Cotoneaster was introduced to the UK in 1879 from Eastern Asia as an ornamental plant. It is now an invasive non-native species which is taking over valuable habitats including limestone…

Introduced from Japan in the 19th century, Japanese knotweed is now an invasive non-native plant of many riverbanks, waste grounds and roadside verges, where it prevents native species from…

The parent bug lives up to its name. The female lays her eggs on a silver birch leaf, watching over them until they hatch. She stays with the young until they are adults. Other shield bugs lay…

Look out for this weevil on oak trees, where females lay their eggs inside acorns.

Mainly found in southern and eastern England, the common hornbeam is a tall tree of ancient woodlands. Its large catkins appear in spring, and its winged seeds are dispersed by the wind in autumn…

The grayling is one of our largest brown butterflies and a master of disguise - its cryptic colouring helps to camouflage it against bare earth and stones in its coastal habitats and on inland…

This stocky relative of grasshoppers is found on damp ground close to water.

This dazzling blue-green shieldbug is a predator, hunting other insects.