The common whelk is the largest sea snail found in UK seas, though you're more likely to find the dry balls of empty whelk egg capsules washed up in strandlines.

As its name suggests, the birch shieldbug can be found feeding on silver birch, and sometimes hazel, in mixed woodland. Adults hibernate over winter, emerging in spring to lay their eggs.

Considered to be an early sign of spring, the song of the cuckoo sounds the same as its name: ‘cuck-oo’. It can be heard in woodlands and grasslands. Cuckoos famously lay their eggs in the nests…

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