An essential food plant for the common blue butterfly, you find this in and near dune systems by the sea as well as inland. I took the photo of L. corniculatus by the seaside during the Foot and Mouth epidemic of 2001 when most country places were out of bounds. Here it is growing with Silene uniflora (Sea Campion) and Eryngium maritimum (Sea Holly) on the sea shore - below the winter tide line too. According to Geoffrey Grigson in his excellent book The Englishman's Flora, there are more than 70 common names for this plant!

This is one of the British Isles' commonest plants being recorded at all altitudes and latitudes in the British Isles including the remote outer islands.

Lotus corniculatus Bird's-foot-trefoil Great Orme, North Wales 24th April 2008 Previous   Next	Lotus corniculatus Bird's-foot Trefoil Near Abermenai point, Anglesey 22nd May 2001 Previous   Next
Lotus corniculatus Bird's-foot-trefoil	Lotus corniculatus Bird's-foot-trefoil habitat

LHS: Great Orme, North Wales 24th April 2008 RHS: Near Abermenai point, Anglesey 22nd May 2001

Added on 13th September 2004, amended January 28th 2005, updated 2nd December 2010