Mouse-ear, Field

Information on Field Mouse-ear

Common Name: Field Mouse-ear
Scientific Name: Cerastium arvense
Irish Name: Cluas luchóige mhóinéir
Family Group: Caryophyllaceae
Distribution: View Map (Courtesy of the BSBI)
Flowering Period


Click for list of all flowering by month
Field Mouse-ear could sometimes be confused with:

Stitchwort, Greater, Stitchwort, Lesser,

This is a low-growing perennial which has flowers which at first seem to be smallish versions of Greater Stitchwort. These flowers (15-20mm across) are in small groups of 3-5 and have 5 spreading petals which are notched and twice as long as the sepals. There are 5 styles and 10 stamens. The leaves are in opposite pairs and join around the stem. They are narrow and softly downy. This is a mat-forming plant species which also sends up flowerless shoots. It flowers from April to August and is usually found on dry sandy soil, in grassy places and hedgebanks. It is a native species which belongs to the Caryophyllaceae or Campion family.

I first spotted this species while walking at the Flaggy Shore in the Burren in Co Clare. It was a very wet day in July and the flowers were absolutely sodden. I took the photographs that day but would prefer to do them justice on a drier day. Maybe next year. 

If you are satisfied you have correctly identified this plant, please submit your sighting to the National Biodiversity Data Centre

This is quite a rare plant species in Ireland, with records mainly from the Burren and north County Dublin. 

Mouse-ear, Field
Mouse-ear, Field
Mouse-ear, Field
Mouse-ear, Field