VISITORS to a meadow in a West Oxfordshire had to get down on the ground to enjoy an close-up view of one of Britain’s rarest flowers.

Fritillaries only flower for two-weeks every April and St Bartholomew’s Church in Ducklington holds a special community day every year to mark the occasion.

Visitors could also walk among the flowers, talk to meadow experts, watch Morris Dancers perform, listen to bell ringing, tuck into cream teas and there are activities for youngsters.

Matt and Helen Hamm from Minster Lovell took their three-year-old daughter Carmen to explore the meadow on Sunday.

Mr Hamm, 39, said: “It’s always a nice little village fete atmosphere. Carmen liked seeing the little flowers but I think she liked the ice cream more than anything.”

Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust (BBOWT) carried out a count of snake’s head fritillaries in Iffley Meadows last week and found a record 89,830 – beating the previous record set last year of 84,000.

Two members of staff and 13 trainees carefully counted the rare flowers from Weirs Lane in New Hinksey to the A423 near the southern bypass. Colin Williams, the trust’s reserves ecologist, said: “The upward trend is certainly encouraging but there are parts of the meadow where numbers are still to recover.”