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.

The UK hosts a small, but important, breeding population of ruff. The ruff is a large sandpiper that is so-called due to the large ruff of feathers around the males' neck. This is used in a…

Pignut is a small umbellifer, with edible tubers, that is found in woods, hedges and grasslands.

Mackerel are a sign of summer's arrival, when they appear inshore in huge numbers all around the UK. As well as being a sustainable seafood choice, they are an important food source for many…

The UK's smallest whale, the minke whale, is notoriously inquisitive around boats and is even known to breach clear of the water. Beware though - their fragrant breath has given them the…

The river lamprey is a primitive, jawless fish, with a round, sucker-mouth which it uses to attach to other fish to feed from them. Adults live in the sea and return to freshwater to spawn.

A key species in the story of conservation, the avocet represents an amazing recovery of a bird once extinct in the UK. This pied bird, with its distinctive upturned bill, can now be seen on…

A regular in gardens, hunting around compost heaps and under stones, the brown centipede is a common minibeast. Despite its name, it has 15 pairs of legs - one on each segment of its body.

So-named because its gnarled trunk can split as it grows, the crack willow can be seen along riverbanks, around lakes and in wet woodlands. Like other willows, it produces catkins in spring.