Yellow wagtail
The yellow wagtail can be spotted running about, chasing insects on lowland damp marshes and meadows during summer. As its name suggests, it does wag its tail!
The yellow wagtail can be spotted running about, chasing insects on lowland damp marshes and meadows during summer. As its name suggests, it does wag its tail!
A member of the buttercup family, Common water-crowfoot displays white, buttercup-like flowers with yellow centres. It can form mats in ponds, ditches and streams during spring and summer.
As its name suggests, the Large Skipper is bigger than the similar-looking Small Skipper! It can be seen in summer, resting on the long grass of grasslands, woodlands, verges and sand dunes.
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 Common field grasshopper can be found in sunny, grassy areas, particularly gardens, throughout summer. Males can be seen rubbing their legs against their wings to create a 'song' for…
Look out for the small Holly Blue in your garden or local park. It is the first blue butterfly to emerge in spring, and a second generation appears in summer. The caterpillars are fond of holly…
Meadow crane's-bill has striking violet flowers that pepper hay meadows, verges and grasslands with colour in summer. It is also a popular choice for gardeners and attracts a wide variety of…
A common thistle of roadside verges, rough grassland and waste ground, the Musk thistle has large, purple, nodding flower heads that appear in summer. It is attractive to a wide range of insects…
As its name suggests, Red bartsia does have a red tinge to its stem, leaves and small flowers. Look for it on roadside verges, railway cuttings and waste ground in summer.
Wild marjoram is actually the same aromatic herb as oregano which is used in Mediterranean cooking. Its small, pink flower clusters can be seen on chalk and limestone grasslands in summer.
Flowering rush is a pretty rush-like plant of shallow wetland habitats, such as ponds, canals and ditches. Its cup-shaped, pink flowers appear in summer, brightening up the water's edge.
The broad-bordered bee hawk-moth does, indeed, look like a bee! A scarce moth, mainly of Central and Southern England, it feeds on the wing and can be seen during spring and summer.