As its name suggests, the shaggy inkcap, or 'lawyer's wig', has a woolly, scaly surface to its bell-shaped toadstools. It is very common and can be seen at the road side, in…

A ferocious and agile predator, the green tiger beetle hunts spiders, ants and caterpillars on heaths, grasslands and sand dunes. It is one of our fastest insects and a dazzling metallic green…

The garden tiger is an attractive, brown-and-white moth of sand dunes, woodland edges, meadows and hedgerows; it will also visit gardens. In decline, it is suffering from the 'tidying up…

A plant of chalk and limestone grasslands and sand dunes, Yellow-wort has butter-yellow flowers. Its distinctive leaves sit opposite each other, but are fused together around the stem.

The pretty small tortoiseshell is a familiar garden visitor that can be seen feeding on flowers all year-round during warm spells. Overwintering adults may find resting spots in sheds, garages or…

Flitting about the house in summer, the gangly, brown daddy longlegs is familiar to many of us. They are a valuable food source for many birds.

A 'weed' of cultivated and disturbed ground, Round-leaved fluellen is a trailing plant with round leaves and yellow flowers that appear over summer.

The little grebe is a fantastic diver, but to help it swim underwater, its feet are placed towards the back of its body, making it rather clumsy on land. It only really comes ashore to breed.

The gudgeon is a bottom-dwelling fish, similar to the stone loach, but with only two whisker-like barbels near its mouth. These sensory organs help it to find its prey in the sand and gravel of…

A climbing plant of hedgerows and woodlands, Black bryony produces greenish flowers in summer and red, shiny berries in autumn. It is a poisonous plant.