Great diving beetle
The Great diving beetle is a large and voracious predator of ponds and slow-moving waterways. Blackish-green in colour, it can be spotted coming to the surface to replenish the air supply it…
The Great diving beetle is a large and voracious predator of ponds and slow-moving waterways. Blackish-green in colour, it can be spotted coming to the surface to replenish the air supply it…
Violet ground beetles are active predators, coming out at night to hunt slugs and other invertebrates in gardens, woodlands and meadows.
This brightly-coloured beetle is often found feeding on flowers on warm days in late spring and summer.
These distinctive beetles are often found around dead birds and small mammals.
The common red soldier beetle is also known as the 'bloodsucker' for its striking red appearance, but it is harmless. It is a beneficial garden insect as the adults eat aphids, and the…
These bulky beetles can sometimes be found on flowers in woodland rides or along hedgerows.
This beautiful beetle is fond of damp meadows and woodland rides, where it's often found on umbellifers or thistles.
Steve Garland, Chair of Lancashire Wildlife Trust and beetle expert, explores the world of these incredible, armoured insects.
The wasp spider is a great mimic - looking just like a common wasp keeps it safe from predators, even though it is not dangerous itself. It can be found in southern England, but is spreading north…
If seen up close, the glittering Ruby-tailed wasp is, perhaps, one of the UK's most beautiful insects. A solitary wasp, it can be found in sandy and rocky habitats like quarries, outcrops and…
The knopper gall wasp produces knobbly red, turning to brown, growths, or 'galls', on the acorns of Pedunculate Oak. Inside the gall, the larvae of the wasp feed on the host tissues, but…
Living up to its name, the cherry gall wasp produces growths, or 'galls', on oak leaves that look like red cherries. Inside the gall the larvae of the wasp feed on the host tissues but…