Yarley Meadows

Also within

Gloucestershire County

Condition (Natural England)

Geology & landscape

Geological Period: Cretaceous, Jurassic

Description

Area, 12.2 ha. 30.2 ac. Description These unimproved and traditionally managed species rich meadows support a neutral grassland community which is rare throughout Britain. The fields are poorly drained and seasonally waterlogged, lying on Jurassic and Cretaceous clays of the Denchworth Series. The meadows are surrounded and intersected by mature hedges and two of the three fields contain a pond. Yarley Meadows are characterised by the neutral grassland community of the nationally rare common knapweed – crested dog’s tail type. The dominant grasses include sweet vernal grass Anthoxanthum odoratum, crested dog's tail Cynosurus cristatus and Yorkshire fog Holcus lanatus, while red fescue Festuca rubra and quaking grass Briza media are also frequent. Sedge and rush species tend to dominate the wetter areas of the meadows, with glaucous sedge Carex flacca, hairy sedge Carex hirta soft rush Juncus effusus and hard rush Juncus inflexus being present. There is a high component of herb species throughout the meadows, with several of these being characteristic of damp pastures, such as dyer’s greenweed Genista tinctoria, saw wort Serratula tinctoria and Adder’s tongue Ophioglossum vulgatum. There are large populations of common knapweed Centaurea nigra, betony Betonica officinalis and pepper saxifrage Silaum silaus. Other species include yellow rattle Rhinanthus minor, common spotted orchid Dactylorhiza fuchsii, sneezewort Achillea ptarmica, cowslip Primula veris and hoary plantain Plantago media. In summer, large numbers of butterflies typical of unimproved grassland such as the meadow brown Maniola jurtina and gatekeeper Pyronia tithonus, are found over the meadows.

Species mentioned

Insects to look out for

These moths, butterflies and beetles are known to feed on plants recorded at this site, and carry a notable UK conservation status — but a host-plant being present doesn't mean the insect has actually been recorded here. Treat this as "worth watching for," not a confirmed sighting.

Host-plant data: Cook et al. (2025), Traits data for the butterflies and macro-moths of Great Britain and Ireland, 2024, UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology / Butterfly Conservation; and Padovani et al. (2020), Database of Insects and their Food Plants (DBIF), UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (both Open Government Licence). Contains data supplied by UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology.