Creeping buttercup is our most familiar buttercup - the buttery-yellow flowers are like little drops of sunshine peppering garden lawns, parks, woods and fields.

A regular in gardens, hunting around compost heaps and under stones, the brown centipede is a common minibeast. Despite its name, it has 15 pairs of legs - one on each segment of its body.

In summer, the 'frothy' flowers of lady's bedstraw can carpet the grasses of meadows, heaths and coasts with yellow and fill the air with a sweet, honey-like scent.

So-named because its gnarled trunk can split as it grows, the Crack willow can be seen along riverbanks, around lakes and in wet woodlands. Like other willows, it produces catkins in spring.

The large eyed ladybird is unmistakeable: it is our only ladybird with yellow rings around its black spots. Ladybirds are beneficial insects, managing garden pests - encourage them by putting up a…

The streamlined red-breasted merganser is a handsome bird and a great fisher - its long, serrated bill helps it to catch and hold its slippery fish prey. It is most commonly spotted around the…

Creeping jenny is a low-growing plant of wet grasslands, riverbanks, ponds and wet woods. It has cup-like, yellow flowers and is a popular choice for garden ponds.

The elegant little egret was once a rare visitor to our shores, but can now regularly be spotted around the coastline of England and Wales. Look out for its beautiful neck plumes that herald the…

Perhaps the first sign that spring is just around the corner is the snowdrop poking its way through the frosted soil of a woodland, churchyard or garden. From January, look for its famous nodding…