Bluebells

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Listen to the Dawn Chorus in spring

Carpets of Bluebells are a magnificent sight in the spring especially in Britain. They are often associated with ancient woodlands.

Bluebells are well adapted to life in woodlands. In the spring they flower before the surrounding trees come out in full leaf. This means that they complete their life cycle while light levels are high. Bluebells are able to grow quickly in the spring because they have an energy store in the form of a bulb.

 

Bluebell Image Gallery
Click on the links below to see a larger version of each image

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Bluebells can sometimes be seen in their thousands carpeting a woodland floor in springtime.

 

A few Bluebells lack blue pigment and the flower is white. Large numbers of bluebells are often an indicator of an ancient woodland.
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A typical view of a bluebell woodland during springtime  in Britain. Bluebells are insect pollinated. The lifecycle of bluebells is completed before the leaves are fully out on the trees above.

 

The Effect of Management on Bluebell Distribution
An ecological sampling exercise

An Ode to the Bluebells
- a poem by Josie Whitehead.  You can access many of her other poems from this link