Lambert's Castle is an Iron Age

Iron Age

The Iron Age is the archaeological period generally occurring after the Bronze Age, marked by the prevalent use of iron. The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of such material coincided with other changes in society, including differing...

 hill fort

Hill fort

A hill fort is a type of earthworks used as a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze and Iron Ages. Some were used in the post-Roman period...

 in the county of Dorset

Dorset

Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...

 in southwest England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. Since 1981 it has been designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest

Site of Special Scientific Interest

A Site of Special Scientific Interest is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom. SSSIs are the basic building block of site-based nature conservation legislation and most other legal nature/geological conservation designations in Great Britain are based upon...

 (SSSI) on account of its geology, archaeology and ecology.

The hillfort is situated on a broad northerly spur at the summit of Lambert's Castle Hill, which rises to a height of 256 metres (839.9 ft). There are steep natural slopes on three sides of the fort, and linear ramparts across the flat southern approaches. The site is owned by the National Trust

National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty

The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...

. There is a car park accessible down a track off the B3165 road. There are 2 other hillforts within close proximity to Lambert's Castle: Coney's Castle

Coney's Castle

Coney's Castle is an Iron Age hill fort in Dorset, England. The name Coney is from the Old English for rabbit , suggesting medieval use as a domestic warren, as at nearby Pilsdon Pen....

 is about 1.5 kilometre (0.93205910497471 mi) to the south, and Pilsdon Pen

Pilsdon Pen

Pilsdon Pen is a 277 metre hill in West Dorset, England, situated five miles west of Beaminster at the north end of the Marshwood Vale. It is Dorset's second highest point and has panoramic views extending for many miles...

 is about 5 km (3.1 mi) to the north-east.

Geology

The site consists of sands and marls of the middle Lias with the remains of Gault and Upper Greensand capping. There are strong outflows of springs at various junctions of the upper greensand and gault.

Plateau surface of Upper Greensand

This is a mosaic of acidic grassland, open heath, scrubland and secondary woodland and comprises:

Sheep-fescue Festuca ovina, Sweet Vernal-grass Anthoxanthum odoratum

Anthoxanthum odoratum

-Introduction:Anthoxanthum odoratum, known as sweet vernal grass, holy grass, vanilla grass or buffalo grass, is a short-lived grass found wild in acidic grassland in Eurasia. It is also grown as a lawn grass and a house plant, due to its sweet scent, and can also be found on unimproved pastures...

, Early Hair-grass Aira praecox

Aira praecox

Aira praecox is a species of grass known by several common names, including yellow hairgrass and spike hairgrass. It is native to Europe. It also grows in North America as an introduced species, where it can be found on the east and west coasts in sandy or rocky areas, such as beaches and roadsides...

, Heath-grass Danthonia decumbens

Danthonia decumbens

Danthonia decumbens is a species of grass commonly known as common heath grass. It is a perennial with a decumbent habit: it lies on the ground with the tips turned upward....

and Field Wood-rush Luzula campestris. Herbs present include abundant Tormentil

Tormentil

Common Tormentil is a herbaceous perennial belonging to the rose family , also known as Septfoil or simply as "tormentil" .-Characteristics:It is a low, clumb-forming plant with slender, procumbent...

 Potentilla erecta, Heath Milkwort Polygala serpyllifolia

Polygala serpyllifolia

Polygala serpyllifolia is a native perennial of heaths and grassy places. Height to 25 cm. The lower leaves are in opposite pairs. Flowers May to August....

, Cats-ear Hypochoeris radicata, Heath Bedstraw Galium saxatile

Galium saxatile

Galium saxatile or Heath Bedstraw is a plant species of the genus Galium. It is related to Cleavers ....

, Heather Calluna vulgaris, Bell Heather Erica cinerea

Erica cinerea

Erica cinerea is a species of heather, native to western and central Europe. It is a low shrub growing to tall, with fine needle-like leaves long arranged in whorls of three...

, Bristle Bent Agrostis curtisii

Agrostis curtisii

Agrostis curtisii is a species of grass in the Poaceae family native to Eurasia.It is tufted, with hair like leaves. Stems grow up to 60 cm. Its spikelets are yellow-green in colour, and its lemmas are awned. The ligule is pointed.Bristle Bent flowers in the UK from June until July and is...

, Bilberry Vaccinium myrtillus

Vaccinium myrtillus

Vaccinium myrtillus is an almost Holarctic species of shrub with edible fruit, usually simply referred to as "bilberry" or "whortleberry". It is more precidely called Common Bilberry or Blue Whortleberry, to distinguish it from its Vaccinium relatives...

, bryophyte

Bryophyte

Bryophyte is a traditional name used to refer to all embryophytes that do not have true vascular tissue and are therefore called 'non-vascular plants'. Some bryophytes do have specialized tissues for the transport of water; however since these do not contain lignin, they are not considered to be...

s, lichen

Lichen

Lichens are composite organisms consisting of a symbiotic organism composed of a fungus with a photosynthetic partner , usually either a green alga or cyanobacterium...

, Gorse Ulex europaeus, Western Gorse Ulex gallii, Bramble Rubus fruticosus, Bracken Pteridium aquilinum

Pteridium aquilinum

Pteridium aquilinum is a species of fern occurring in temperate and subtropical regions throughout much of the northern hemisphere....

, Birch Betula spp., Hawthorn Crataegus monogyna, Rowan Sorbus aucuparia

Sorbus aucuparia

Sorbus aucuparia , is a species of the genus Sorbus, native to most of Europe except for the far south, and northern Asia...

and Pedunculate Oak Quercus robur.

Upper Greensand / Gault junction

A zone of acidic bog vegetation consisting of: Purple Moor-grass Molinia caerulea, Common Cottongrass Eriophorum angustifolium, Sedges Carex

Carex

Carex is a genus of plants in the family Cyperaceae, commonly known as sedges. Other members of the Cyperaceae family are also called sedges, however those of genus Carex may be called "true" sedges, and it is the most species-rich genus in the family. The study of Carex is known as...

spp. including Star Sedge Carex echinata

Carex echinata

Carex echinata is a species of sedge known by the common names star sedge and little prickly sedge.-Distribution:This plant is native to North and Central America and parts of Eurasia. Carex echinata is a plant of wet forests, marshes, and mountain meadows of moderate elevation...

, Green-ribbed Sedge Carex binervis

Carex binervis

Carex binervis, the green-ribbed sedge, is a European species of sedge with an Atlantic distribution. It is found from Fennoscandia to the Iberian Peninsula, and occurs in heaths, moorland and other damp, acidic environments. It typically grows to a height of , and has inflorescences comprising one...

and Flea Sedge Carex pulicaris; Bog Moss Sphagnum

Sphagnum

Sphagnum is a genus of between 151 and 350 species of mosses commonly called peat moss, due to its prevalence in peat bogs and mires. A distinction is made between sphagnum moss, the live moss growing on top of a peat bog on one hand, and sphagnum peat moss or sphagnum peat on the other, the...

spp., Heath Spotted-orchid Dactylorhiza maculata

Dactylorhiza maculata

The Heath Spotted Orchid or Moorland Spotted Orchid , is an herbaceous perennial plant belonging to the family Orchidaceae.-Etymology:...

, Devils-bit Scabious Succisa pratensis

Succisa pratensis

Succisa pratensis Moench, also known as Devil's-bit Scabious, is a flowering plant of the genus Succisa in the family Dipsacaceae. It differs from other similar species in that it has 4 lobed flowers, whereas Small Scabious and Field scabious have 5 lobes and hence it has been placed in a separate...

, Bog Asphodel Narthecium ossifragum, Marsh Violet Viola palustris

Viola palustris

Viola palustris is a perennial forb of the genus Viola. It inhabits moist meadows, marshes, and streambanks in northern parts of North America and Eurasia....

, Meadow Thistle Cirsium dissectum

Cirsium dissectum

Cirsium dissectum, also known as Meadow Thistle, is an erect perennial herb. It is found in England, Wales, Ireland, from western France to the Netherlands, and Germany. It is found in fens and less acidic peat bogs i.e. it prefers damp boggy areas....

, Wood Horsetail Equisetum sylvaticum, Lesser Butterfly-orchid Platanthera bifolia

Platanthera bifolia

Platanthera bifolia, commonly known as the Lesser Butterfly-orchid, is a species of orchid in the genus Platanthera, having certain relations with the genus Orchis, where it was previously included and also with the genus Habenaria. It can be found throughout Europe and Morocco...

and Pale Butterwort Pinguicula lusitanica

Pinguicula lusitanica

Pinguicula lusitanica, commonly known as the Pale Butterwort, is a small butterwort that grows wild in acidic peat bog areas along coastal western Europe from western Scotland and Ireland south through western England and western France to Iberia, and Morocco in northwestern Africa.It usually...

.

Lower slopes

Unimproved, herb-dominated neutral grassland consisting of: Crested Dogstail Cynosurus cristatus

Cynosurus cristatus

-Introduction:Crested Dog’s-tail is an ornamental plant, but also found in the wild typically in species rich grassland. It is a perennial short-lived plant characterised by a seed head that is flat on one side. It thrives in a variety of soil types but avoids the acid and calcerous extremes of...

, Common Knapweed Centaurea nigra

Centaurea nigra

Centaurea nigra is a species of flowering plant in the daisy family known by the common names Lesser Knapweed, Common Knapweed and Black Knapweed...

, Red Fescue Festuca rubra

Festuca rubra

Festuca rubra is a species of grass known by the common name red fescue. It is found worldwide and can tolerate many habitats and climates; it generally needs full sun to thrive...

, Yellow Oat-grass Trisetum flavescens

Trisetum flavescens

Trisetum flavescens is a species of grass in the Poaceae family. It is native to Europe, Asia, and North Africa. It can be found elsewhere, such as sections of North America, where it was introduced as a rangeland grass for grazing. It now exists in the wild as a common weed...

, Quaking Grass Briza media

Briza media

Briza media is a perennial grass in the family Poaceae and is a species of the genus Briza.Common name includes Quaking-grass, Cow-quake, Didder, Dithering-grass, Dodder-grass, Doddering Dillies, Doddle-grass, Earthquakes, Jiggle-joggles, Jockey-grass, Lady's-hair, Maidenhair-grass, Pearl Grass,...

, Spring-sedge Carex caryophyllea, Glaucous Sedge Carex flacca

Carex flacca

Carex flacca, with common names blue sedge, gray carex, glaucous sedge, or carnation-grass, , is a species of sedge native to parts of Europe and North Africa....

, Red Clover Trifolium pratense, Ox-eye Daisy Leucanthemum vulgare, Common Bird-foot-trefoil Lotus corniculatus

Lotus corniculatus

Lotus corniculatus is a common flowering plant native to grassland temperate Eurasia and North Africa. The common name is Bird's-foot Trefoil , though the common name is often also applied to other members of the genus...

. Less frequent species are Ladys-mantle Alchemilla vulgaris, Dyers Greenweed Genista tinctoria

Genista tinctoria

Genista tinctoria, with common names: Dyer's Broom, Dyer’s Greenweed, Dyer's Whin, Furze, Greenbroom, Greenweed, Waxen Woad, Woad Waxen and Waxen Wood, is a plant species of the genus Genista.-Description:...

, Corky-fruited Water-dropwort Oenanthe pimpinelloides

Oenanthe pimpinelloides

Oenanthe pimpinelloides is a species of flowering plant in the carrot family known by the common name corky-fruited water-dropwort.It is native to Europe, the Middle East, and parts of western Asia and North Africa, and it is known on other continents as an introduced species and sometimes a...

, Adders-tongue Ophioglossum vulgatum

Ophioglossum vulgatum

Ophioglossum vulgatum, commonly known as the Southern adderstongue, is a species of the plant genus Ophioglossum. It is native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, with a scattered distribution in Europe, Asia, northwestern Africa, and eastern North America.This plant grows from a...

.

Wet areas in grassland

Soft Rush Juncus effusus, Sharp-flowered Rush Juncus acutiflorus

Juncus acutiflorus

Juncus acutiflorus, also called Sharp-flowered Rush, is a rush or a grassy plant of the genus Juncus. As the name suggests, the plant has notable sharp-looking flowers, flowering between July and September.-Physical description:...

, Oval Sedge Carex leporina, Common Yellow-sedge Carex demissa, Carnation Sedge Carex panicea, Common Marsh-bedstraw Galium palustre

Galium palustre

Galium palustre is a herbaceous annual plant of the family Rubiaceae. This plant is native to Europe and North America and has several common names, including Common Marsh-bedstraw....

, Marsh Pennywort Hydrocotyle vulgaris

Hydrocotyle vulgaris

Hydrocotyle vulgaris, also known as Marsh Pennywort, is a small creeping perennial herb native to N. Africa, Europe, Florida, and west to the Caspian region; in Britain it is the only native Hydrocotyle....

, Ragged-Robin Lychnis flos-cuculi, Greater Birds-foot-trefoil Lotus uliginosus

Lotus uliginosus

Lotus pedunculatus , Greater Bird's-foot Trefoil or Marsh Bird's-foot Trefoil is a member of the pea family ....

, Bog Pimpernel Anagallis tenella

Anagallis tenella

Anagallis tenella known in Britain as the Bog Pimpernel, is a low growing, perennial plant found in a variety of damp habitats from calcareous dune slacks to boggy and peaty heaths in Eurasia but absent from North America...

, Bristle Clubrush Isolepis setacea

Isolepis setacea

Isolepis setacea is a species of flowering plant in the sedge family known by the common name bristleleaf bulrush. It is native to Eurasia and Africa, and possibly Australasia. It can be found in other places, including some areas in North America, where it is an introduced species...

.

Notable Invertebrates

• Glow-worm Lampyris noctiluca
  Lampyris noctiluca
  Lampyris noctiluca, the common glow-worm of Europe , is a firefly species of the genus Lampyris. These are beetles, as evidenced by the hard cases which close over the wings when they are not in use....
  
  
• Pearl-bordered Fritillary
  Pearl-bordered Fritillary
  The Pearl-bordered Fritillary is a butterfly of the Nymphalidae family.It is orange with black spots on the upperside of its wing and has a wingspan of 38–46 mm. On the underside of the wings there is a row of silver pearly markings along the edge, which give the species its name...
  
   Boloria selene
• Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary
  Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary
  The Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary , called the Silver-bordered Fritillary in North America, is a butterfly of the Nymphalidae family...
  
  Bolaria euphrosyne

External links

• SSSI Citation etc from Natural England website