Tawny owls are the familiar brown owls of Britain’s woodlands, parks and gardens. They are known for their ‘too-wit too-woo’ song that can be heard at night-time.

The aromatic fragrance of Large thyme can punctuate a summer walk over a chalk grassland. It is an evergreen that grows low to the ground, with erect spikes of tiny, lilac flowers appearing over…

The brimstone moth is a yellow, night-flying moth with distinctive brown-and-white spots on its angular forewings. It frequently visits gardens, but also likes woods, scrub and grasslands.

Toadflax-leaved St John's-wort has star-shaped, bright yellow flowers. It is a rare plant, with most of its population existing on Dartmoor. It likes steep, sunny slopes, acidic soils and…

Petty spurge is found on cultivated ground, such as gardens, fields and waste ground. It displays cup-shaped, green flowers in clusters and oval, green leaves.

The subject of much myth and legend, and a herbal remedy, perforate St John's-wort is a familiar flower. It has star-shaped, bright yellow flowers and lots of tiny holes in its leaves that…

As its name suggests, giant hogweed it a large umbellifer with distinctively ridged, hollow stems. An introduced species, it is an invasive weed of riverbanks, where it prevents native species…

The lime hawk-moth is a large, night-flying moth that can be seen from May to July in gardens, parks and woods. It is buff-coloured, with green patches on its scalloped-edged wings.