Species - Orange Hawkweed (Pilosella aurantiaca)
Location - Castle Hill, Huddersfield
Grid Ref - SE 15379 14064
About the same size as a dandelion, the Orange Hawkweed is also known as ‘Fox and cubs’, the fox being the larger flower looking after the cubs, the smaller cluster of flowers underneath.
It is actually an invasive species here in the UK, and is on the noxious or quarantine list in other countries. It can spread through setting seed and through rhizome and stolon runners along the soil.
Also called Tawny Hawkweed or the Devil’s Paintbrush, it flowers from May to September. They can be sighted on the road sides around Castle Hill, and are visited by various insects, including many species of bees, butterflies, pollinating flies.
