Also flowering in June and July are pyramidal orchids (Anacamptis pyramidalis). This species is named for its pyramid-shaped cluster of flowers, ranging from bright to pale pink, but confusion can arise because the flower becomes more cylindrical as it develops. It is a native perennial of well-drained limestone soils and, like many orchids, needs a specific fungus to be present in the soil in order to bloom. You can see lots of these orchids in Ippikin’s meadow.
Wilderhope Manor - the largest colony of swifts in Shropshire
Swifts are very interesting birds. Superb fliers, they eat and even sleep on the wing! They have long scythe-like wings with a distinctive short forked tail. They are summer visitors to the UK, where they breed, and they spend the winter in Africa. A nickname for them is ‘devil screamers’ and they live up to that name in the summer, towards dusk, as flocks of them career madly around the chimneys at Wilderhope, screaming excitedly as they go.