The spiked shieldbug has fearsome shoulder projections or 'spikes' and a predatory nature. This brown bug feeds on caterpillars and other insects in woodlands and on heathlands.

The Foxglove is a familiar, tall plant, with pink flower spikes and a deadly nature. In summer, it can be spotted in woodlands and gardens, and on moorlands, roadside verges and waste grounds.

The song of the skylark has been the subject of many great musical and literary works. A quintessential feature of our farmland and grasslands habitats, it is declining rapidly with habitat loss…

The black poplar is a large tree of floodplains, flooded gravel pits and ditches, particularly in England. Despite being an important part of our culture for centuries, it has declined massively…

Ivy-leaved toadflax is an introduced species in the UK that has become widely naturalised. Look for creeping along old walls and pavements, and shingle beaches. Its flowers resemble those of…

Found in ponds and marshes, the fragile look of the Common water-measurer belies its fierce nature. A predator of small insects, it uses the vibrations of the water's surface to locate its…

The eerie, 'cur-lee' call of the curlew is a recognisable sound of wet grasslands, moorlands, farmland and coasts. Its long, downcurved bill is an unmistakeable feature and perfect for…

Escaped or intentionally freed from fur farms in the 1960s, the American mink is now well established in the UK. Its carnivorous nature is a threat to our native water vole and seabird populations…