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Rare violet rediscovered after being lost for a decade

A tiny rare violet has been rediscovered after over a decade in a survey at Britain's oldest nature reserve.

Viola persicifolia has blueish-white flowers and grows to a maximum of little over an inch. Credit: National Trust/PA Wire

According to the National Trust, the fen violet (Viola persicifolia) is known to exist at only three sites in the wild in the UK.

One of these is Wicken Fen, Cambridgeshire, where it had not been seen since 2003 but was rediscovered during a botanical survey this week.

Seeds of the plant can lie dormant in the ground for many years and will only grow when the ground has been disturbed and it has the right weather conditions.

The violet was first recorded at Wicken Fen in 1860 and was rediscovered in the 1980s, having vanished for nearly 30 years, before disappearing again in 2003.