Forming mats of straight, bright green stems, Common spike-rush does, indeed, look like lots of tightly clustered 'spikes' near the water's edge of our wetland habitats.

Common couch is a tall, tuft-forming grass of roadside verges, waste ground and arable land. It is very tough and can shade out more delicate plants. Look for flat, blade-like leaves and thin…

The white admiral is a striking black-and-white butterfly with a delicate flight that includes long glides. It prefers shady woodlands where it feeds on bramble.

The brown rat has a bad reputation, but it mostly lives side-by-side with us without any problems. It can be seen in any habitat.

As its name suggests, Water dock likes damp places, such as the egdes of canals, ponds and rivers. It is a tall plant with large, greenish flower spikes.

This unmistakeable moth, famous for its skull-shaped marking, is a rare visitor to the UK.

This brown seaweed lives high up on rocky shores, just below the high water mark. Its blades are usually twisted, giving it the name Spiral Wrack.

This yellow-brown seaweed grows in tufts at the very top of rocky shores. Its fronds curls at the sides, creating the channel that gives Chanelled Wrack its name.