Polecat
Known for its bandit-like appearance, the polecat was once so persecuted it was on the brink of extinction in the UK. Thankfully, numbers are now increasing in rural Wales and parts of England.…
Known for its bandit-like appearance, the polecat was once so persecuted it was on the brink of extinction in the UK. Thankfully, numbers are now increasing in rural Wales and parts of England.…
The Scots pine is the native pine of Scotland and once stood in huge forests. It suffered large declines, however, as it was felled for timber and fuel. Today, it is making a comeback - good news…
Large scale drainage in the UK has seen a massive reduction in the range of this sensitive aquatic plant which now only occurs in around 50 sites in England.
The rare heath fritillary was on the brink of extinction in the 1970s, but conservation action turned its fortunes around. It is still confined to a small number of sites in the south of England,…
Despite its name, the large blue is a fairly small butterfly, but the largest of our blues. It was declared extinct in 1979, but reintroduced in the 1980s and now survives in southern England.
Bottlenose dolphins in British waters are the biggest of their kind – they need to be able to cope with our chilly waters! They are very sociable and will happily swim alongside boats, providing…
A scarce tree of central and southern England, in particular, the Small-leaved Lime can be found in ancient woodland. It is has sweet-smelling flowers in summer and nut-like fruits in autumn.
The black poplar is a large tree of floodplains, flooded gravel pits and ditches, particularly in England. Despite being an important part of our culture for centuries, it has declined massively…
Standing proud and tall, the red deer is our largest deer. With its massive antlers, it is an unmistakeable icon of the Scottish Highlands, but can be seen in northwest and southern England, too…
An introduced species, the Rhododendron leafhopper is a striking mix of green and red, with a black stripe across its face. It can be found feeding on Rhododendrons (also introduced) in Southern…
The small blue's name is a little misleading: it is our smallest butterfly, but only shows a dusting of blue on brown wings. It is scarce, occurring on chalk grassland, mostly in southern…
Unsurprisingly, the chalkhill blue can be found on sunny, chalk grassland sites in southern England. Clouds of this beautiful blue butterfly may be seen fluttering around low-growing flowers.