Snake's Heads In The Grass

Last year I went to Martins' Meadows in Suffolk to photograph rare wild snake's head fritillaries. Today Ollie dog and I went searching for them at Portholme, the largest surviving traditionally managed meadow in the UK at Godmanchester. It was like looking for a needle in a 104 hectare haystack. 

We walked for miles and Ollie had a paddle in the Ouse. We asked lots of people about the flowers and most had never heard of them. Eventually we met a couple who did know about them and who gave us an idea where to look. By the time we found the scant stand it was raining. We rolled around in the wet grass together as I tried to get a shot with the distant church tower in the background. We'll definitely come back to this wonderful meadow to see the orchids and other wild flowers when the weather is better.