This collection serves to celebrate the diversity of nature present in the UK, whilst also scrutinising the language and narratives that surround a host of creatures that make up the British landscape. There’s lots of information below about the creatures featured and you can find a reference list at the bottom of the page if you’d like to continue your research!
Grey Squirrel: Sciurus carolinensis
Habitat: Woodlands, parks, hedgerows - common in both countryside and urban environments
Diet: Nuts, seeds, berries, bark and sap. They are also opportunist robbers of birds eggs and young
Reproduction: Build large leafy dreys with an outer structure of twigs, high in trees mainly in a fork of the main trunk. Litters produced 1 or 2 a year in April to September with between 3-5 live young per brood.
Despite being a cause of concern amongst conservationists, grey squirrels have well and truly become a prominent creature in our landscape and it looks like they’re here to stay. Cute and fluffy, it’s sometimes easy to forget that these little rodents have been blamed for the red squirrel’s demise.
A sensational tale of the ‘supersquirrel’ became the most popular explanation for the grey squirrel’s success – a theory suggesting that introduced populations from different origins interbred and created a squirrel that was super-adapted to the UK. A recent genetic study by Dr Lisa Signorile finds that this is not likely to be the case and that populations of squirrels across the UK are genetically independent and that limited interbreeding between populations has taken place.
The grey squirrel is native to North America. As with many introduced species, the narrative around the grey squirrel is far from positive – invasive, non-native, problem species and pest are just a few terms often used to describe them… They’re actually considered vermin in the UK. It’s interesting, yet maybe concerning, that if a species is introduced and outcompetes pre-existing wildlife, or adapts quickly to its new landscape and thrives, it is almost instantly coined as a problem. It seems that this use of language could be a coverup for the actual problem which is poorly thought-out human mediated movement of wildlife across the globe, historically carried out by wealthy western men. Dr Signorile discovered that one of the worst offenders at spreading grey squirrels was the 11th Duke of Bedford, Herbrand Russell who released and gifted many grey squirrels around the UK from his home at Woburn Park. Russell also released populations in Regent's Park, likely creating the London epidemic of greys. It’s pretty clear that the UK has a blame problem that spans across pretty much every area of society and even into the natural world … How can something be deemed invasive if it was in fact introduced by humans?
Something does need to be done to help the red squirrel whose numbers have suffered dramatically since the introduction of it’s grey counterpart (largely due to the squirrel pox virus which can be caught by both red and grey squirrels but only kills red squirrels) and the grey squirrel is also known to strip bark from trees such as birch and sycamore which can cause the death of the tree. Birth control pills for grey squirrels are one of many avenues that are being explored at the moment, but it could be argued that further tampering in nature could cause unforeseen issues in the future. I do think it’s quite cool that most people living in the UK will be able to see grey squirrels in their area – we don’t have many mammals in Britain so despite their complicated reputation, I’m pretty happy every time I spot one!
Ladybird: Coccinellidae (family)
Habitat: Commonly found in small shrubs, trees and grass across urban and countryside environments. Details on their hibernation habits vary with species type, some species overwinter inside homes
Diet: Predominantly aphids
Reproduction: June-July: Mated females lay eggs which hatch into immature stages called 'larvae' which pass through four instars (stages) and then form 'pupae'
Lifespan: Up to 1 year
Did you know that there are over 47 species of ladybird in the UK? All species of ladybirds are excellent garden helpers, keeping hungry crop-eating aphid numbers in check, they are very important to the agricultural industry because of their role as biological controls of aphids.
The Harlequin ladybird was first discovered in the UK in 2004 in Essex – it’s not fully known how this species arrived in the UK, but harlequins were deliberately introduced as biological controls across North America and Europe prior to their arrival in the UK. This ladybird was favoured for biological control of aphids because of its size, diverse dietary range, efficiency as a predator, and its ability to adapt well to different environments. You can tell if you’ve found a harlequin or native ladybird by looking at their legs – harlequins have brown/orange legs and native species legs are black. Just like with the grey squirrel, the narrative surrounding the harlequin ladybird is far from pleasant – headlines from popular nature journals and news outlets read: ‘Invasive Harlequin Ladybird Carries Biological Weapons Against Native Competitors’, ‘Why harlequin ladybirds are invading our homes?’ ‘STD-carrying Harlequin ladybirds are invading UK homes AGAIN’, ‘SEX PESTS: Millions of aggressive foreign ladybirds riddled with STIs are invading the UK’ and the charity Buglife coin harlequins as a ‘a voracious invader from abroad’.
The harlequin ladybird does carry a fungal disease (the STD that the media loves to bring attention to) which can shorten the life of a ladybird and interfere with reproduction. This disease is transmitted via mating and when ladybirds are overwintering in close contact and harlequin ladybirds seem immune to the effects of this disease.
Studies have linked the increase in numbers of harlequin ladybirds to the decrease in numbers seen in the two-spot ladybird and other native species – the fungal disease could be playing a part in this.
It would make sense that harlequin ladybirds are outcompeting native ladybird species as they were specifically chosen as a biological control of aphids due to their eating habits and ability to adapt well to a range of environments. A lot of media outlets are also labelling the harlequin ladybird as a ‘cannibal’ – the harlequin ladybird and many native species, including the native seven spot ladybird, will eat the eggs and larvae of other ladybird species if food is scarce (this is called intraguild predation) – the harlequin ladybird has a larger appetite than other species of ladybirds (hence why it was identified as such an excellent choice as a biological control of aphids) so intraguild predation behaviour occurs more often in this species.
The case of the Harlequin ladybird provides another example of human-mediated movement of a species for human gain with little thought into future implications on other species, followed by blaming the species itself for what is fundamentally a human-induced decline in numbers of native species.
'These are not anything to panic about,' stresses Max Barclay, senior curator of Beetles at the National History museum, 'First of all they can't give you diseases, they can't hurt you and they're not going to completely exterminate our native fauna. They are going to find some kind of balance, even if that includes them in reasonably large numbers.'
Photograph by Ali Rajabali
Ring-Necked Parakeet: Psittacula krameri
Habitat: Suburban parks, gardens and orchards in cities across the UK, notable populations in London, Surrey, Kent and Sussex.
Diet: Wide variety of fruit, berries, nuts, seeds, grain and household scraps. Parakeets are colourful and frequent visitors to bird tables and garden feeders, particularly during the winter months.
Reproduction: Females lay 2-4 eggs, and incubate them for three weeks. The young are cared for by both parents, and fledge when they are 40-50 days old. Their nesting success is very high.
Lifespan: 15-30 years
The ambiguity surrounding the story of how the Ring-Necked Parakeets came to live in the UK is pretty sensational; a favourite theory involves Jimi Hendrix releasing a breeding pair in Carnaby Street in 1968, although researchers have more recently concluded that an accumulation of deliberate releases by members of the public to be a more probable cause.
The definition of invasive is something that ’tends to spread very quickly and undesirably or harmfully’. Regardless of how they came to reside here, It seems a shame that when the ring-necked parakeet began to thrive in UK urban environments, the species started being described in this way - particularly as humans are likely to be accountable for their initial spread.
Scientists have been investigating the risks to native wildlife posed by introduced parakeets, with concerns that they may threaten woodpeckers, Common Starlings and Eurasian Nuthatches by competing for nest holes (perhaps an underlying problem here is lack of trees due to urbanisation?). In 2014 a European research group involving scientists from the University of Kent presented a report to Defra, with the authors describing parakeets as an "urgent economic, societal and environmental problem", while Tony Juniper, the current chair of Natural England, has likened the birds to the "grey squirrels of the sky".
Landowners were given the right to shoot or poison Ring-necked Parakeets without specific permission in 2009, when Natural England added the birds to the general licence. Since then, pest controllers have reported a spike in demand from homeowners and businesses, while gamekeepers in London's Richmond Park shot 117 parakeets between 2017 and 2019.
A spokesman for the RSPB has said that "The RSPB is not in favour of a cull of parakeets at this time, but believes it is important that the spread of Ring-necked Parakeet is monitored and its potential for negative impacts on our native bird species assessed. Long-term they may become an increasing problem as at the moment they are very limited to urban spaces. As the climate warms, they may spread into more rural areas which could then become a problem for native species – however that is speculation, and very long term."
It’s clear that there are lots of differing opinions surrounding this species but I do think that it's amazing that so many people living in urban environments get to spot these flashy green birds on a daily basis!
We’re so fortunate to have such an incredible range of bird life in the UK. The design featured in the ‘British Wildlife’ collection showcases a range selection of bird species that can be easily spotted across the country. Each one has amazing adaptations which help it to thrive in its environment. Species included are as follows:
Woodpigeon Columba palumbus
The UK's largest and commonest pigeon, the woodpigeon is largely grey with a white neck patch and white wing patches, clearly visible in flight. Although shy in the countryside it can be tame and approachable in towns and cities! These pigeons are thought to breed all year round although the peak breeding time is August. Woodpigeons can live for 16 years in the wild! In winter the pecking rate when feeding increases from around 70 pecks a minute in the morning to over 100 before going to roost - thats a lot of pecking! Woodpigeons are very good at adapting to a range of environments and thrive in both urban and rural areas. They are deemed as pest species as they feed on crops, however, thanks to the work of Wild Justice in 2019, Woodpigeons can no longer be freely killed in England.
Jackdaw Corvus monedula
Jackdaws are widespread across the UK and their numbers are growing! They pair for life, share food and when the male barks his arrival at the nest, the female responds with a softer, longer reply. They used to pose as a nuisance as they favoured chimneys for their nesting sites, they’re less troublesome now in the age of central heating. Jackdaws recognise human faces and studies by Cambridge zoologist Auguste von Bayern concluded that they even respond to human expressions, these birds communicate via their eyes. Jackdaw groups have interesting social structures, the Austrian ornithologist Konrad Lorenz discovered that jackdaws have strict social hierarchy within their groups (called trains or clatterings). Unpaired females rank lowest in the hierarchy: they’re the last to have access to food and shelter in times of scarcity, and are liable to be pecked at by others without being permitted to retaliate. If a female bird finds a mate, she assumes the same rank as her partner and is accepted by all others in the group. These birds are very intelligent and interesting, just like in the case of the woodpigeon, they have been been protected from being freely killed since 2019 despite their status as a pest.
Eurasian Blue Tit Cyanistes caeruleus
The blue tit is a colourful mix of yellows, blues, greens and whites. They are easily recognisable due to their blue wings and tail, yellow breast, green back, white cheeks and black eye stripe and collar. They also have a white wing bar and a black bill, no other British bird has blue in its plumage. Blue tits are common in woodland, hedgerows, parks and gardens. They're widespread and found across the whole of the UK with the exception of some Scottish islands. Blue tits can be seen all year round.
Other species featured include the Pied Wagtail, European Robin, Chaffinch, Magpie and Blackbird - more info coming soon!
Buzzard: Buteo Buteo
Habitat: They are found in most habitats particularly woodland, moorland, scrub, pasture, arable, marsh bog and villages across the UK
Diet: Small mammals, birds and carrion. Even earthworms and large insects when other prey is in short supply
Reproduction: Pairs mate for life. To attract a mate (or impress his existing mate) the male performs a ritual aerial display before the beginning of Spring. This spectacular display is known as 'the roller coaster'. The female lays a clutch of 2-4 white eggs with red and brown markings, at three-day intervals in mid-April. She does most of the incubation for 33-35 days for each successive egg. The chicks hatch at about two-day intervals.
Lifespan: 8-12 years
Buzzards are currently the most common and widespread bird of prey in the UK. The buzzard is quite large with broad, rounded wings, and a short neck and tail. When gliding and soaring it will often hold its wings in a shallow 'V' and the tail is fanned. Buzzards are variable in colour from all dark brown to much paler variations, all have dark wingtips and a finely barred tail. Their meow-like call could be mistaken for a cat!
The buzzard hasn’t always been thriving in the UK - the spread of the myxomatosis virus among rabbits in 1953 is estimated to have killed more than 99% of the country's rabbits, removing much of the buzzard's food supply. An organochlorine pesticide was commonly used in agriculture the 50’s and 60’s, this affected the buzzard’s reproductive capacity as it fed on prey which had ingested the pesticide. Gamekeepers were also illegally killing buzzards during this time as they thought they were a threat to their livestock.
Populations and range remained restricted until the late 1960s when these pesticides were withdrawn. At the same time, there was a reduction in illegal killing as gamekeepers in many areas came to appreciate that buzzards pose a very limited threat to game birds. As these threats lessened, buzzard numbers started to slowly increase in Britain and Northern Ireland.
The buzzard is now at little or no risk of becoming endangered in the UK which is great news! "The critical thing is reduced persecution," says Sean Walls, avian segment manager at the animal-monitoring company Biotrack.
"Buzzards are not as big a threat to pheasants or grouse as some birds, such as the goshawk. They will take a few birds but not as many, and many gamekeepers have come to realise that."
The population is thought to have been about 10,000 breeding pairs by the mid-1960s but things have improved further for the buzzard since then, with numbers increasing sharply by the 1990s. The Countryside Alliance found there were 68,000 breeding pairs of buzzards in Britain in 2013 - almost double the number in 2006 and more than four times the number in 1997!
However, buzzards are still being shot and as they are carrion feeders, they are also particularly vulnerable to poisoning. This may be limiting breeding numbers. There is currently no specific conservation action for buzzards, but general conservation work aimed at broad scale habitat management will benefit buzzards by increasing the availability and abundance of prey. The RSPB have successfully provided information to gamekeepers on how to reduce the impact on pheasants of birds of prey, though research has shown that such losses are small.
The majority now accept that the threat posed by buzzards to humans is overstated, and we should celebrate the beauty of the once again ‘common’ buzzard.
Red Fox: Vulpes vulpes
Habitat: A highly adaptable species, found across Britain, but absent from Scottish Islands (except Skye), in all habitats from salt marshes and sand dunes to the tops of mountains. In Britain, more so than elsewhere in Europe, foxes have also adapted to life in urban surroundings
Diet: Rural red fox diets are around 95% meat, and supplemented with insects, worms and fruit. In urban areas meat only makes up around half of their diets, the other half being household refuse.
Reproduction: Foxes breed only once a year, most mating occurring in January or early February. Courting foxes can be heard barking or uttering unearthly screams; the dog and vixen hunt and travel together for about three weeks before mating. The average litter contains 4-6 cubs
Lifespan: 2-3 years
The red fox is one of our most striking mammals and can be spotted throughout the UK and Europe. There are many species of fox thriving around the world, from scorching deserts to the Arctic. The most widespread is the red fox, thought to be the first and most common non-domestic carnivore in cities all around the world.
The red fox has adapted excellently to urban environments. Foxes have developed really strong stomachs and immune systems so they are unlikely to be affected by rotting food scraps. Urban foxes are primarily scavengers but when they do hunt, it’s usually for birds or small mammals – they do a great job of keeping rodent numbers under control.
Foxes dig out dens to provide a safe underground space that is mostly used for raising fox cubs. In urban areas, the dens (known as earths) are commonly located under sheds, but they can also be among tree roots, in bushes or on railway embankments. Foxes have been documented in Britain's southern urban areas since the 1930s. The number of foxes living across the UK isn't officially recorded, however a 2013 report by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) estimates that there are around 430,000 - roughly one fox for every 150 people in the UK. The number in urban areas is thought to have increased from 33,000 in 1995 to 150,000 in 2017. However, in 2018 there was a 42% decline in red foxes in Britain and the cause is disconcertingly unknown, research will need to be conducted to understand what has led to this decrease.
Fox hunting became illegal 2005 in the UK under the Hunting Act 2004 although there are still some loopholes and the 2018 hunt season alone saw 550 reports of illegal hunting. The history of fox hunting in the UK is complex, whilst foxes were widely regarded as vermin and farmers and other landowners had hunted the animals for many years as a form of pest control (both to curb their attacks on farm animals and for their highly prized fur). In the eighteenth century fox hunting developed into its most modern incarnation and was considered a sport in its own right as a result of the decline in the UK’s deer population.
Fox hunting enthusiasts often reasoned that fox hunting was a necessary means of keeping red fox numbers in check and was needed to ‘protect farmers livelihoods’ – however, a study across 220 farms in the year 2000 found that two-thirds of farmers did not consider the fox to be a personal pest although most did believe that foxes should be controlled everywhere, because they were too numerous. Far fewer believed foxes responsible for actually taking domestic livestock. Where farmers’ opinions of the fox were influenced by personal stock loss, their main concern was chickens, which were generally kept on a non-commercial scale.
Urban fox culling was carried out in the past but fox populations are self-regulating, with attempted culls proving unsuccessful. In the 1970s, London boroughs were responsible for their resident foxes. In Bromley, a fox-control officer killed 300 foxes a year, but made no dent in the population. Urban fox control was abandoned in the 1980s.
Despite clearly patriotic narratives being pushed when it comes to protecting native species from ‘invasive’, ‘alien’ and ‘non-native’ creatures in other circumstances, it’s interesting that this same level of loyalty hasn’t been extended to the red fox which is a native creature to Britain (present since at least 12,800 BP) and people are willing to continue hunting them as a sport despite it being against the law… Although this obviously isn’t everyone’s stance on the matter, it does seem that some people may be more interested in conserving a ‘historic British blood sport’ over one of the few mammals that we are fortunate enough to have in our landscape.
There’s a wealth of life under the surface of the water! Peering into a rock pool, you might get the sense that this is a calm habitat for wildlife but in fact a rock pool is one of the harshest habitats. Creatures living in rock pools have to cope with a wide variation in temperature, oxygen levels and salinity, along with turbulent tides that pound rocks and carry in fresh waves of predators. The pools richest in species tend to be nearest the low-tide mark – in these deeper pools lower down the shore, the richness of life can be breath taking!
Rock pool creatures have unique ways of coping with their environment. Starfish embed their tubed feet into rocks, anchoring themselves through the changing tides, the common goby can change colour to remain hidden from predators and the European green crab has adapted to tolerate a range of salinities which means they are widespread. Species you may have spotted whilst rock pooling include:
- Common Starfish, Asterias rubens
- Common Goby, Gobius paganellus
- European Green Crab, Carcinus maenas
- Common hermit crab, Pagurus bernhardu
- Beadlet anemone, Actinia equina
- Common Limpet, Patella vulgata
- Common Periwinkle, Littorina littorea
- Common Prawn, Palaemon serratus
European Hedgehog: Erinaceus europaeus
Habitat: Woodland edges, hedgerows and suburban habitats. Can be seen in gardens, parks and farmland across the UK
Diet: Omnivores, eating a varied diet including slugs, millipedes, earthworms, beetles, caterpillars and other insects, as well as supplementary fruits and mushrooms
Reproduction: Mating takes place between May and August, one or two litters are produced annually, one in spring and one in late summer. If a second litter is born, it has a reduced chance of surviving the winter. Litter sizes of four to five are common in European hedgehogs, however up to six hoglets can be born.
Lifespan: 3-4 years
Prickly, cute and well loved, Europe’s only spiny mammal is facing a tough time at the moment… According to the latest State of Britain's hedgehogs report, numbers of hedgehogs have fallen by up to 30% in urban areas and 50% in rural areas since the Millennium. This is largely down to habitat loss and fragmentation. There are multiple factors which has led to this including the removal of hedges and trees as agricultural practices have intensified and a lean towards more manicured, sparse garden design. More roads being built has limited their migrations and road-related casualties and deaths are also contributing to the overall decline in numbers. Chemicals in the form of pesticides lead to hedgehog deaths, particularly in the form of slug pellets.
You can help this humble little creature in lots of ways. If you have a garden, avoid pesticides, hedgehogs love leaf and log piles and purpose-built hedgehog hides are a great way of ensuring they have places to hibernate and rest. Growing a range of plants in your garden can help attract insects that hedgehogs rely on for food!
We’re so fortunate to have such an amazing range of insects in the UK. Insects are by far the most diverse and ecologically important group of animals present in land habitats, there are over 24,000 known species of insect in the United Kingdom alone! Insects play a vital role in natural processes that support other living organisms, human health and well–being. Insects carry out a range of important roles include pollination, pest and weed regulation, decomposition, nutrient cycling, and provision of food for wildlife and humans.
Insects worldwide are undergoing rapid rates of decline, with many species severely threatened or already extinct. Despite their extreme diversity and functional importance in ecosystems, this extinction crisis rarely gains attention from the media, this will need to change if we are to save the fate of these important and beautiful creatures.
Here are some of the creatures featured in the ‘common insects’ t-shirt, you’ve probably spotted some in your garden or local park:
Common Field Grasshopper, Chorthippus brunneus
White-Tailed Bumblebee, White-tailed bumblebee, Bombus lucorum
Common Earthworm, Lumbricus terrestris
Devils Coach Horse Beetle, O. olens
Shield Bug, Chinavia hilaris
Common Garden Snail, Cornu aspersum
Leopard Slug, Limax maximus
Fruit Fly, Drosophila melanogaster
Earwig, Dermaptera
Emperor Dragonfly, Anax imperator