Mappp.co - Lang's Farm

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Condition (Natural England)

Unfavourable Declining (1)

Unit	Feature	Condition	Area (ha)	Assessed
ST170241	—	Unfavourable Declining	7.85	2012-07-05

Habitats

Fast flowing river and stream

Geology & landscape

Geological Period: Triassic

Landscape processes: Fluvial

Description

Description This site is an example of unimproved, herb rich neutral grassland of a type now rare in Britain. It consists of a series of hay meadows which occupy a position on the narrow flood plain of a tributary of the River Tone and on land which rises gently to the west. The soils on the flood plain are alluvial clays and those on the slope are brown earths; the underlying rocks are Triassic Keuper Marls. The sward is mostly of the crested dog's tail common knapweed Cynosurus cristatus Centaurea nigra type. It consists of a wide variety of grasses including quaking grass Briza media, meadow foxtail Alopecurus pratensis, hybrid fescue Festulolium loliaceum and crested dog's tail together with an abundance of herbs such as pepper saxifrage Silaum silaus, rough hawkbit Leontodon hispidus, meadowsweet Filipendula ulmaria, pignut Conopodium majus, common knapweed and corky fruited water dropwort Oenanthe pimpinelloides which is a nationally scarce species. Also present are green winged orchid Anacamptis morio, cowslip Primula veris, meadow thistle Cirsium dissectum, saw wort Serratula tinctoria, devil's bit scabious Succisa pratensis, betony Betonica officinalis and yellow rattle Rhinanthus minor.

Species mentioned

Show the 17 species mentioned in the description, with red-list status

English name search for this in other sites	Latin name search with Google	IUCN / Red List	Type	Family
meadow foxtail	Alopecurus pratensis	LC	grass	poaceae
quaking grass	Briza media	VU	grass	poaceae
crested dog's tail	Cynosurus cristatus	LC	grass	poaceae
hybrid festuca pratensis lolium perenne	Festulolium loliaceum	Not listed in GB list	grass	poaceae
green-winged orchid	Anacamptis morio	NT	herb	orchidaceae
betony	Betonica officinalis	VU	herb	lamiaceae
black knapweed	Centaurea nigra	LC	herb	asteraceae
meadow thistle	Cirsium dissectum	EN	herb	asteraceae
pignut	Conopodium majus	LC	herb	apiaceae
meadow sweet	Filipendula ulmaria	LC	herb	rosaceae
rough hawkbit	Leontodon hispidus	LC	herb	asteraceae
corky-fruited water-dropwort	Oenanthe pimpinelloides	LC	herb	apiaceae
cowslip	Primula veris	LC	herb	primulaceae
yellow-rattle	Rhinanthus minor	DD	herb	orobanchaceae
saw wort	Serratula tinctoria	VU	herb	asteraceae
pepper saxifrage	Silaum silaus	EN	herb	saxifragaceae
devils-bit scabious	Succisa pratensis	VU	herb	caprifoliaceae

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.

Species	Status	Via host-plant
Reddish buff Acosmetia caliginosa	Critically Endangered	Serratula tinctoria
Black-veined moth Siona lineata	Critically Endangered	Centaurea nigra
Duke of Burgundy Hamearis lucina	Endangered	Primula veris
Scarce vapourer Orgyia recens	Endangered	Filipendula ulmaria
Mouse moth Amphipyra tragopoginis	Vulnerable	Serratula tinctoria
Marsh fritillary Euphydryas aurinia	Vulnerable	Succisa pratensis
Satyr pug Eupithecia satyrata	Vulnerable	Centaurea spp., Filipendula ulmaria, Rhinanthus minor
Small heath Coenonympha pamphilus	Near Threatened	Cynosurus cristatus
Grey pug Eupithecia subfuscata	Near Threatened	Betonica officinalis, Centaurea spp.
Scarce forester Jordanita globulariae	Near Threatened	Centaurea nigra

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.

Plant communities

A14 — Fast flowing river and stream

Myriophyllum alterniflorum community

Show 15 indicator species

Isolepis fluitans, Juncus bulbosus, Fontinalis antipyretica, Lobelia dortmanna, Equisetum fluviatile, Myriophyllum alterniflorum, Lemna minor, Callitriche stagnalis, Littorella uniflora, Potamogeton filiformis, Potamogeton gramineus, Potamogeton natans, Ranunculus peltatus, Chara spp., Nitella hyalina

A17 — Chalk river and stream, Fast flowing river and stream

Ranunculus penicillatus ssp. pseudofluitans community

Show 11 indicator species

Berula erecta, Nasturtium officinale, Elodea canadensis, Lemna minor, Callitriche stagnalis, Veronica beccabunga, Polygonum amphibium, Polygonum hydropiper, Potamogeton crispus, Potamogeton pectinatus, Ranunculus penicillatus ssp. pseudofluitans

A18 — Fast flowing river and stream

Ranunculus fluitans community

Show 12 indicator species

Fontinalis antipyretica, Fontinalis squamosa var. curnowii, Myriophyllum alterniflorum, Myriophyllum spicatum, Elodea canadensis, Mentha aquatica, Lemna gibba, Lemna minor, Potamogeton perfoliatus, Ranunculus fluitans, Glyceria fluitans, Phalaris arundinacea

A9 — Fast flowing river and stream, Marginal and inundation, Pond ditch and canal, Sluggish river and stream

Potamogeton natans community

Show 20 indicator species

Schoenoplectus lacustris, Juncus bulbosus, Sparganium angustifolium, Sparganium erectum, Sparganium minimum, Alisma plantago-aquatica, Lobelia dortmanna, Equisetum fluviatile, Myriophyllum alterniflorum, Elodea canadensis, Lemna minor, Lemna trisulca, Nymphaea alba, Callitriche platycarpa, Callitriche stagnalis, Littorella uniflora, Potamogeton natans, Ranunculus trichophyllus, Glyceria fluitans, Chara subspinosa