English oak
The English oak is, perhaps, our most iconic tree: the one that almost every child and adult alike could draw the lobed leaf of, or describe the acorn fruits of. A widespread tree, it is prized…
The English oak is, perhaps, our most iconic tree: the one that almost every child and adult alike could draw the lobed leaf of, or describe the acorn fruits of. A widespread tree, it is prized…
The ptarmigan is a master of disguise - matching its Highland surroundings perfectly by turning snow-white in winter and rock-grey in summer. It is confined to the mountains of Scotland, so is…
One of our prettiest and smallest bumble bees, the early bumblebee has a bright orange tail and lemon-yellow bands on its body. It is very common and can be found in all kinds of habitats in early…
The giant house spider is one of our fastest invertebrates, running up to half a metre per second. This large, brown spider spins sheet-like cobwebs and pops up in the dark corners of houses,…
The reserve comprises the western end of one of the largest remaining floodplains or valley mires in Wales, supporting tall fen, fen meadow, wet heath and carr communities and associated species.…
The downlooker snipefly gets its name from its habit of sitting on posts or sunny trees with its head facing down to the ground, waiting for passing prey. It prefers grassland, scrub and woodland…
The common banded hoverfly has a fitting name: it is not only one of our most common species, its black body is also covered in yellow bands! It can be seen in many habitats from gardens to…
There are several species of spider that live in our wetlands, but the water spider is the only one that spends its life under the water. In its pond habitats, it looks silvery because of the air…
One of our most extensive habitats, moorlands cover huge areas in the uplands. Great expanses of unenclosed, wild-seeming land impart a sense of freedom and adventure, although the wide, open…
Soft brome is a tall, annual grass of roadside verges, waste ground and meadows, and is a 'weed' of arable land. It has long, grey-green leaves and loosely clustered flower spikes.
One of our largest ducks, the shelduck is a handsome creature with a dark green head, red bill and chestnut-brown band across its white body. Look out for it around most of our coastline,…
We face an urgent nature and climate crisis. The situation is dire, with more than one in ten species in England on the brink of extinction and the UK amongst the most nature-depleted countries in…