One of our most familiar spring flowers, the cowslip brightens up ancient meadows and woodlands with its egg-yolk-yellow, nodding blooms.

The Yellow star-of-Bethlehem is a woodland plant that lives up to its name - it displays starry, gold flowers in an umbrella-like cluster in early spring.

The rare Slavonian grebe is an attractive diving bird with distinctive, golden ear tufts that give rise to its American name - 'horned grebe'.

Water figwort is a tall plant of riverbanks, pond margins, damp meadows and wet woodlands. Its maroon flowers are pollinated by the Common wasp.

Look out for the distinctive white beak that gives this energetic dolphin its name. Don’t be surprised to see them breach and bowride too!

In mild years, the spring-flowering primrose can appear as early as December. Look out for its pretty, creamy-yellow flowers in woodlands and grasslands.

The branching, finger-like projections of this fungus give it the appearance of an underwater coral. Its striking colour and form make it easy to spot, but it is scarce in the UK.

The angel's wings fungus grows in overlapping clusters in the coniferous woods of Scotland and north England. Its funnel-like, white caps have no stems.

The barbastelle is a scarce bat that lives in woodland and forages over a wide area. It has a distinctive 'pug-like' appearance because of its upturned nose.

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.

The brown hare is known for its long, black-tipped ears and fast running - it can reach speeds of 45mph when evading predators.