Oak bush-cricket
The Oak bush-cricket is arboreal and can be found in mature trees in woods, hedges, parks and gardens in summer. Males don't have a 'song' as such, but drum on leaves with their…
The Oak bush-cricket is arboreal and can be found in mature trees in woods, hedges, parks and gardens in summer. Males don't have a 'song' as such, but drum on leaves with their…
The palmate newt looks similar to the smooth newt, but favours shallow pools on acidic soils like heathlands. During the breeding season, males grow distinctive black webbing on their hind feet.…
The rhinoceros beetle lives up to its name by sporting a distinctive 'horn' on the males' head. This glossy, blue-black beetle can be found in woods, parks and hedgerows, and…
The Tawny mining bee is a furry, gingery bee that can often be seen in parks and gardens during the springtime. Look for a volcano-like mound of earth in the lawn that marks the entrance to its…
The mohawk-sporting caterpillar of this moth is often seen on shrubs and trees in late summer. As adults the orange-brown males fly by day, but the flightless females don't stray far from…
Bilberries appear in summer and early autumn and are often turned into jams, pies and sauces...
One of the UK’s rarest marine species, this giant of the rocky shore is a very special fish.
The glow-worm is not actually a worm, but a beetle. Males look like typical beetles, but the nightly glow of a female is unmistakeable - lighting up to attract a mate in the darkness of their…
If you have a garden pond, look out for the Large red damselfly resting at the water's edge. As the name suggests, males are bright red with a black thorax, but females may be almost entirely…
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…
In summer, the sedge warbler can be spotted singing from a reed or willow perch in wetlands across the UK. Males never sing the same song twice, adding new phrases to impress the females.
The Speckled bush-cricket, as its name suggests, is covered in tiny, black speckles. It can be found in scrub, hedgerows and gardens throughout summer. Males rub their wings together to create a…