As the name suggests, this tall, white heron is considerably larger than the similar little egret. Once a rare visitor to the UK, sightings have become more common over the last few decades, with…

A climbing plant of woodlands, hedgerows, riverbanks and gardens, Hedge bindweed can become a pest in some places. It has large, trumpet-shaped, white flowers and arrow-shaped leaves.

The common name of the bloody-nosed beetle derives from its unusual defence mechanism: when threatened, it secretes a distasteful blood-red liquid from its mouth. This flightless beetle can be…

Yellow corydalis is a familiar 'weed' of gardens, walls and rocky places. It is a garden escapee in the UK, so is not a native plant. Try choosing natives for your garden to prevent…

Crosswort gets its name from the position of its leaves - they surround the stem in groups of four, making a cross shape. The tiny, yellow flowers sit atop these crosses and bloom from April to…

Tansy is an aromatic plant of rough grassland, riverbanks and verges that has button-like, yellow flower heads. It is the main foodplant of the rare Tansy Beetle, now found at only two places in…

The violet click beetle is a very rare beetle that lives in decaying wood, particularly common beech and ash. It gets its name from its habit of springing upwards with an audible click if it falls…