40 species to spot

Badgers are the UK’s largest land predator and are one of the most well-known British species. They are famed for their black and white…

Considered a gardener’s best friend, hedgehogs will happily hoover up insects roaming in vegetable beds. Famously covered in spines,…

The sinuous otter is an excellent swimmer and can be seen hunting in wetlands, rivers and along the coast - try the west coast of…

Famed for their cunning and stealth, these orangey-red dogs with their bushy tails can be seen in towns and the countryside. They come…

The stoat is a small mustelid, related to the weasel and otter. It has an orange body, black-tipped tail and distinctive bounding gait.…

The water vole is under serious threat from habitat loss and predation by the American mink. Found along our waterways, it is similar-…

Listen out for the cat-like, 'kee-yaa' calls of the buzzard as it soars high over farmland and woodland. Once suffering from…

A breeding bird of fast-flowing, upland rivers, the grey wagtail can also be seen in lowland areas, farmyards and even towns in winter…

Blink and you may miss the fantastic kingfisher! This beautiful bird is easy to recognise thanks to its bright blue and metallic copper…

The elegant little egret was once a rare visitor to our shores, but can now regularly be spotted around the coastline of England and…

Like many of our birds of prey, the peregrine falcon was so persecuted, numbers fell dramatically. Thankfully, this super-speedy flyer…

A summer visitor to the UK, the red-tailed redstart is a robin-sized bird that can be spotted in woodlands, parks and hedgerows, mainly…

The starling is a familiar garden visitor that has a beautiful purple-and-green sheen to its black feathers. It is famous for its wintry…

Our most well-known amphibian, the common frog is a regular visitor to garden ponds across the country, where they feast on slugs and…

Look out for a common lizard basking in the warm sun as you wander around heathlands, moorlands and grasslands. You might even be lucky…

Despite its warts and ancient associations with witches, the common toad is a gardener's friend, sucking up slugs and snails. It is…

The grass snake is our longest snake, but don't worry if you find one in the compost heap - it's harmless! Look out for this…

With its prominent, wavy crest, the great crested newt, also known as the 'warty newt', looks like a mini dinosaur! This…

Despite appearances, the slow worm is actually a legless lizard, not a worm or a snake! Look out for it basking in the sun on heathlands…

You are likely to spot the smooth newt in your garden or local pond. It breeds in water in summer and spends the rest of the year in…

The Atlantic salmon spends most of its life at sea, but makes an epic journey back to the river or stream in which it hatched to spawn.…

A fierce predator of small fish and flying insects, the brown trout is widespread in our freshwater rivers. It is has a golden body,…

With tiger-like stripes, red fins and a humped back, the perch is a striking fish. It can be seen in lowland waterbodies and waterways…

Our largest and most common bee-fly, the dark-edged bee-fly looks just like a bumblebee, and buzzes like one too! It feeds on flowers…

The elephant hawk-moth is a pretty, gold-and-pink moth that can be seen at dusk in gardens, parks, woods and grassy habitats. The…

The emperor dragonfly is an impressively large and colourful dragonfly of ponds, lakes, canals and flooded gravel pits. It flies between…

The hairy-footed flower bee can be seen in gardens and parks in spring and summer, visiting tubular flowers like red dead-nettle and…

The fearsome-looking hornet may not be a well-loved insect, but it is actually much less aggressive than the common wasp. It is also an…

The striking black-and-white checks of the marbled white are unmistakeable. Watch out for it alighting on purple flowers, such as field…

The classic fairy tale toadstool, this red and white fungus is often found beneath birch trees in autumn.

As its name suggests, the shaggy inkcap, or 'lawyer's wig', has a woolly, scaly surface to its bell-shaped toadstools. It…

Common alder can be found along riversides, and in fens and wet woodlands. Its exposed roots provide shelter for fish, and its rounded…

The bee orchid is a sneaky mimic - the flower’s velvety lip looks like a female bee. Males fly in to try to mate with it and end up…

Flowering rush is a pretty rush-like plant of shallow wetland habitats, such as ponds, canals and ditches. Its cup-shaped, pink flowers…

The nodding, blue bells of the harebell are a summer delight of grasslands, sand dunes, hedgerows and cliffs. They are attractive to all…

Often growing in swathes along a roadside or field margin, the oxeye daisy is just as at home in traditional hay meadows. The large,…