The kestrel is a familiar sight hovering over the side of the road, looking out for its favourite food: small mammals like field voles. It prefers open habitats like grassland, farmland and…

The all-black carrion crow does not nest in colonies like the similar rook. It can be seen almost everywhere.

With brown-and-orange markings, the Drone-fly looks like a male Honeybee, but is harmless to us. This mimicry helps to protect it from predators while it searches for nectar in gardens and urban…

The rare smooth snake can only be found at a few heathland sites in the UK. It looks a bit like an adder, but lacks the distinctive zig-zag pattern along its back.

The stock dove looks very much like the woodpigeon, but without the white neck and wing patches. It can be spotted in woodlands and parks, and on farmland in winter, but rarely visits our gardens…

With black-and-yellow markings, the Hornet robberfly looks like its namesake, but is harmless to us. This mimicry helps to protect it from predators while it perches in the open, waiting for its…

The broad-bordered bee hawk-moth does, indeed, look like a bee! A scarce moth, mainly of Central and Southern England, it feeds on the wing and can be seen during spring and summer.

Have you ever seen the curious face of a grey seal bobbing in the waves when visiting the beach? Grey seals can be seen lying on beaches waiting for their food to go down. Sometimes they are…

With its prominent, wavy crest, the great crested newt, also known as the 'warty newt', looks like a mini dinosaur! This protected species favours clean ponds during the breeding season…

The palmate newt looks similar to the smooth newt, but favours shallow pools on acidic soils like heathlands. During the breeding season, males grow distinctive black webbing on their hind feet.…

On first glance, the meadow thistle looks a bit like a knapweed - it's not as prickly as other thistles and only carries one pinky-purple flower head. It can be found in damp meadows and…