The bullet ant

Handsome, chunky and often brightly marked, shieldbugs emerge in spring, quietly shaping the life of hedgerow and garden

Adrian Thomas outlines the simplest and most effective ways to help accommodate these important guests

Hoarding is a common animal behaviour. Lots of creatures cache food for times of scarcity. You probably know that squirrels hide nuts and wood mice store seeds, but did you know that fire ants stockpi

Nadia Shaikh goes synaesthetic for the start of spring, almost tasting the orange tang of an early butterfly

Find out which early species to watch for, how to make your patch more butterfly-friendly and where to record your sightings for science

Of all the strange and wonderful animals that live in the deep sea, perhaps the most tantalising are the ones that are occasionally glimpsed by deep-submerged cameras, then swim off into the darkness