Edible periwinkles are a common sight when rockpooling and can be found in huge numbers on the shore.

Stone curlews are unusual waders with large yellow eyes - perfect for hunting beetles at night.

These beloved spiny mammals come out at night to hoover up beetles, worms and other invertebrates.

This dazzling moss grows in dark places, catching any faint light to glow a golden-green.

This charming little warbler is an increasingly common sight in autumn, when migrants pass through the UK.

The metallic-green emerald damselfly can be seen from June to September around ponds, lakes, ditches and canals. Unlike other damselflies, it holds its wings half-open when perched.

Look out for the white, umbrella-like flower heads of lesser water-parsnip along the shallow margins of ditches, ponds, lakes and rivers. When crushed, it does, indeed, smell like parsnip!

Watch the deadly accurate flying of the spotted flycatcher in woodlands, gardens and parks. It sits quietly on a perch waiting for an unsuspecting insect to fly by, deftly dashing out to seize it…

This pretty, speckled moth is now a rare sight, found only in a few parts of southern England.

One of our commonest willows, the goat willow is a small tree that is found in ditches, reedbeds and wet woodland. It is well-known for its silver, fluffy catkins that give it another name, '…

One of our commonest willows, the grey willow is a small tree that is found in ditches, reedbeds and wet woodland. It is well-known for its silver, fluffy catkins that give it another name, '…

The large, golden flowers of marsh-marigold look like the cups of kings, hence its other name: 'kingcup'. It favours damp spots, like ponds, meadows, marshes, ditches and wet woodlands…