TROUT: caught more easily with a playful tickle
STRONG, fast, and spirited, the brown trout seems to hold a special place in the hearts of many anglers. Smaller than the salmon but also...
SPARROWHAWK: fierce mother keeps an eye on chicks
DASHING through woods in pursuit of its prey, the sparrowhawk is a relentless hunter of small birds such as blue-tits and chaffinches....
HORSE: three disasters in the saddle and a telling off
HORSES have been a central feature of the British countryside since records began with our distant ancestors quickly learning how to...
OTTER: fighting back to reclaim old haunts
STRONG, streamlined, and equipped with powerful webbed feet, otters are the master fishermen of those waterways where they still hunt....
GREAT-TIT: nesting birds spark embarrassing encounter
BIGGER and tougher than the blue-tit, the great-tit is reputed to be the hard man of the entire tit family in this country. Its strong...
MISTLETOE: happily kissing under the dung branch
KISSING under the mistletoe at Christmas has been a tradition stretching back centuries but kissers are usually too preoccupied to wonder...
GOOSE: tough harbinger of a drop in temperature
SMALLER and less elegant than swans, wild geese are nevertheless just as hardy and have come to symbolise the approach of bitter winter....
BIG CAT: dangerous hunter stalking our country hedgerows
IT is not too difficult to imagine pumas or panthers living unseen in our countryside today, patrolling the shadows and killing at will....
MINK: superb predator hated in its adopted homeland
DETESTED and feared in equal measure, the mink still possesses a number of admirable qualities despite being such an unpopular immigrant....
NIGHTINGALE: sweet voice snuffed out by developers
FAMED for its sweet song and shy manner, the nightingale has enjoyed a special place in the nation's heart for centuries. Looking like a...
