I’m still struggling to find many insects, probably because we’ve had a run of freezing nor’easterly winds and low temperatures, so those insects that overwinter as adults are very sensibly tucked away somewhere sheltered or buried deep beneath thick layers of mouldering vegetation.

Not so this little Woodlouse that I found walking along the park railings. And this surprised me as Woodlice are Isopods, related to crabs and lobsters, so they’re cold-blooded. That means they rely on their environment to warm them up and, when it’s cold, they’re usually inactive and tucked away under a log or in a rotting branch. Still, I read somewhere that fossil ancestors of our modern Woodlice have been found dating back to the Eocene period, which was 50 million years ago, so I guess these little creatures really are built to withstand tough conditions.