This scarce breeding duck is a summer visitor, spending the winter in Africa. Although large flocks can be found in their wintering grounds, they are usually only seen in pairs or small groups in…

Barnacles are so common on our rocky shores that you've probably never really noticed them. They're the little grey bumps covering the rocks that hurt your feet when you're…

This stocky wader is mostly a winter visitor to the UK, where it can be found on rocky, seaweed-covered coasts, often with groups of turnstones.

This comical little duck lives up to its name – look out for the black tuft of feathers on its head!

The waxwing is a colourful winter visitor. It can often be spotted in large flocks in berry-laden bushes in towns, car parks and gardens.

These colourful little fish are a delight for snorkellers or shallow water divers to photograph, rarely being scared off by their presence!

The papery, translucent, silver 'coins' of Honesty are instantly recognisable. They are actually the leftover seed pods that dangle from the plant through winter.

A climbing plant of hedgerows and woodlands, White bryony produces greenish flowers in summer and red, shiny berries in winter. It is a poisonous plant.

Found in compost heaps and under stones in gardens, the flat-backed millipede is a common minibeast. It is an important recycler of nutrients, feeding on decaying matter.

The whinchat is a summer visitor to UK heathlands, moorlands and open meadows. It looks similar to the stonechat, but is lighter in colour and has a distinctive pale eyestripe.