If you missed Adrian Russell's recent presentation summarising the finds and status of moths in Leicestershire and Rutland based on the 2015 records - you can view the slides on the Leicester Moth Recorders page.

The January edition of the Leicestershire Entomological Society newsletter is available for viewing or download - see the LES page.

2015 was a very successful year for NatureSpot with an increase in records, species and visitors. Thanks to all of you who contributed. View the 2015 Annual Report.

An otter was recently found dead inside a crayfish trap near to Leicester, unfortunately not a unique incident. All crayfish traps have to approved by the Environment Agency. If you find a trap without an EA tag, please call the free hotline 0800 80 70 60.

The latest Leicestershire Entomological Society newsletter is now available to view on the LES page. Also available is a report on the Dung Beetles of Priory Water by Frank Clark and Tony Cook.

The Leicestershire and Rutland Mammal Group is newly formed and aims to promote interest in local mammals and encourage more recording of these animals. To find out more visit the L&R Mammal Group page.

A new mapping tool has been installed on NatureSpot that lets you explore and map all NatureSpot records. By using the filters you can map and list all records for a selected area, just your own records, or select a particular wildlife group. Visit the Explore page from the main menu above.

All records submitted to NatureSpot are checked to confirm the identification and details are correct - called verification. In conjunction with the Biological Records Centre, we are using a new system with five choices. You will see the icons for these in the verification column of your My Records page. See the verification page for more information.

Getting the identification correct is just as important as finding the specimen in the first place. If you’re not sure then seek help before submitting records – but only after making every effort to identify it yourself. There are many experts around who offer help and submitting photos to wildlife forums is often a good way of tapping into expert knowledge. See our Resources pages for good sources of identification help.

It is not always clear which species to record and how often. Do you record the Blackbird in your garden every day? What about plants in your garden or street trees nearby? Recent guidance from the BSBI has helped to answer some of these questions. See our What To Record page.

A checklist of all the species of dragonflies and damselflies in Leicestershire and Rutland has just been published. This excellent document includes species distribution maps and notes of where best to see them locally. See Dragonfly Resources.

Around 2,000 beetles species have been found in Leicestershire and Rutland, around half of the UK list. This impressive document lists all of these with details of the number of records and when last seen. Checklist of the beetles of VC55

The latest publication from the Leicestershire Entomological Society describes the most notable beetles found in Leicestershire and Rutland, written by Graham Finch, the County Recorder. Visit the LES page to view/download the report.

The latest LES newsletter is now available. Read about recent insect discoveries in Leicestershire plus how to find the European Chinchbug (see image) in winter. Read or download from the LES page.

Amazingly there are 236 tetrads (2km squares) in Leicestershire and Rutland without any NatureSpot records. We are therefore asking our members to ‘adopt’ an unrecorded tetrad during 2015 and to record as many species as possible from their chosen area – even common species such as Daisy and Hawthorn.  In this way we can begin to map the distribution of species across the two counties. Adopt a tetrad

2014 was another record year for wildlife recording on NatureSpot. A total of 14,624 records were submitted covering 2,471 different species! Thank you to all of you who contributed records during the year. Visit our 2014 Top 20 page to see who recorded the most and which species and groups topped the league.

A previously rare insect, the Box Bug, has been found in Leicestershire for the first time by NatureSpot member, Mike Higgott. It is believed to be the most northerly record for this species. Historically very rare (and a Red Data Book species) it was known only from Box Hill in Surrey, where it only fed on Box trees, but it has since widened its diet and has been spreading northwards.

The Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust is asking people who feed birds in their gardens to be extra vigilant about cleaning their bird feeders after a severe case of Avian Pox was confirmed in Leicestershire... More...

A superb new guide to British and Irish slugs has just been published, full of images and drawings, with a key, species accounts and distribution maps. Highly recommended! Slugs of Britain and Ireland

A new introductory guide to the amphibians and reptiles of Leicestershire and Rutland has just been produced, including a list of all the species found in the two counties. Available on our Amphibian/Reptile resources page.