This is National Insect Week, so we thought we'd show you one of the littler things than run the nature reserve. It's a figwort weevil, and it is one of several invertebrates photographed on the reserve recently by Mal Delamare, and shared on our Flickr page. Close-up photographs shared here are really helpful to us - in fact, Mal's pictures have enabled us to add a couple of new species to the reserve list…

If you're reading this, I'm assuming that you love nature; well, at least that you're interested and enjoy it, whether it's watching from your kitchen window or out on a nature reserve. But can you remember what sparked that interest? Most of us, especially if we got the 'bug' when we were young, had the interest sparked by someone. Someone who simply enjoyed pointing it out, and sharing their knowledge.…

It's been all about the orchids this week, as we conducted our annual count - which takes longer each year as they pop up in new places and in greater numbers! Did you know that the collective noun for orchids is a coterie? No, I didn't either.

We have five species here, and most seem to be doing very well. When I started here in 2008, there was just a single patch of a couple of dozen bee orchids along the…

As Spring drifts into Summer, birds are becoming quieter and more elusive as they are busy feeding their young and starting their feather moult. Now is a great time to look out for other nature around the reserve. Some of the most colourful are the flowers, and June really starts to see them bloom. We have recorded 356 species of flowering plant on the reserve, though there are certain to be some we have missed. You can…