At Ainsdale Dunes today I managed to locate all three varieties of the Early Marsh Orchid, namely var. incarnata (pale pink), var. coccinea (deeper pink), var. pulchella (purple) – I think this is the first time that I have seen all three growing side by side at Ainsdale. There were also some stunning Pyramidal Orchids in amongst the dune slacks. On the way back to the car I found a pair of Small Copper mating.
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| Early Marsh Orchid var. coccinea |
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| Early Marsh Orchid var. incarnata |
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| Early Marsh Orchid var. incarnata |
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| Early Marsh Orchid var. incarnata |
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| Early Marsh Orchid var. pulchella |
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| Pyramidal Orchids |
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| Pyramidal Orchid |
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| female Small Copper |
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| Small Coppers pairing |
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| Small Coppers pairing |
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| male Small Copper |