Noble chafer
The Noble chafer is a rare and beautiful metallic-green beetle that can be found in traditional orchards. It is on the wing over summer, feeding on umbellifers. The larvae live in the decaying…
The Noble chafer is a rare and beautiful metallic-green beetle that can be found in traditional orchards. It is on the wing over summer, feeding on umbellifers. The larvae live in the decaying…
A sprawling, spiny evergreen, Common juniper is famous for its traditional role in gin-making. Once common on downland, moorland and coastal heathland, it is now much rarer due to habitat loss.…
The velvet shank can be found clustered on the dead and dying wood of deciduous trees, such as elm, ash, beech or oak. It has a bright orange cap and can be seen throughout winter.
Ancient wild wood
Sand dunes are places of constant change and movement. Wander through them on warm summer days for orchids, bees and other wildlife, or experience the forces of nature behind their creation - the…
Slabs of smooth grey rock, incised with deep fissures and patterned with swirling hollows and runnels sculpted by thousands of years of rainwater, form an unlikely wildlife habitat. Look a little…
The eerie, 'cur-lee' call of the curlew is a recognisable sound of wet grasslands, moorlands, farmland and coasts. Its long, downcurved bill is an unmistakeable feature and perfect for…
The green spaces of our towns and gardens bring nature into our daily lives, brightening our mornings with birdsong and the busy buzzing of bees. Together, the UK's gardens are larger than…
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,…
In April and May, our ancient woodlands are awash with the much-loved, nodding heads of the bluebell. Millions of bulbs can exist in just one wood, giving rise to the 'blue carpets' that…
The water vole is under serious threat from habitat loss and predation by the American mink. Found along our waterways, it is similar-looking to the brown rat, but with a blunt nose, small ears…
Most arable fields are large, featureless monocultures devoid of wildlife, but here and there are smaller fields and tucked away corners that are farmed less intensively, or are managed…