Marsh Stitchwort

The vegetation was dew-soaked when we arrived at Woodwalton Fen early this morning to hunt for a proverbial needle in a haystack. This Marsh Stitchwort flower looked particularly stunning encased in droplets. This species was lost from many sites in central and eastern England in the early and mid-20th century due to drainage and associated habitat loss, and declines have continued in most parts of its British range up until the present day, and especially away from protected sites, 


We spent over eight hours walking round the fen, in temperatures of up to 28C, hunting for a couple of rare plants - Fen Woodrush (only known from two sites in the UK) and a restricted variety of Southern Marsh-orchid. We found two plants of Fen Woodrush by 8.30 a.m. and then didn't see any more despite carefully searching all the previous locations. The heat, humidity and many unmown paths made it all feel quite gruelling!