Common toads are tail-less amphibians that have warty skin with distinct elongated bulges behind their eyes, called parotoid glands. Common toads tend to walk rather than jump.

It can be distinguished from other species of toads by the bright yellow line running the length of it's back. It is also smaller than the common toad and is olive green in colour with green/gold... more

The Great Crested Newt is Britain's largest newt and also it's most threatened. They appear almost black to the naked eye but in fact have grey/brown colouration covered in dark spots.

Females and non-breeding males are pale brown or olive green, sometimes with two darker stripes down the back. Both sexes have an orange belly but the females is paler and their bellies are... more

The Smooth Snake is a slender snake covered in smooth flat scales and vary in colour from grey, brown to reddish-brown with a pattern of dark spots running down the back. They also have a dark... more

Adults have a rather slender body with an angular pointed snout. The basic colour varies but brownish hues are usual. Viewed from above a vertebral row of dark spots and patches are visible

Pale silvery blue, wide sooty brown margin on forewing, black dots around edge of hindwing. Female brown with faint orange spots on edge of the hindwing. Fringes chequered in both male and female... more

A large butterfly with a white ground colour and clear black veins. It's rounded wings are bordered with a narrow black margin. The upper and underwings are similar, yet the females veins are... more

The ground colour is a rich chocolate brown with a single black spot on each of the forewings, bordered with a row of orange spots and edged with a white fringe. The underwing is greyish brown... more

A strong, fast-flying butterfly which feeds and lays its eggs on various species of clover. It is less common in Britain today, a mention should be made that the Clouded Yellow has been a more... more

The upperside is a rich brown ground colour, orange markings and a whitish chequered fringe. The underwing is a lighter tawny brown with dark spots on the forewing and white spots on the hindwing... more

The upperwings are predominantly orange in colour with a wide border of brown along the side of the wing that becomes narrower, but still very noticeable along the leading edge. There is also a... more

Underwing mottled-brown. Appears larger in flight when pale yellow-orange bands can be seen. Cryptic colouring provides the Grayling with excellent camouflage, making it difficult to see when at... more

Wings white with prominent greenish veins on hind wing. Uppers have one or more spots. Small White is similar but lacks green veins. The Green-veined White can be found throughout the countryside... more

One of the smallest and darkest of our orange and brown fritillaries, but also one of the rarest. 

Both male and female have blue upperwings although the females is slightly lighter they both have a chequered fringe. The male has a narrow dark margin, but it is more extensive on the female and... more

Upperwings dark brown and orange brown with pale markings. Underwings buff-ish orange with paler spots.
The male has a black strip of scent scales in the middle of the forewing which is... more

The Long-tailed blue is one of the commonest butterflies in the world, however it is a very rare migrant to Britain. It has false eyes at the base of it's long tails which give a head and antenna... more

A striking butterfly - The upperside is creamy white and black patches with an almost white scalloped margin. The underwing is a much paler almost grey version of the upper. The male and female... more

A dull dark brown upper wing, with pale orange patches visible on some of these butterflies, together with a black spot encircling a white centre resembling an eye in the corner of each forewing.... more

This beautiful and perhaps best known butterfly shares its name with the equally colourful Peacock bird. Mainly burnt orange on its upper wings, large blue centred eyespots are apparent. The wing... more

The majestic Purple Emperor is the second largest Uk species, second only to the Swallowtail. The purple sheen that's present on the males can only be seen from certain angles and light conditions... more

A striking almost black butterfly with distinctive orange bands across the upper forewings and to the margins of the hindwings, which include a blue patch on the inner wing. There are white... more

Very dark brown with row of black eyespots with white centre on each wing. Eyespots are surrounded by orange. As its name suggests, this butterfly is found predominantly in Scotland where it flies... more

Females brown with row of red spots. Undersides brown-grey with black spots, a row of orange spots, and small greenish flecks on outer margin. Males similar to Common Blue, which lacks greenish... more

The male has a bit of bluish suffusion at the base of is upperwings but is mostly dark brown like the females. The undersides is a silvery grey with small black dots. The male has a bluish tint at... more

The Small Heath always rests and feeds with it's wings closed, thus making it difficult to ever view the upperwings. The upperwings are an orange-brown ground colour with a narrow grey margin, it... more

Moth-like, the male and female butterflies are similar in appearance, with the exception of the black scent line across each upper forewing of the male. Orange/brown with faint black veins and... more

A similar smaller version of the Large White butterfly. The upperside is creamy white with black tips to the forewings. Females also have two black spots in the centre of the forewings. Its... more

Upperwings open, reveal bright orange-yellow colouring with dark borders, veins and wavy crosslines becoming more dusky towards the body. Across each forewing, the male has a stripe of dark scent... more

A delicate dainty butterfly with feeble like flight, which has broad and rounded wings, and has a white yellowish ground colour with grey streaks. Also has quite a distinctive black smudgy spot on... more

Has to be the most distinctive butterfly - jagged edge to it's wings, with an orange ground colour and dark markings. It's underwing is mottled brown and has that comma mark from which it earns it... more

The Dark Green Fritillary is a fast-flying butterfly which can be seen skimming and soaring between flowers, thistles being one of it's favourites. It has a green background on the underside of... more

Upperwings white with rounded edges. Males have black mark in edge of forewing. Undersides white with indistinct grey or greenish markings. Wood White is very similar, but in Ireland seems to be... more

Large orange butterfly that is thought to be extinct and occurs only as a rare migrant. Larger and duller colourings than Small Tortoiseshell and lacks white spot in corner of forewing.

The Chequered Skipper is easily identified and beautifully marked with it's upper wings of chequered orange buffish spots on a brown chocolate like ground colour, and it's wings edged with a pale... more

This very colourful, medium-sized butterfly is a strong flier and is easily picked out and identified. The forewings are dark brown. The margin is ridged. On the wing leading edge there are two... more

A small-medium sized butterfly that is very rare in southern England. Wings blue with broad dark margins and large black spots on forewings. Undersides pale brown with black spots. Extinct (1979)... more

A dark brown butterfly with row of black-centred orange eyespots on wings. Similar to Scotch Argus, which has white dots in the eyespots. The adults are highly active only in bright sunshine but... more

Male upper-side violet blue female sooty brown sometimes with dusting of blue. A short tail on hind wing and two orange spots

Both sexes have azure blue spots on each abdominal segment and the thorax also has azure markings. The markings on the male are brighter and more conspicuous than in the female.

Only two species of damselfly in Britain have obviously coloured wings. They both belong to the genus Calopteryx. In this species the wings of the mature male have a dark blue-black band across... more

This small heathland and moorland species is the only UK black dragonfly (males). The legs are entirely black. There is a constriction of the abdomen around S4, giving a club-shaped appearance.... more

Mature males always have a blue spot at the "tail" (S8), blue ant-humeral stripes on the thorax and blue eyes. Females vary with at least 5 different colour forms.

The very broad, flattened abdomen is characteristic making the insect appear "fat". Both sexes have pale blue, thin ante-humeral stripes and brown eyes. The wing bases are very dark brown.

In many ways this could be considered to be the most typical British damselfly. It shares its blue and black colouration with several other species.

Both sexes appear yellowish when viewed from the underside. The pale brown pterostigma is longer than in other Coenagrion species. In the male, S2 has a "wine-goblet" shaped mark, occasionally... more

This damselfly is metallic green. The male develops a blue pruinescence on segments 1, 2, 9 and 10 as it matures. The female is thicker bodied than the male with no blue pruinescence.

Both sexes have a brown ground colour becoming darker over the head and almost orange on the sides of the thorax. The posterior half of the abdomen is black with the sides of the abdomen edged... more

This large Hawker is one of the commonest in North America but in 1998, after hurricane conditions in the USA, it was recorded from the Scilly Isles and Cornwall.

Length: 40-44mmThe abdomen appears quite slim and has a pronounced dorsal keel. The wings have a straw yellow costa and yellow or brown pterostigma. At rest, the wings are often held well forward... more

Length: 71mmThis relative of the much more common Emperor Dragonfly is smaller and duller in colour but the bright blue saddle at S2 is very noticeable. The rest of the abdomen is brownish

At first glance, both sexes resemble Blue-tailed Damselfly rather than other Coenagrion species. The pale brown pterostigma is longer than in other Coenagrion species.

This species is found in only a few small lochans in Scotland. In the male, S2 has a rather variable, spear-head shaped spot linked rather like the cards ? "Spades" symbol. S8 and S9 are blue

The Orange-spotted Emerald has bright green eyes and yellow or orange, elongated spots along the length of the dorsal surface of the abdomen. The thorax and ground colour of the slender abdomen is... more

The bright red males and clear yellow-brown females are attractive. The eyes are brown above and blue below and the wing bases are yellow. The pterostigma is yellow to orange strongly outlined in... more

The Scarce Blue-tailed is one of a number of small British Damselflies. Typically Males have a black abdomen with green or blue sides and a small patch of blue near the tip covering segments eight... more

The Scarce Emerald Damselfly is a medium sized metallic green insect that usually rests with its wings half open. Adult males have blue eyes and have powder blue pruinescence on the thorax

One of our smallest damselflies, this is one of only two red damselfly species in the UK. The male has an all red abdomen. The female exists in several colour forms varying in the amount of red... more

The Southern Damselfly, Coenagrion mercuriale, is one of five members of the genus Coenagrion currently to be found in the British Isles (two others have gone extinct in the last 40 years) and one... more

A large, inquisitive Hawker usually seen individually. It may fly quite close to investigate observers. The spots on segments S8-10 are joined, unlike other Hawkers. The ante-humeral stripes are... more

In the male, the ante-humeral stripes are usually broken, like two exclamation marks. S2 has a "wine-goblet" shaped marked, usually joined to the inter-segmental line by its stalk

Adult males have obvious expanded, white legs which are used in a fluttering display flight in front of females. The male is pale blue with paired black markings on S2-6. S7-10 are more... more

It has a very narrow 'waist'.
Flies from May-August.