Great Orme coastal farm sold to National Trust

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-north-west-wales-32846099

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Parts of the iconic Great Orme headland in north Wales have been safeguarded for the future after being bought by the National Trust.

Parc Farm was put up for sale last month and has now been secured, in part due to £600,000 from the charity's Neptune campaign.

It said the Great Orme was regarded as one of the top five most important botanical sites in Britain.

It is home to wild cotoneaster flowers, which do not exist anywhere else.

The deal includes 145 acres (58.6 hectares) of land and grazing rights over an additional 720 acres (291 hectares) of the headland.

There had been worries the land near Llandudno in Conwy county might be turned into a golf course.

There was an 18-hole course there prior to World War Two before it was turned into potato fields to "dig for victory".

Justin Albert, director of the National Trust in Wales said "The land is now safe from insensitive development, but many of the Great Orme's rare plants and insects are still struggling and there is an urgent need to take action and safeguard their future.

"Our absolute priority in taking on this fantastic site is to put in place a specific conservation grazing regime to ensure the survival of these species and habitats."

As well as being home to the unique cotoneaster flower, it is also a habitat for two rare sub-species of butterfly only found on the Great Orme - the Grayling Thyone and the silver-studded blue.