Purple topshell
Also known as the flat topshell, these are one of the most common and colourful sea snails you are likely to see when out on a rockpool safari!
Water vole by Terry Whittaker/2020VISION
Also known as the flat topshell, these are one of the most common and colourful sea snails you are likely to see when out on a rockpool safari!
As its name suggests, Himalayan balsam is from the Himalayas and was introduced here in 1839. It now an invasive weed of riverbanks and ditches, where it prevents native species from growing.
Despite appearances, the slow worm is actually a legless lizard, not a worm or a snake! Look out for it basking in the sun on heathlands and grasslands, or even in the garden, where it favours…
After undergoing brain surgery, Simone suffered from severe headaches and was worried that she would find volunteering with Durham Wildlife Trust too strenuous; in fact, she has found that the…
Bev is grateful to live down the road from Potteric Carr Nature Reserve, a 210ha wetland site which stores excess water from the River Torne during times of high
rainfall. This saved her…
Heather is also called 'ling'. Look for it on our heaths, moors and bogs, where its delicate, loosely arranged pink flowers attract all kinds of nectar-loving insects.
The muntjac deer was introduced into the UK from China in the 20th century. It has gained a stronghold in southeast England, where it can cause damage to our woods through browsing.
Brush through a wildflower meadow at the height of summer and you'll hear the tiny seeds of yellow-rattle rattling in their brown pods, hence its name.
As its name suggests, giant hogweed it a large umbellifer with distinctively ridged, hollow stems. An introduced species, it is an invasive weed of riverbanks, where it prevents native species…
The fearsome common backswimmer hunts insects, tadpoles and fish. It uses its oar-like legs to swim upside-down under the water's surface where unsuspecting prey can be found.
Did you know that there are coral reefs in the UK? UK seas are home to some amazing cold-water corals that form reefs on the seabed over 400m deep.
Look out for this tiny crab under rocks and boulders on rocky shores - you'll have to look closely though, they're pretty well camouflaged!