Common alder can be found along riversides, and in fens and wet woodlands. Its exposed roots provide shelter for fish, and its rounded leaves are food for aquatic insects.

An uncommon tree of wet woodlands, riverbanks and heathlands, alder buckthorn displays pale green flowers in spring, and red berries that turn purple in autumn.

The alder fly is a blackish invertebrate, with delicately veined wings that it folds over its body like a tent. It can be found near ponds and slow-flowing rivers; the larvae living in the silt at…

The adder's-tongue fern is so-named because the tall stalk that bears its spores is thought to resemble a snake's tongue. An indicator of ancient meadows, it can be found mainly in…

Our only venomous snake, the shy adder can be spotted basking in the sunshine in woodland glades and on heathlands.

Elder is an opportunistic shrub of woods, hedges, scrub, waste and cultivated ground. Its flowers and berries are edible, but it's best to gather wild food with an expert - try it at a…

Ground-elder was likely introduced into the UK by the Romans and has since become naturalised. A medium-sized umbellifer, it is an invasive weed of shady places, gardens and roadsides.

A recent colonist to south east England, the metallic-green willow emerald damselfly spends much of its time in the willow and alder trees that overhang ponds, lakes and canals.