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Grasslands are excellent places for wildlife watching especially for wild
flowers and small mammal watching. Why not try your hand at some
springtime nature spotting in the lush meadows of the UK? | | Outstanding
meadows - great for wildlife |
Choose between two
very different activities...
* Wild flower
spotting.
* Dormouse walks.
Flowers
and fossils  Cricklade,
Cotswold Water Park and Kingcombe Meadows are three of the best places in the
UK for spotting unusual wild flowers.
The flower meadows at Cotswold Water
Park are one of only two sites in Britain with large numbers of white Snakes-head
Fritillaries. The gravel is also a rich source of prehistoric wildlife
from several million years ago.
The fossils are so plentiful that they're
literally everywhere on this site. Kingcombe Meadows is a botanist's paradise
with 430 different types of flowers and ferns. At Kingcombe there's educational
events, walks and talks to help visitors learn more about what's on offer in its
meadows. This unimproved grassland is also rich in grasses, herbs , lichens,
fungi and butterflies.  Cricklade's
North Meadow is of international importance as one of the best examples of a lowland
hay meadow.
If you're visiting in spring, look out for the stunning display
of Snake's-head Fritillaries as well as golden clusters of Marsh Marigold and
pink Cuckooflowers. During the summer Cricklade bursts into bloom with yet
more hay meadow flowers - and there are also many interesting insects to be seen
including blue Damselflies and Burnet Moths. Top
tip: If you'd like to transform your garden into
a haven for wild flowers, why not buy seeds from a specialist grower. Several
wildlife organisations also sell packets of wild flower seeds in their shops at
nature reserves. Dormouse walks  The
Dormouse is a secretive creature which is very hard to spot in the wilds.
Kingcombe
organise special Dormice walks run by an expert with a licence to handle these
popular mammals.
It's your best chance of seeing this creature as well
as getting some expert insider information at the same time. These scarce
creatures are seldom seen because of their nocturnal habits. They are famously
sluggish during the daytime hours - remember the Dormouse in Alice in Wonderland? Dormice
feed predominantly on fruit, nuts and flowers which is why they love meadow areas
such as Kingcombe. Photo credits Cricklade
photo courtesy of Natural England. | 
