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What visits my garden?
Gardens are home to an amazing variety of wildlife. You might be surprised by what lives in yours! Here are just some of the many creatures that might visit your garden.
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Badger
These unmistakable animals emerge at dusk to spend the night foraging and playing.
Blackbird (chick)
Watch for these spotty chicks following their parents around and begging for food.
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Blackbird (female)
Despite the name, female blackbirds are brown, not black like the males.
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Blackbird (male)
One of the commonest UK birds, its mellow song is also a favourite.
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Blue tit
Almost any garden with feeders or bushes and trees will attract blue tits. They readily breed in nestboxes.
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Chaffinch (female)
Lacking the colours of the male, the female chaffinch can be identified by the bold black and white stripes on her wings.
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Chaffinch (male)
The UK's second commonest breeding bird, and arguably its most colourful finch.
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Coal tit
A regular visitor to feeders, the coal tit will take and store food for eating later.
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Collared dove
These relative newcomers to the UK can breed at any time of year.
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Dunnock
Watch out for these small, brown, streaky birds lurking in your flowerbeds.
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Goldfinch
Sociable, often breeding in loose colonies, the goldfinch has a delightful liquid twittering song and call.
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Great tit
A familiar garden visitor, the great tit is bigger than its cousin the blue tit, and has a bold black stripe down its tummy.
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Greenfinch
Nesting in a garden conifer, or feasting on black sunflower seeds, the greenfinch is a popular garden visitor.
Grey squirrel
Now common and widespread in gardens, the grey squirrel has replaced the red squirrel across much of the UK.
Hedgehog
Hedgehogs come out at night and can be heard snuffling and grunting as they look for food.
House martin
These insect-eating birds migrate to Africa but return to the same mud nest each year.
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House sparrow (female)
Female house sparrows are less colourful than the males.
House sparrow (male)
Male house sparrows look dapper in spring, with a smart black 'bib'. They nest in loose colonies.
Jackdaw
Raucous, sociable and cheeky, jackdaws are fun to watch.
Long tailed tit
The long-tailed tit is easily recognisable with its distinctive colouring, a tail that is bigger than its body, and undulating flight.
Magpie
With beautiful, glossy feathers and noisy rattling calls, you can't miss the magpie.
Mole
With velvety, grey-black fur, spade-like front claws and pointed snout, moles are very distinctive.
Muntjac deer
The size of an average dog, the muntjac is the UK's smallest deer. Introduced from south-east Asia, it's spread all over the UK.
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Red squirrel
Our native squirrel, it's declined drastically in recent years. Easily told from the larger grey by its red fur and larger ear-tufts.
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Robin
Robins sing nearly all year round and despite their cute appearance, they are aggressively territorial.
Robin (chick)
Young robins are speckled, with the orange-red breast feathers appearing later in their first year.
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Roe deer
Roe deer have a whitish/buff patch on their rump, and small antlers with no more than three points.
Slow worm
Neither a snake or a worm, slow worms are actually a type of legless lizard. They can grow up to 45 cm.
Song thrush
These dainty birds are famous for their rich, varied and repetitive song.
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Song thrush (chick)
See if you can spot a speckly young song thrush being fed by its parents.
Starling
Noisy family parties of starlings may descend on your garden in early summer.
Swift
These insect-eaters spend virtually their whole lives flying, only landing to nest.
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Woodpigeon
These big birds love to eat seeds from bird tables. They build nests from sticks.
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Wren
Surprisingly loud for their size, wrens weigh about the same as a £1 coin!