The sanderling scampers about the waves looking for marine crustaceans, fish and even jellyfish to eat. It visits the UK in winter from its Arctic breeding grounds, but can also be seen as it…

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 stripes and sturdy body, using their strong front paws to…

The green sandpiper is a very rare breeding bird in the UK, and is mainly seen on migration in autumn. Look out for it feeding around marshes, flooded gravel pits and rivers. It even likes sewage…

The little ringed plover first nested in the UK in 1938, but has since moved in happily! It has taken advantage of an increase in man-made flooded gravel pits, reservoirs and quarries that provide…

The Early purple orchid is one of the first orchids to pop up in spring. Look for its pinkish-purple flowers from April, when bluebells still carpet our woodland floors. Its leaves are dark green…

Despite appearances, this weird and wonderful creature is not a jellyfish! They're sometimes found washed up on our shores after westerly winds. Look but don't touch - they give a very…

The Banded demoiselle can be seen flitting around slow-moving rivers, ponds and lakes. The males are metallic blue, with a distinctive dark band across their wings, and the females are a shiny…

The common shieldbug was once restricted to Southern England, but has since been moving northwards and is now quite widespread. It can be found in all kinds of habitats from gardens to farms.

The teal is a pretty, little dabbling duck, which can be easily spotted in winter on reservoirs, gravel pits, and flooded meadows. Watching flocks of this bird wheel through a winter sky is a true…

It's easy to see where the snakelocks anemone got its name when you spot its flowing tentacles. But be careful when out rockpooling, those tentacles give a nasty sting!