Red Fox

Vulpes vulpes crucigera

Family: Canidae

Habitat: Farmland, gardens and parks, woodland, heathland, grassland, sand dunes and sea cliffs.

Size: Height 35-50 cm (14-20 in). Length 45-90 cm (18-35 in). Tail 30-56 cm (12-22 in).

Food: Rodents, rabbits, birds, fruit and vegetables, fish, frogs, and worms.

Sound: Vocal range of five octaves. Various barks and screams.

Season: All year round.

IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern

Grey Squirrel

Sciurus carolinensis

Family: Sciuridae

Habitat: Woodland and gardens and parks.

Size: Length 23-30 cm (9.1-11.8 in). Tail 19-25 cm (7.5-9.8 in).

Food: Tree bark, buds, berries, seeds, acorns, walnuts, and other nuts, and fungi.

Season: All year round.

IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern

Each grey squirrel makes several thousand small caches of hidden food every summer. Their nests or dreys are made of twigs and leaves often in the forks of trees. They are crepuscular and do not hibernate.

Robin

Erithacus rubecula

Family: Muscicapidae (Old World flycatchers)

Habitat: Gardens and parks, meadows, orchards and woodland.

Size: 12.5-14.0 cm (5.0-5.5 inches)

Food: Worms, insects and berries.

Voice: Warbling song and a harsh tick.

Season: All year round.

IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern

Often territorial, hops rapidly. A friendly bird that will sometimes feed from the hand of someone who is familiar.

Red Kite

Milvus milvus

Family: Accipitridae (Hawks and eagles)

Habitat: Farmland, woodland, grassland and gardens and parks.

Size: Length 60-70 cm (24-28 in). Wingspan 175-179 cm (69-70 in).

Food: Small mammals such as mice, voles, shrews, young hares, rabbits, carrion, reptiles, amphibians and earthworms.

Voice: A very distinctive and memorable pipe whistle rising and falling in pitch: peee-ooo, pee-oo-ee-oo-ee-oo.

Season: All year round. All year round.

Soaring and gliding flight, continually turning its long-forked tail.

Buzzard

Buteo buteo

Family: Accipitridae (Hawks and eagles)

Habitat: Coastal, farmland, grassland, heathland and woodland.

Size: Length 40-58 cm (16-23 in). Wingspan 109-136 cm (43-54 in).

Food: Small mammals, birds, carrion, earthworms and large insects.

Voice: Cat like mewing.

Season: All year round.

IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern

Takes off with distinctive slow wing beats, often circling or hovering. Frequently uses fence posts or similar as look-outs.

Redwing

Turdus iliacus

Family: Turdidae (Thrushes)

Habitat: Gardens and parks, grasslands, orchards, woodland and hedgerows.

Food: Berries and worms.

Voice: ♂ Varied short song. Whistling flight call.

Season: Early September to early May. A few pairs nest.

IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern

Named after its red underwing, it is the UK's smallest true thrush. The sexes are similar. The male has a varied short song and whistling flight call. Forms loose flocks of 10 to 200 plus.

Nuthatch

Sitta europaea

Family: Sittidae (Nuthatches)

Habitat: Woodland and gardens and parks.

Size: Length 14 cm (5.5 in). Wingspan 22.5-27 cm (8.9-10.6 in).

Food: Insects, hazel nuts, acorns and other nuts and seeds.

Voice: Distinctive rising whistle too-wee, too-wee.

Season: All year round.

IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern

Typically seen on the sides of tree trunks and underside of branches searching for food.

Treecreeper

Certhia familiaris

Family: Certhiidae (Treecreepers)

Habitat: Woodland.

Size: Length 12.5 cm (4.9 in).

Food: Insects, spiders and seeds.

Voice: Sit. Tsree. ♂ Srrih, srrih.

Season: All year round. All year round.

IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern

Insectivorous, it hops mouse-like up a vertical trunk looking for food.

Blue Tit

Cyanistes caeruleus

Family: Paridae (Tits)

Habitat: Woodland, gardens and parks and hedgerows.

Size: Length 12 cm (4.7 in) Wingspan 18 cm (7.1 in).

Food: Insects, caterpillars, seeds and nuts.

Voice: Tsee-tsee-tsee-tsee-sit. Scolding churr.

Season: All year round.

IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern

Frequently family flocks join up with other tits in the search for food. Acrobatic feeders. They usually nest in tree holes.

Chiffchaff

Phylloscopus collybita

Family: Phylloscopidae (Leaf and wing warblers)

Habitat: Gardens and parks, woodland and hedgerows.

Food: Insects from trees and flight.

Voice: Sharp series of chiff chaff sounds. Hoo-eet call.

Season: All year round. Migrants late March to September.

IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern

Olive green warbler that gets its name from its distinctive chiff chaff song. The female builds a domed nest on or near the ground.

Great Tit

Parus major

Family: Paridae (Tits)

Habitat: Gardens and parks and woodland.

Food: Insects, seeds and nuts. Small hibernating bats.

Voice: Up to 40 calls and songs such as chink, and teacher-teacher.

Season: All year round.

IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern

Great tits solve problems with insight learning, such as breakinginto milk bottles to obtain cream, and using conifer needles to extract larvae from a treehole.

Small White

Pieris rapae

Family: Pieridae (Yellows-and-Whites)

Habitat: Open areas and flowery places.

Food: Cultivated and wild brassicas.

Flight: Early March to late October.

Also called the small cabbage white as its green larvae feed on cabbages.

Meadow Brown

Maniola jurtina

Family: Nymphalidae (Brush-footed)

Habitat: Grasslands, meadows, woodland, arable field margins and hedgerows.

Size: Length 25 mm (1 in).

Food: Grasses (larva). Thistles, Blackberries, Daisies, Cow Parsip, etc (adult).

Flight: Early May to late September.

Males are less colourful and more active and range furtherthan the females. Winter passed as a small bright green caterpillar.

Brimstone

Gonepteryx rhamni

Family: Pieridae (Yellows-and-Whites)

Habitat: Gardens and parks, woodland and lowland calcareous grassland.

Size: Length 30 mm (1.2 in).

Food: Alder Buckthorn (Frangula alnus), Buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica) and many for nectar.

Flight: Early March to late September.

Wings are a perfect leaf shape and it is believed the yellow of the male led to it being called butter-coloured fly from which came butterfly.

Orange-tip

Anthocharis cardamines

Family: Pieridae (Yellows-and-Whites)

Habitat: Gardens and parks, meadows, hedgerows and woodland clearings and edges.

Size: Length 23 mm (0.9 in).

Food: Cuckooflower, garlic mustard and other crucifers which contain glucosinolates. Also garden honesty, mignonette and sweet rocket.

Flight: Early April to late July.

One of the first butterflies to emerge in the spring.

The female lacks the orange tips and so looks like a white.

Peacock

Aglais io

Family: Nymphalidae (Brush-footed)

Habitat: Gardens and parks, grasslands, meadows and woodland.

Size: Length 30 mm.

Food: Stinging nettles. Buddleia, willows, dandelions, wild marjoram, danewort, hemp agrimony, and clover.

Flight: Early June to late September. March after hibernation.

Fast flying butterfly. The eye spots on its wings scare predators.

Comma

Polygonia c-album

Family: Nymphalidae (Brush-footed)

Habitat: Woodland, gardens and parks and hedgerows.

Size: Length 24 mm. Wingspan 50-64 mm.

Food: Hops, stinging nettle and elm.

Flight: Early April to late September.

The comma is given its name by a white comma shaped mark on the underside of its hind wing.

Small Tortoiseshell

Aglais urticae

Family: Nymphalidae (Brush-footed)

Habitat: Gardens and parks, meadows, arable field margins and hedgerows.

Size: Length 25 mm (1 in). Wingspan ♂ 45-55 mm, ♀ 52-62 mm.

Food: Adult: Nectar. Caterpillar: Stinging nettle.

Flight: Early March to late October.

One of the earliest butterflies to appear in spring after winter hibernation.

Common Blue

Polyommatus icarus

Family: Lycaenidae (Blue)

Habitat: Farmland, gardens and parks, grassland, heathland, meadows and orchards.

Size: Length 17 mm (0.7 in). Wingspan 29-36 mm (1.1-1.4 in).

Food: Common bird's-foot-trefoil (Lotus corniculatus) and other legumes.

Flight: Early April to late October.

Females are dark brown with bright orange spots near the wing tips. Both male and female have black and white borders.

Red Admiral

Vanessa atalanta

Family: Nymphalidae (Brush-footed)

Habitat: Gardens and parks, meadows, coastal and sea cliffs.

Size: Length 30 mm (1.2 in.) Wingspan ♀ 70-78 mm (2.8-3.1 In.). ♂ 64-72 mm (2.5-2.8 In.)

Food: Stinging nettle and ivy.

Flight: Early May to late October.

Both a resident and a migrant butterfly.

White-letter Hairstreak

Satyrium w-album

Family: Lycaenidae (Blue)

Habitat: Woodland and hedgerows.

Size: Length 16 mm (0.63 in). Wingspan 25-35 mm (1-1.4 in).

Food: Elm honeydew, creeping thistle and bramble blossom.

Flight: Early June to late August.

Winter is spent as an egg on an elm tree. The caterpillar hatches in march and feeds on the elm flowers and seeds.

Named after the W shaped white line on its underside.

Common Darter

Sympetrum striolatum

Family: Libellulidae (Chasers, Skimmers and Darters)

Habitat: Lakes and reservoirs, ponds and rivers and streams.

Size: Length 38-43 mm (1.5-1.7 in). Hindwing 25-30 mm (1- 1.2 in).

Food: Aerial insects.

Flight: Early May to late December.

IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern

Perches on low vegetation or the ground from which it pursues passing insects.

Large Red Damselfly

Pyrrhosoma nymphula

Family: Coenagrionidae (Blue, Blue-tailed & Red Damselflies)

Habitat: Lakes and reservoirs, ponds and rivers and streams.

Size: Length 33-36 mm (1.3-1.4 in). Hindwing 19-24 mm (0.7-0.9 in).

Food: Aerial insects.

Flight: Early March to late September.

Perches on waterside vegetation from which it pursues passing insects.

Broad-bodied Chaser

Libellula depressa

Family: Libellulidae (Chasers, Skimmers and Darters)

Habitat: Lakes and reservoirs, ponds and rivers and streams.

Size: Wingspan 70 mm (2.8 In).

Food: Aerial insects.

Flight: Late April to early August.

Perches on vegetation from which it pursues passing insects.

Emperor

Anax imperator

Family: Aeshnidae (Hawkers and Emperors)

Habitat: Lakes and reservoirs, ponds, gardens and parks, estuaries and rivers and streams.

Size: Length 7.8-8.5 cm (3.1-3.3 in). Wingspan 10-11 cm (3.9-4.3 in).

Food: Aerial insects including butterflies.

Flight: Early May to late October.

IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern

The male is very territorial with a blue abdomen with a central dark line.

The female is similar but with a green abdomen.

Common Blue Damselfly

Enallagma cyathigerum

Family: Coenagrionidae (Blue, Blue-tailed & Red Damselflies)

Habitat: Lakes and reservoirs, ponds and rivers and streams.

Size: Length 32-35 mm (1.3-1.4 in). Hindwing 18-21 mm (0.7-0.8 in).

Food: Aerial and non-aerial insects.

Flight: Early April to late October.

Perches on low vegetation from which it pursues passing insects.

Cornflower

Centaurea cyanus

Family: Asteraceae (Daisy)

Habitat: Farmland and gardens and parks.

Size: Height 40-90 cm (16-35in).

Pollinator: Bees.

Scent: Earthy and subtlety peppery.

Flowering Period: Early July to late September.

The edible flower is used in salads and in some blends of Lady Grey tea.