How to identify

The UK is home to a variety of birds of prey - predatory birds equipped with sharp talons and hooked bills. This page will help you…

Can you spot Britain's top ten garden birds in your garden? Find out how to identify common garden birds and how you can attract…

Learn how to identify swifts, swallows and martins. These birds are all summer visitors to the UK. Here's how you can find the…

Gulls are among our most difficult birds to identify. This guide offers an introduction to gull watching, highlighting some of the key…

Identify bird song. From garden birds to songbirds that you might hear in the countryside. Listen to our audio clips of the most common…

There are three species of British woodpecker - here's how to tell them apart.

A guide to identifying our most common dabbling ducks: mallard, wigeon, teal, pintail, gadwall and shoveler.

A guide to identifying our most common diving ducks: tufted duck, pochard, goldeneye, goosander, merganser

Learn how to identify the UK's owls. Here’s our guide to the five owl species you’re likely to spot!

An identification guide to the more common UK waders

Spotted a butterfly but not sure what it is? Here are some common British butterflies you might see in your garden, and how to identify…

Identify moths. Have a look at our moth ID sheet to work out what kind of moth you have spotted.

With dozens of butterflies and thousands of moths in the UK, there's a huge variety of caterpillars to be found. This caterpillar…

In Britain we have around 270 species of bee. These include solitary bees, bumblebees and honeybees. You can identify some of the common…

Beetles can be found throughout the UK, with many visiting gardens. We've put together a guide to identifying some of the more…

How to identify a hornet, and recognise the non-native Asian hornet

Shieldbugs can often be found resting on plants, including in gardens. We've put together a guide to identifying some of the…

Here are the different types of jellyfish commonly spotted in UK waters. Read our guide to find out what jellyfish you might have seen…

Read our guide on identifying starfish spotted in the UK. Here are the most common starfish that you might see near you.

Sea urchins are echinoderms, related to starfish, sea cucumbers and brittle stars. Their scientific name "Echinus" comes from…

Have you found some animal poo? Droppings, dung, spraints and scat - animal poo goes by many names. Knowing how to identify poo can be a…

Found some animal tracks but not sure what kind of animal they belong to? Here's how to identify animal tracks you might see!

How to identify an animal skull! Found a bird skull or mammal bone in the UK? Take a look at our ID guide to work out what your animal…

Grass snake or adder? The UK has three species of grass snake, adder and smooth snake. Want to know how to identify British snakes? Read…

Spring is the best time to see woodland floors carpeted with beautiful bluebells, but are they native bluebells or not? Find out how to…