Lizard orchid  (Himantoglossum hircinum)

This species is rare in the UK, and found locally in south east England (7) (8) (9). It was an extremely rare plant in England until the 1920s and was restricted to a handful of sites in Kent, but extended its range between 1920 and 1935 to a maximum of 35 sites, possibly because of warm weather (2) (8). The plant declined rapidly from the mid-1930s so that there were only 10 or 11 sites until the end of the 1980s. Between 1988 and 2001 the number of flowering plants in England expanded from approximately 1000 to over 6000 and the number of populations rose to 18 (7) (8), probably due to weather conditions that were suitable for seed production (10). Elsewhere, this orchid occurs in southern and western Europe (7).

Typical habitats are grassland, ancient earthworks, scrub, open woodland, road, track and path sides, quarries, railway banks and calcareous sands (six of the current populations in these habitats are on golf courses). It has also occurred under a hedge in a garden in Sussex, on a grass mound in a Mortello tower, on a retaining wall of a river and in a wood. Many of the sites are small, undisturbed patches rather than large open grasslands (6) (7) (8).