This walk and talk to the ‘Big Meadow’ in Glengarriff Nature Reserve was led by Phoebe O’Brien, with input from local NPWS staff Clare Heardman. It was part of the excellent Ellen Hutchins festival. A large group of people, many of whom were relatively new to ecology, had a great morning, learning about the site, why it’s of nature conservation value, and what the amazing anthills might tell us about the quality, age and continuity of this unusual grassland pocket, in an otherwise wooded landscape. We learned that the efforts to keep this area open are very important, given that so many creatures require open habitats in order to feed or breed, for example the rare Marsh Fritillary butterfly. Attendees were treated to a lovely show of purple from the Devil’s-bit Scabious.