Wild Carrot

small tortoiseshell

A small tortoiseshell rests on the seed head of wild carrot on a track between lagoons at RSPB St Aidan’s nature reserve. Our cultivated carrots are varieties of the same species, Daucus carota.

wild carrot seedhead

After flowering the stems of the umbel curve inwards as the seeds develop.

wild carrot seedhead

The seeds are armed with combs of hook-tipped bristles, ready to attach to any passing animal.