Red-tailed mason bee
Also known as the two-coloured mason bee, this beautiful bee is famous for nesting in old snail shells.
Also known as the two-coloured mason bee, this beautiful bee is famous for nesting in old snail shells.
This black and grey solitary bee takes to the wing in spring, when it can be seen buzzing around burrows in open ground.
The shrill carder bee can be spotted flying quickly around flowers in unimproved pastures. The queens produce a loud, high-pitched buzz, hence the name. It is declining rapidly and is restricted…
Swifts and swallows are flying high this time of year. After the long Swift migration from Africa, they are resident in many parts of the UK during spring and summer, here's how you can help…
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.
Discover more about our amazing wildlife in the UK! Learn more about the plants and animals on your doorstep.
The hairy-footed flower bee can be seen in gardens and parks in spring and summer, visiting tubular flowers like red dead-nettle and comfrey. As its name suggests, it has long, orange hairs on its…
Solitary bees are important pollinators and a gardener’s friend. Help them by building a bee hotel for your home or garden and watch them buzz happily about their business.
A visit to a traditional orchard reveals gnarled old trunks of fruit and nut trees bursting with blossoms and young leaves in springtime, with wildflowers and insects populating summer’s long…
An easily overlooked orchid, the Common twayblade is yellow-green and less showy than other UK orchids. Look for it in woodlands and grasslands on chalky soils, in particular.
This small, round sea urchin is (unsurprisingly!) green in colour and can be found on rocky shores around the UK.
This large round urchin is sometimes found in rockpools, recognisable by its pink spiky shell (known as a test).