Variable damselfly
The variable damselfly looks a lot like the azure damselfly, but is much less common throughout most of the UK.
The variable damselfly looks a lot like the azure damselfly, but is much less common throughout most of the UK.
The tiny firecrest vies with the goldcrest for the title of the UK's smallest bird. Once just a visitor, the firecrest can now be found breeding in woodlands in the south of England.
A notoriously poisonous plant, hemlock produces umbrella-like clusters of white flowers in summer. It can be found in damp places, such as ditches, riverbanks and waste ground.
Sugar kelp is the crinkly belt like kelp that can often be found in deep rockpools on the lower shore or washed up on the beach after rough seas.
Red squirrels are native to the UK but are a lot rarer than their grey cousins. They live in a few special places across the UK thanks to reintroduction projects.
Hedgerows are one of our most easily encountered wildlife habitats, found lining roads, railways and footpaths, bordering fields and gardens and on the coast.
Stephen walks around his local patch once or twice a week throughout the year. He looks and listens carefully to discover the wild creatures hidden in the reedbed and surrounding woods.
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Often found carpeting damp grassland and woodland clearings, the blue flower spikes of bugle are very recognisable. A short, creeping plant, it spreads using runners.
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.
Found around our coasts during the breeding season, the little tern is a diminutive seabird. Despite its size, it performs remarkable aerial courtship displays.
Often found basking on tall grasses, or buzzing between stems, the small skipper is a small, orange butterfly. It prefers rough grassland, verges and woodland edges.
Their empty, delicate pink or yellow shells can often be found washed up on beaches, but the animals themselves live buried in the sand all around the coasts of the UK.