the second nest has not yet hatched and is further along the bank). The two non-breeding males are nest helpers (most likely to be relatives) and demonstrate the tendency for Bee-eaters to nest colonially and undertake co-operative breeding. Apparently two hives have been generously set up to aid feeding, and RSPB staff have been watching around the clock to protect the nest from any potential egg thieves.

The larger hole to the left of the small round hole is the nest

The quarry itself - the birds are nesting in the opposite bank

Some have been put off by the distance involved when viewing the birds, and while the Bee-eaters are not quite dancing over heads like some clearly envisaged, it is well worth making the trip up to see this special occurrence of breeding Bee-eaters in Britain. Whilst the photos don’t quite do them justice, it is something magical to watch these rainbow coloured marvels dart across British skies.

The Bee-eater trail signs!

With Bee-eaters nesting successfully in the Isle of Wight last year and raising 8 young between 2 pairs, there is talk as to whether this vibrant visitor from the Mediterranean may eventually colonise the UK. With such an influx of Bee-eaters this spring and with several flocks of 10 birds seen (like the popular flock in Suffolk) it was most probably inevitable that some would stay and breed this year. Prior to the previous year’s Isle of Wight nests, the last successful breeding was at Bishop Middleham Quarry back in 2002 (a Herefordshire nest in 2005 was sadly predated by foxes) and with the last successful fledging before then being in 1955, there was a huge gap of 47 years in between! Only time will tell if this will become a regular occurrence in Britain, but I for one would definitely welcome regular breeding Bee-eaters to our shores with open arms!

Bee-eaters in Spain - hopefully flocks like this will become a more regular sight in Britain

Lesser Twayblades - Cliburn Moss, Cumbria (6th June 2015)

After spending the morning at Sandscale Haws back at the beginning of June, the afternoon was spent making the journey over to Cliburn Moss near Penrith to see if the Lesser Twayblades were still flowering. Having visited the reserve on numerous occasions before in search of both the Creeping Lady’s Tresses that grow there and the Lesser Twayblades, I was already well familiar with the site, and quickly found my way to the area the orchids were flowering in after following some excellent directions that were absolutely spot on.

I quickly spotted several individuals in front of a Silver Birch, with another few plants scattered around in roughly a five metre area away from the tree – like the Coralroots it was simply a case of getting your eye in to spot them all. As is usually the case with orchids, once you spot one, there are usually several more in the immediate vicinity.

Absolutely tiny in size, each plant was no more than 10cm and due to the coppery-brown colouration that blended in so well with the pine needle covered floor and the fact many plants had their leaves eaten away, they were very tricky to spot indeed.

There's a Lesser Twayblade in here somewhere......

I’ve had a grid reference to the spot the Lesser Twayblades were flowering in on my previous visit, but being slightly too late that time and not heading far enough in to the trees where the plants seemed to grow best amongst, we sadly didn’t spot any on that occasion.

With two distinct leaves at the base, Lesser Twayblades are like miniature versions of the larger and much more abundant Common Twayblade – the double basal leaf structure is distinctive of these two species.

The two leaves at the base are clear to see

Each rust coloured flower column also had numerous individual florets in the shape of tiny elves – amazingly dainty and exceptionally fragile in miniature form!

Another northerly orchid with populations found in abundance throughout the upland heather moors of Scotland, plants can also be found growing in suitable habitat in North and mid-Wales as well as the northern English counties, with some populations also occurring in wet woodland and native pinewoods (like Cliburn).  

Usually found growing actually underneath heather bushes in some cases, it was also a relief that the flowers were standing proudly out in the open! Lesser Twayblade is a species I have wanted to see for some time, and it was great to see them at their best before the flowers went over. 

Coralroot Orchids - Sandscale Haws, Cumbria

Having previously travelled to Sandscale Haws in Cumbria a few years back in search of Coralroot Orchids but unfortunately drawing a blank and failing to find any in the extensive dune system, I was determined to finally catch up with my ‘nemesis orchid’ this year upon hearing they were having one of the best flowering seasons at the site in over 20 years.

With none recorded in 2013 and just 177 plants counted in 2014, this year’s showing of over 1000 plants was reminiscent of the huge numbers found in the late 80s and early 90s, and meant I had the best chance in several years of finding them.

Luckily, the warden was on site at the car park when we arrived, and after explaining the reason for visiting, he kindly drove us up the beach and to the slacks the Coralroots were growing in – success was guaranteed this time around! After a short ten minute walk through the dune system we had arrived, and sure enough I spotted a small yellow flower nestled amongst the Creeping Willow next to his boot – my first Coralroot Orchid!

With the orchids scattered all around the adjacent area amongst the dune vegetation, the warden led us to the flowers that were still in pristine condition (a trip to New York during the peak of flowering meant this was the earliest opportunity to go, with several plants now edging past their best) and left us to admire the colony in all its glory.

Distributed over a northerly range in the UK, Coralroot Orchids can be found across Scotland and in several colonies in the north of England, although most populations are thought to be relatively small (Sandscale Haws being one of the most popular along with Gosforth Park in Northumberland).

Found in the dune habitat at Sandscale as opposed to woodland and tending to favour the younger and wetter slacks with short vegetation, Coralroot Orchids can soon get overcrowded by the other vegetation here. Grazing and habitat management are therefore critical for this population’s survival, as sadly the dunes are no longer mobile enough to create the new areas of pioneer dune slacks the orchids would naturally colonise after their current slacks age and become unsuitable.

The slack where the Coralroots were favouring

Creeping Willow plays an important role in Coralroot growth, with the orchid forming a symbiotic relationship with this species in order to survive.

Just 5-14cm tall and with small, dainty white and yellow flowers measuring just 5mm across, Coralroot Orchids are extremely hard to spot unless you get your eye in! Without knowing the exact slacks they grew in a few years ago, it was clear to see how I never quite managed to find them last time around in the absolute maze of dune systems at Sandscale!

A small in-situ shot from my phone where the surrounding Creeping Willow is obvious

With a variety of other coastal plants and a soundtrack of singing pipits and skylarks, it was a great morning where thankfully the rainclouds that were threatening to break held off and the sun shone throughout! Here’s hoping that the Coralroots have another bumper season in 2016 and continue to thrive here for years to come!