About Melampyrum pratense L.
Melampyrum pratense, commonly known as common cow-wheat, is a plant species belonging to the family Orobanchaceae. Its seeds have an elaiosome, a feature that attracts wood ants of the Formica genus. When ants carry these seeds back to their nests to feed their young, they disperse the seeds in the process. This species acts as an indicator of ancient woodland, because the ants rarely transport its seeds further than a few yards, and almost never cross open fields to reach new woodland areas. The Latin specific epithet pratense translates to "of meadows". Common cow-wheat serves as a food plant for caterpillars of the heath fritillary butterfly, Melitaea athalia. In traditional Austrian medicine, the herb of Melampyrum pratense has two main applications: taken internally as a tea, or used externally as pillow filling, to treat rheumatism and blood vessel calcification. This plant can be parasitized by the oomycete species Peronospora tranzschelinana.
