Known as the phantom of the forest, goshawks can fly through the trees at up to 40km per hour as they hunt birds and small mammals.

The eel is famous for both its slippery nature and its mammoth migration from its freshwater home to the Sargasso Sea where it breeds. It has suffered dramatic declines and is a protected species…

The redshank lives up to its name as it sports distinctive long, bright red legs! It feeds and breeds on marshes, mudflats, mires and saltmarshes. Look out for it posing on a fence post or rock.…

The tawny grisette has an orange-brown cap and a tall, slender stem that arises from a conspicuous cup-like sack. It can be found in woodlands, particularly those with Birch, but also on heaths.…

A much-loved garden bird, the blackbird is famous for its harmonious song. In winter, our resident birds are joined by migrants from Scandinavia and the Baltics.

Fat hen is a persistent 'weed' of fields and gardens, verges and hedgerows. But, like many of our weed species, it is a good food source for birds and insects.

A king among birds, the goldcrest displays a beautiful golden crown. Our smallest bird, it can be spotted in conifer woodlands and parks across the UK.

A fierce pirate of the sea, the Arctic skua is renowned for stealing fish from other seabirds and dive-bombing anyone that comes near its nests. It breeds in the far north of Scotland and on the…

Despite being considered a 'weed' of cultivated ground, the seeds of the Creeping thistle provide an important food source for farmland birds, many of which are declining rapidly.

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.