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, there is still dense thatch in the clematis, ivy, and acacia—enough to shelter birds, insects and other wildlife.But things are already planned for 2009, starting on 24-25 January with the Big Garden Birdwatch.

' thoracic legs near the head, and lacks the fat gripping prolegs and claspers towards the tail end, which moth and butterfly caterpillars use to grip the leaf.Despite textbook assurances that the insect is quite common and widespread, this is only the first

first thought were dark lines of silt washed along the high water mark were actually strand lines of dead insects. I listed over 100 species, including many beetles, but the vast majority were the winged male and female black ants. I tried to do a rough

landscape.Native plants are much better for our wildlife than introduced ones. A native tree (such as oak or hawthorn) might provide food and shelter for 150 insects, birds and other animals, but an introduced one (such as Japanese maple) is often devoid

Snow is not the best weather for finding insects, so I was not surprised, last week, when my brief wander up the garden found nothing. It didn’t help that I was under sustained attack from snowballing children at the time. But as my fellow bloggers

I've just been sorting through some insect specimens accumulated last year (specimen case pictured, left). Most have come from environmental surveys, but there are a few picked up elsewhere, including several gardens. I'll take them up

Even a small pond will make a big difference to your garden, attracting a wide range of creatures. Let wildlife find your pond naturally and it will soon become a thriving habitat for anything from mayflies to hedgehogs.Give your pond the best

. Like long-tailed tits, goldcrests eat insects and spiders, but specialise in tiny morsels such as moth eggs. Their beaks are designed to pick out insects from between pine needles. In really cold winters they will occasionally come to garden feeders, so keep

-ties, but only in discrete burgundy or navy blue, with extremely subtle spot patterns. I am rather nosy and have a tendency to stare. Oh, and I like insects. So when the cry is uttered from the end of the garden: “Weird red bug”, there is only one response, I

. They are in desperate need of some good PR. Having spent the last four or five months diligently, but rather secretively, helping the gardener by eating caterpillars, aphids, flies and other insects, now is the time they start making a nuisance of themselves around