Hypochaeris glabra Smooth Cat's-ear

A Southern-temperate annual which grows in warm, dry sandy soils typical of steppe-type habitats. It is much less hairy than Common Cat's-ear (Hypochaeris radicata), less robust and has smaller flowering heads. The rosete leaves are quite glossy and have a noticeably different appearance to those of Common Cat's-ear. It is largely a south-eastern species in Britain, most common in Cambridgeshire and the Brecklands but it has been lost from many of its former sites and it continues to decline. It is scarce in Wales where it has a coastal distribution. It is rare in Glamorgan and very rare in west Glamorgan. Until recently, the only modern records in the county were from Gower but a small population was (re)discovered recently by Tim Rich with the Glamorgan Botany group in May 2026 during a field excursion to Morfa Tip; there had been previous (pre 1980) records from this part of Neath Port Talbot. In early June of 2026 there were more than 1,000 plants in this population. The small yellow composite inflorescences are conspicuous on sunny mornings but invariably close up in the afternoon and then difficult to see. The rosette leaves of West Glamorgan plants are not completely glabrous but have some hairs along the edge of the leaves. Inflorescences

Native