Here's one creature which has benefitted from all the rain we've had this year.  This Leopard Slug measures over 200mm in length, and doesn't seem to be at full stretch.  The photo was taken by Debbie Nellist who found the giant beastie in her garden.
More info about Slugs here

When is a ladybird not a ladybird?  When it's a fly!  This little insect photographed by Nik Hunt in Sussex is a Ladybird Fly.  The rear half, with its black spots, looks distinctly ladybird-like, but the front end is unmistakably all fly.  They're fairly scarce and seem to be confined to three counties in England (Surrey, Sussex and Kent) but more recently there was a sighting in north London, so they could be spreading their wings a bit.
More info about Ladybird Flies here

Beech trees are something we're more tempted to photograph in autumn when they put on their beautiful display of golden-brown foliage.  However this photo taken by Judith Barnard in Cannock Chase, Staffordshire shows just how beautiful the incredibly gnarly root system of the beech looks in summer.  Judith used a Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ150.
More info about Beech trees here

This amazing shot of a male Dead Head Hoverfly in action was photographed by Dan Edwards in his garden in Devon.  How can you tell it's a male hoverfly?  In the males the eyes meet in the middle but in the females there is a small gap between the eyes.
More info about Dead Head Hoverflies here

This dynamic fish's eye-view of hovering Gannets was photographed by Nicole Burgum from a boat by the Noup of Noss on Shetland.  Nicole used a Canon 400D with a 75-300mm lens.
More info about Gannets here

This is where the phrase "supersize me" comes from.  This photo by Jenni Cox taken on the Great Orme in North Wales shows an extremely ambitious glow-worm larva attacking a garden snail.  Glow-worms and their larvae normally eat small snails but this larva has probably bitten off more than it can chew.  Jenny used a Panasonic Lumix camera.
More info about Glow-worms here

This fox happily trotting along a fence top was photographed by Ian Bineham in his garden in Lewisham, London.  The reason she's looking so pleased with herself is because that's a sweet and sour chicken ball in her mouth.  Camera used was a Pentax ist Dl with an 80-320 Pentax lens.
More info about Red Foxes here

This Common Lizard with a forked tail was spotted by Rob Martin near Penrhyndeudraeth in North Wales.  Rob used a Fuji Finepix on macro setting to take shot.  The forking of the tail is known as 'bifurcation'.  It's what happens when a lizard's tail only partially breaks off.  A new tail grows at the point of the break even though the old tail is still attached.
More info about Common Lizards here

This Pectoral Sandpiper (Calidris melanotos) was photographed by Dean Eades at Toft Newton Reservoir in Lincolnshire using Canon camera gear.  Pectoral Sandpipers are scarce passage migrants from America and Siberia, usually seen in late summer and autumn.  Young birds are sometimes blown over the Atlantic to the UK from North America.
More info about birds here

Anne Roberts took this photo of an Ivy Mining Bee (Colletes hederae) digging in her garden in Kent.  These bees dig nests on exposed soil from September to November, which coincides with the flowering of Ivy.  Where these bees are found they are often seen in large numbers.
More info about Ivy Mining Bees here

Paul Shaw took this photo of a Red Deer stag at Bradgate Park in Leicestershire.  Camera used was a Nikon D7000 with 500mm F4 lens.
More info about Red Deer here

This photo taken in Poole in Dorset by Melissa Hards shows a battle between a Comb-footed Spider and a Robber Fly.  The Robber Fly is doing what Robber Flies do best and trying to steal the spider's meal of a Hoverfly.  In order to save its dinner the Comb-footed Spider is doing a handstand so it can fire a jet of silk (which is just about visible) at the Robber Fly.  The spider won in the end and successfully wrapped up the Robber Fly for dessert.
More info about Comb-footed Spiders here
More info about Robber Flies here

It's Halloween week so what could be more appropriate than a Ghost Snail!  Well okay it's actually a garden snail.  But it's a pure white Garden Snail.  In fact it's so white it's almost translucent.  It's like the ghost of a snail haunting an old snail shell leaving a trail of ectoplasm behind itself.  It was spotted by Jay Mylonas in London Colney, Napsbury Park, Hertfordshire, who snapped it on her phone.  Be afraid.  Be very afraid!
More info about colour anomalies here

Anne Janssen sent us this lovely badger photo.  It was taken from the doorway of her camper van when it was parked in Hastings.  The badger was just calling to see if there was something to eat.
More info about badgers here

This ridiculously well disguised Comma Butterfly was photographed by Sandra Monk in a blackberry field close to her home in West Sussex.  If it weren't for the white legs and the little white comma shaped marking on the wing it would be easy to just dismiss it as another dead bramble leaf.
More info about Comma Butterflies here

This mysterious 'blob' was spotted on a path above the Conwy Valley by Rachel Brooksbank, but there have been sightings in many parts of the UK countryside.  There's a lot of theories as to what this translucent, gelatinous stuff might be, including; jellyfish (despite being inland), fungi, bacteria, unfertilised frog spawn, the oviduct of a frog, and 'Star Jelly' (something fallen to earth from space after a meteor shower).  We reckon it's probably Yeti poop, but we'd love to hear what you think it is.
Send us an email with the subject "Jelly"

This young stoat was one of a whole family spotted by Gwyndaf Roberts at the RSPB Reserve, Conwy, North Wales.  The youngster had just had his lunch and was in a playful mood, about to pounce on its playmate amongst the rocks beside the river.  Camera used was a Canon EOS 7D with an EF 100-400mm lens.
More info about Stoats here

This acrobatic little Waxwing was spotted by Dean Eades in Lincolnshire feeding on guelder rose berries.  Waxwings are winter visitors which fly to the UK from their breeding grounds in Scandinavia and Russia.  Dean took the photo with a Canon SLR fitted with a 100-400is lens.
More info about Waxwings here

This shy little Water Rail was spotted by Steven Buxton at WWT Slimbridge.  Winter is the best time to spot Water Rails when ice on their watery habitat makes them move away from cover to find food.  Steven took the photo from the Martin Smith hide with a Canon EOS 60D fitted with a 400mm f5.6 lens.
More info about Water Rails here

This beautiful Barn Owl was spotted by Paul Shaw at Burnham Overy Staithe in Norfolk, hunting along the A149.  Food becomes scarce for Barn owls in winter so they have to spend more time hunting for prey.  As a result they're sometimes seen like this, hunting in daylight.  Paul used a Nikon D7000 and a 500mm f4 lens.
More info about Barn Owls here

This cheeky little nut burglar was spotted by Matt Neale on his garden bird feeder in Devon.  Matt said it climbed up the adjacent honeysuckle to reach the feeder and it wasn't at all disturbed when he approached it with his camera.
More info about Wood Mice here

This photo of a beautiful albino badger and friend was taken by Sue Downing at her home in Kent.  Sue sees up to five badgers every night on her patio and this albino has been visiting regularly for the past three years.
More info about Badgers here