Chinese water deer are easily distinguished from other deer by their strange teddy bear like appearance and the huge canine tusks displayed by the stags.

Although introduced by the Normans, the fallow deer has been here so long that it is considered naturalised. Look out for groups of white-spotted deer in woodland glades.

Standing proud and tall, the red deer is our largest deer. With its massive antlers, it is an unmistakeable icon of the Scottish Highlands, but can be seen in northwest and southern England, too…

Sika deer were introduced to the UK in the 19th century. They are native to eastern Asia.

The attractive roe deer is native to the UK and widespread across woodland, farmland, grassland and heathland habitats. Look for its distinctive pale rump and short antlers.

The muntjac deer was introduced into the UK from China in the 20th century. It has gained a stronghold in southeast England, where it can cause damage to our woods through browsing.

The grass snake is our longest snake, but don't worry if you find one in the compost heap - it's harmless! Look out for this green and yellow beauty in grasslands and wetlands, too.

A common moth across most of the UK. The large, hairy caterpillars are often seen in late summer.

There are several species of spider that live in our wetlands, but the water spider is the only one that spends its life under the water. In its pond habitats, it looks silvery because of the air…

The water scorpion is not a true scorpion, but it certainly looks like one! An underwater predator, it uses its front pincer-like legs to catch its prey. Its tail actually acts as a kind of '…

Also known as 'Scorpion-grass' because of the curved 'tail' at the end of its stems, Water forget-me-not is a distinctive plant of damp habitats. Over summer, it produces…

The large, dark grey water shrew lives mostly in wetland habitats. It's a good swimmer that hunts for aquatic insects and burrows into the banks.