The common pond skater can be seen 'skating' over the surface of ponds, lakes, ditches and slow-moving rivers. It is predatory, feeding on small insects by detecting vibrations in the…

The lesser-black backed gull can be spotted around the coast in summer, with the biggest colony on Walney Island, Cumbria. Look for it over fields, landfill sites and reservoirs during winter.

The Noble chafer is a rare and beautiful metallic-green beetle that can be found in traditional orchards. It is on the wing over summer, feeding on umbellifers. The larvae live in the decaying…

The grey long-eared bat certainly lives up to its name - its ears are nearly as long as its body! It mainly forages over grassland and meadows, but is very rare in the UK.

As its name suggests, the birch shieldbug can be found feeding on silver birch, and sometimes hazel, in mixed woodland. Adults hibernate over winter, emerging in spring to lay their eggs.

The Black-tailed skimmer is a narrow-bodied dragonfly that can be seen flying low over the bare gravel and mud around flooded gravel pits and reservoirs. It is on the wing from May to August.

A bright red beetle, with black legs and knobbly antennae, the red-headed cardinal beetle lives up to its name. Look for it in woodland, along hedgerows and in parks and gardens over summer.

Also known as 'Scorpion-grass' because of the curved 'tail' at the end of its stems, Water forget-me-not is a distinctive plant of damp habitats. Over summer, it produces…

The fluffy, white seed heads of traveller's-joy give it the evocative, alternative names of 'old man's beard' and 'Father Christmas'. A climbing plant, it can be seen…

Water-soldier grows submerged in ponds and open water, and pops up over summer, looking like the top of a pineapple! This rare plant displays white flowers and shelters many aquatic insects.