Sea potatoes may have a funny name, but they are perfectly adapted for life in the sand. They are a type of sea urchin that live in a burrow in the sand, feeding on dead animals and plants using…

As the name suggests, the Common medium stonefly is found in gravelly upland rivers and streams, often on bankside stones and plants. There are 34 species of Stonefly in the UK, which are hard to…

The red grouse is an umistakeable bird - plump and round, with a gingery-red body as its name suggests. Found on upland heathlands, it is under threat from the nationwide, dramatic loss of these…

The pungent, rotten smell of Black Horehound makes this medium-sized plant of waste ground and roadside verges stand out from the crowd.

The unpleasant, astringent smell of Hedge woundwort makes this medium-sized plant of woodlands, hedgerows and roadside verges stand out from the crowd.

The jackdaw is a small, black-capped crow of woodlands, parks, towns and coast. It is a well-known thief, stealing other birds' eggs and breaking into garden feeders.

The hooded crow was thought to be the same species as the carrion crow, but they have now been separated. Less widespread than its cousin, look for it in North Scotland, Northern Ireland and the…

As the only crow with a red bill and red legs, the all-black chough is easy to identify. But it's harder to spot: there are only small, coastal populations in Scotland, Ireland, Wales,…

This long-lived bivalve can be found buried in the sand on the south and west coasts of the UK.

A stocky, little sandpiper, the knot can be spotted in estuaries from August onwards, migrating here from the Arctic where it breeds. Look out for it probing the muddy sand with its specialised…