16th May 2022

Meadow clary has taken over the fields around the Eglise de Saint Martin on the small road from Luzenac to Verneaux and on up to Chateau Lordat. On the route des corniches from Lordat west to the villages of Axiat, Appy and beyond, the flora is emerging in the verges and abandoned fields. Hare’s foot clover, yellow rattle, cow parsley and cranesbills are increasingly abundant. An array of orchids are appearing as well; lady orchids and adder’s tongue ferns are common in old fields and serapias, butterfly and burnt orchids are in damp field edges. Every so often, the roadside is studded with Carthusian pinks outrageous in their punk haircuts. Scrub is slowly throttling many of the smaller fields. Butterflies and other insects are abundant. Most notable is chequered skipper, which occurs in small colonies on the edge of damp woodlands on the winding road above Cassou. The biodiversity of the the everyday in the Ariège is rich and abundant.