Jam, Jerusalem and Fen Orchids!

Some members of Acle Women's Institute had asked me to give them a guided tour of a Broadland nature reserve, so, following a ten o'clock rendezvous, we spent a pleasant couple of hours enjoying the wildlife in humid, sunny weather.

Lots of dragon and damselflies, including Norfolk Hawker, Broad-bodied and Four-spotted Chaser and Black-tailed Skimmer. Apart from Meadow Brown and Ringlet, there weren't many butterflies on the wing, but the flora more than made up for it. We found hundreds of Common Spotted and Southern Marsh Orchids, but the real stars were several clumps of tiny but exquisite Fen Orchids - a real rarity!

After a non-alcoholic pub lunch we said our goodbyes, all of us keen to repeat the walk again soon!