Broad-bodied chaser
The Broad-bodied chaser is a common dragonfly that can be seen in summer around ponds and lakes, and even in gardens. It lives up to its name: its flattened body gives it a fat, broad look.
The Broad-bodied chaser is a common dragonfly that can be seen in summer around ponds and lakes, and even in gardens. It lives up to its name: its flattened body gives it a fat, broad look.
Ben keeps a diary of all the wildlife that he spots. He challenges himself to see new species: if he finds something that he doesn’t recognise, he takes a photograph so that he can look it up.
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 blue-tailed damselfly does, indeed, have a blue tail. It is one of our most common species and frequents gardens - try digging a wildlife pond to attract dragonflies and damselflies.
Rewilding is the large-scale restoration of nature to the point it can take care of itself – restoring habitats and natural processes, and where appropriate reintroducing missing species.
…It is easy to be confused by these flower-like animals with flowery names! The ‘daisy’ anemone is one of the larger UK anemone species!
A very rare species, this moth is now limited to one site in the UK. Males can be a striking reddish buff in colour.
The largest of the UK wrasse species, the ballan wrasse with its striking patterning is a delight for any rocky reef snorkeller or shallow water diver!
Freshwater pearl mussels spend their adult lives anchored to the river bed, filtering water through their gills and improving the quality of the water for other species.
The Migrant hawker is not a particularly aggressive species, and may be seen feeding in large groups. It flies late into autumn and can be seen in gardens, grasslands and woodlands.
Fat hen is a persistent 'weed' of fields and gardens, verges and hedgerows. But, like many of our weed species, it is a good food source for birds and insects.