1. Buglife
This bright and colourful British website delivers its serious message in a captivating way. According to Buglife, at least 65 percent of all species on the planet are invertebrates – and they are rapidly disappearing. Learn about invertebrate conservation and the current projects Buglife is already working on to protect these little creatures.

2. UK Butterflies
Discover the wide variety of butterfly species existing in the British Isles. The data on each species provides detailed information about the conservation status, habitat, food plants and much more. Make use of the extensive forums to answer queries and contribute your own material to receive a credit. There’s also a taxonomy table (classification) of butterfly species.

3. The Garden of Eaden
Trained horticulturist Simon Eade’s gardening knowhow has been featured on Ground Force and BBC radio. His blog offers a wealth of down-to-earth gardening information, including a practical section on wildlife gardening that is full of how-tos. Discover how to make a butterfly garden, learn how to attract bumblebees or find out how which animals eat slugs and snails.

4. Amateur Entomologists’ Society
Founded in 1935, the Amateur Entomologists’ Society offers advice on invertebrate identification and an illustrated breakdown of invertebrate anatomy. The site does an excellent job of explaining the importance of biodiversity and invertebrate conservation in an accessible format. Aspiring entomologists can find out how to kick-start their career and the caresheets are invaluable to anyone keeping an invertebrate as a pet.

5. Bumblebee Conservation
If you’re concerned about the decline in bumblebees and would like to help preserve these important creatures, this site will show you how. With the population of bumblebees – of which there are currently 24 species in the UK – in decline in Britain today, the Bumblebee Conservation Trust is taking steps to try and reverse this. Take part in bee surveys and send in your photos. You can also learn what to do to encourage bees to thrive in your garden.

6. Pestival
Pestival is a “mobile arts festival examining insect-human interactivity in bioscience, through paradigms of contemporary art, cinema, music and comedy as well as direct scientific demonstration and educational projects.” Eh? Put more simply, it’s a festival that celebrates insects in art. Find out all about the festival here and check out the gallery for some wacky pictures. There’s also an impressive YouTube channel with such classics as “mosquito feeding on arm”. The links page is very useful too.

7. Chris Brooks Photography
This extensive site covers all you need to know about dragonflies and damselflies. A quick identification tab guides you through the different species while the topography section includes labelled pictures and a glossary of anatomical terms. Being a photographer, the gallery and favourite pictures are sure to impress. What’s more, you can learn how to take shots like this yourself in the photography techniques section, which generously teaches you how to end up with fantastic photographs.

8. Hoverfly Recording Scheme
For all you dipterists, (the hoverfly comes from the diptera family), the Hoverfly Recording Scheme provides a free service with checklists of hoverfly species and where you can find them. Data is presented via maps to make it easy to see where the popular geographical spots lie. Forums allow you to communicate with other like-minded enthusiasts and there’s a gallery featuring public photographs and photographs for identification purposes.

9. Flickr – British Insects and Other Arthropods
More for those keen on photography, this group allows you to show off your photographic genius with other insect devotees. And there are plenty of them – the group currently has around 875 members and more than 15,600 photographs posted. Members help each other to identify unknown species and a bit of banter goes down well too.

10. The Natural History Museum beetles
The Natural History Museum website features a comprehensive bug section (found in the nature online/earth section) that allows you to identify your bug via photographs and helpful forums categorised by animal name. There are some fascinating videos and extensive lists of entire species – it’s a real goldmine of information. It’s worth noting that the bird and mammal sections are just as good.

11. Butterfly Conservation
This superb website offers a complete field guide to both butterflies and moths, so you can identify any unusual or unfamiliar sightings you may have. You can also find out more about your local Butterfly Conservation branch, learn more about the life cycle of butterflies and moths, and join in with conservation projects.

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