Selfheal
Selfheal is a low-growing, creeping plant that likes the short turf of grasslands, roadside verges or even lawns. Its clusters of violet flowers appear in summer.
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Chwilio
Water-plantain
Water-plantain is an aquatic plant of shallow water and muddy banks. In bloom over summer, it displays tall branches of loosely clustered, pale lilac flowers.
My muse
Mark suffers from Paranoid Schizophrenia, meaning that in bustling areas the voices he can hear become overwhelming. They are his muses, but can get overpowering. When he’s outside in the garden,…
Little grebe
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.
Botanist volunteers
Use your botany skills to help us assess the condition of our nature reserves this summer.
Gudgeon
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…
My classroom
Passionate about the oceans and the diverse life that they hold, Bex is lucky enough to be able to teach scuba diving to university students at Plymouth University. This provides her with the…
Lowland dry oak and birch wood
Gnarled veteran oaks are interspersed with groves of pale, elegant birches, while swathes of bracken and soft tussocks of wavy hair-grass cover ground from which autumn fungi sprout.…
Common clubtail
The common clubtail is on the wing in spring and summer. It is an elusive dragonfly that is easiest to see when it first emerges. It can be found along rivers in Southern England and Wales.
Common mallow
Common mallow is a handsome 'weed' of waste ground, roadside verges and gardens. Its deep pink, stripey flowers provide nectar for insects throughout the summer.
Foxglove
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.
Caledonian forest
Caledonian forest forms an integral part of some of our wildest landscapes - extensive pine forests merge with heathlands, wetlands and montane habitats and create areas large enough for wildcat,…