Species noted on LBS visit to Altcar Rifle ranges, 16 May 2014

As has become the norm for visits here, a group of us met up just outside Hightown Station and then we drove in convoy to the check-point and were admitted to the firing range, all signing in when we got to the main car park opposite to the ranges themselves.
	
It was a dry fine night and the Green-winged Orchids this season were in fine flower with good full heads of blossom all the way up.  Last year they were just starting to flower and the year before that they were setting seed with hardly a flower left, so variable are our seasons.  But this year it was just right for the orchids; however, the Cowslips were mainly forming seed-heads with very few flowers left.  The Twayblade was flowering well as were the sedges: Carnation Grass, Common Sedge, Glaucous Sedge, Brown Sedge, Sand Sedge and Flat Sedge (Blysmus compressus).  
	
Although the cowslips had mainly finished flowering in 'I' range it was interesting to note that Green-winged Orchids are increasing there, despite an overall downturn in numbers across the site, from the annual count undertaken by Steve Cross.  It was also very interesting to hear of Phil Smith's record of Green-winged Orchid outside the Rifle Ranges for the first time on private land adjacent to Range Lane, just behind Cabin Hill NNR, on 17th May 2014.
	
The species list records all the plants we noted within tetrad SD 20 X which covers much of the site, apart from mainly the tall dune ridge along its southern edge.  The wetter areas in the northern fringes of SD20W were also touched upon but extra species noted there are not included in this list.
	
Whimbrel was clearly heard calling to the south of the site, whilst there was much Skylark, Meadow Pipit and Reed Bunting song from within the site.

Acer pseudoplatanus	Sycamore	
Achillea millefolium	Yarrow	
Agrostis capillaris	Common Bent	
Agrostis stolonifera	Creeping Bent	
Ammophila arenaria	Marram	
Anacamptis morio	Green-winged Orchid	
Angelica sylvestris	Wild Angelica	
Anthoxanthum odoratum	Sweet Vernal-grass	
Anthriscus sylvestris	Cow Parsley	
Aquilegia cvr.	Aquilegia cultivar	
Arenaria serpyllifolia	Thyme-leaved Sandwort	
Asparagus officinialis	Asparagus	
Aster sp.	Michaelmas-daisy species	
Bellis perennis	Daisy	
Berula erecta	Lesser Water-parsnip	
Betula pendula	Silver Birch	
Blysmus compressus	Flat Sedge	
Brassica napus	Rape	
Briza media	Quaking-grass	
Bromus hordeaceus	Soft Brome	
Carex arenaria	Sand Sedge	
Carex disticha	Brown Sedge	
Carex flacca	Glaucous Sedge	
Carex nigra	Common Sedge	
Carex panicea	Carnation Sedge	
Centaurea nigra	Knapweed	
Cerastium fontanum	Common Mouse-ear	
Cerastium glomeratum	Sticky Mouse-ear	
Chelidonium majus	Greater Celandine	
Cirsium arvense	Creeping Thistle	
Cortaderia selloana	Pampas Grass	
Crataegus monogyna	Hawthorn	
Crepis capillaris	Smooth Hawk's-beard	
Cynosurus cristatus	Crested Dog's-tail	
Dactylis glomerata	Cock's-foot	
Dactylorrhiza praetermissa	Southern Marsh-orchid	
Daphne laureola	Spurge Laurel	
Eleocharis palustris	Common Spike-rush	
Epilobium hirsutum	Great Willowherb	
Equisetum arvense	Field Horsetail	
Equisetum palustre	Marsh Horsetail	
Erodium cicutarium	Common Stork's-bill	
Erophila verna	Common Whitlowgrass	
Fallopia japonica	Japanese Knotweed	
Festuca rubra	Red Fescue	
Filipendula ulmaria	Meadowsweet	
Galium aparine	Cleavers	
Geranium molle	Dove's-foot Cranesbill	
Holcus lanatus	Yorkshire-fog	
Hyacinthoides x massartiana	Hybrid Bluebell	
Hydrocotyle vulgaris	Marsh Pennywort	
Hypericum tetrapterum	Square-stalked St John's-wort	
Hypochaeris radicata	Common Cat's-ear	
Juncus inflexus	Hard Rush	
Leontodon hispidus	Rough Hawkbit	
Leymus arenarius	Lyme Grass	
Lolium perenne	Ryegrass	
Lotus corniculatus	Bird's-foot Trefoil	
Lotus pedunculatus	Marsh Bird's-foot Trefoil	
Luzula campestris	Field Woodrush	
Lychnis flos-cuculi	Ragged-robin	
Lysimachia vulgaris	Yellow Loosestrife	
Myosotis laxa	Tufted Forget-me-not	
Myosotis ramosissima	Early Forget-me-not	
Neottia ovata	Twayblade	
Ononis repens	Restharrow	
Ophioglossum vulgatum	Adder's-tongue Fern	
Ornithogalum umbellatum	Star of Bethlehem	
Papaver somniferum	Opium Poppy	
Pastinaca sativa	Wild Parsnip	
Pentaglottis sempervirens	Green Alkanet	
Phragmites australis	Reed	
Pilosella officinarum	Mouse-ear Hawkweed	
Plantago coronopus	Buck's-horn Plantain	
Plantago lanceolata	Ribwort Plantain	
Plantago major	Greater Plantain	
Poa pratensis	Smooth Meadow-grass	
Polypodium vulgare	Polypody	
Populus x canescens	Grey Poplar	
Potentilla anserina	Silverweed	
Potentilla reptans	Creeping Cinquefoil	
Primula veris	Cowslip	
Prunus avium	Wild Cherry	
Pulicaria dysenterica	Fleabane	
Quercus robur	English Oak	
Ranunculus acris	Meadow Buttercup	
Ranunculus bulbosus	Bulbous Buttercup	
Ranunculus flammula	Lesser Spearwort	
Ranunculus repens	Creeping Buttercup	
Rhinanthus minor	Yellow-rattle	
Rubus caesius	Dewberry	
Rumex acetosa	Common Sorrel	
Rumex crispus	Curled Dock	
Rumex obtusifolius	Broad-leaved Dock	
Salix cinerea	Grey Willow	
Salix fragilis	Crack Willow	
Salix x forbyana	Hybrid Willow	
Salix x friesiana	Hybrid Willow	
Senecio jacobaea	Ragwort	
Senecio vulgaris	Groundsel	
Silene latifolia	White Campion	
Sisymbrium officinale	Hedge Mustard	
Sonchus arvensis	Perennial Sow-thistle	
Sonchus asper	Prickly Sow-thistle	
Stellaria media	Chickweed	
Taraxacum sp.	Dandelion species	
Trifolium dubium	Lesser Trefoil	
Trifolium pratense	Red Clover	
Trifolium repens	White Clover	
Triglochin palustris	Marsh Arrow-grass	
Urtica dioica	Nettle	
Veronica arvensis	Wall Speedwell	
Veronica chamaedrys	Germander Speedwell	
Vicia sepium	Bush Vetch	
Vicia tetrasperma	Smooth Tare	
Vulpia bromoides	Squirreltail Fescue	

											Peter Gateley

Additional notes from Steve Cross
28 members and friends visited. 
Phil Smith also pointed out 
Salix x holosericea Silky-leaved Osier
there was also
Carex hirta  Hairy Sedge
Carex ovalis  Oval Sedge 
Dactylorhiza purpurella Northern Marsh Orchid
Dactylorhiza x venusta Hybrid Orchid (D.fuchsii x D.pupurella)
Lamium amplexicaule  Henbit Dead Nettle
Molinia caerulea Purple Moor Grass
Papaver dubium Long-headed Poppy
Symphytum x uplandicum Russian Comfrey
Vinca major Greater Periwinkle

also Grass Rivulet Moth Perizoma albulata
and Blackcap and Willow Warbler singing.
Green winged Orchids totalled 24909 nearly five thousand down on last year,despite the increase on I Range. Cowslips numbered 1130 flowering spikes.

Steve Cross