![Silver birch tree covered in frost, the Wildlife Trusts](/sites/default/files/styles/spotlight_default/public/2018-04/wildlifetrusts_40679279320.jpg?h=77fbd5b5&itok=Dz6h-Rmv)
© Mark Hamblin/2020VISION
Where to see wildlife in the winter
Natural winter wonders
Some say winter is lifeless. It’s anything but. Many birds that fought each other off all spring and summer now gather together in enormous numbers, and starlings fill the skies with the incredible patterns of their murmurations. Arctic visitors make the coasts their winter home, while seal colonies haul themselves onto our beaches to noisily stake out their territory. It’s the toughest time of year, but even at this, the darkest, coldest and least promising time of year, life goes on.
Looking for things to do with the kids this winter? Download your family winter wildlife activities guide.
![Starling murmuration heading to roost at sunset, The Wildlife Trusts](/sites/default/files/styles/spotlight_default/public/2018-04/wildlifetrusts_40557817642.jpg?h=59f9d53c&itok=9P0XIhLl)
© Danny Green/2020VISION
Starling murmurations
Experience![Barn Owl - David Tipling](/sites/default/files/styles/spotlight_default/public/2018-01/Barn%20Owl%20-%20David%20Tipling.jpg?h=790a9b5b&itok=AiMR_D_T)
David Tipling
Barn owls
Experience![Two otters play fighting in the water, The Wildlife Trusts](/sites/default/files/styles/spotlight_default/public/2018-05/wildlifetrusts_40332679781.jpg?h=ea95bb15&itok=uxlG3Jlp)
© Margaret Holland
Otters
Experience![Grey seal pup waving its flipper, the Wildlife Trusts](/sites/default/files/styles/spotlight_default/public/2018-04/wildlifetrusts_40331644458.jpg?h=85449ce9&itok=pmIklrH2)
© Eleanor Stone
Seal pups
Experience![Pied wagtail](/sites/default/files/styles/spotlight_default/public/2017-12/Pied%20wagtail%202%20%28c%29%20Margaret%20Holland.jpg?h=a80d707f&itok=w7PZE7_Z)
©Margaret Holland
Wagtails
Experience![Peregrine falcon in flight](/sites/default/files/styles/spotlight_default/public/2017-12/BG_110312-1037.jpg?h=1cff2fac&itok=mzK-nKE8)
©Bertie Gregory/2020VISION
Birds of prey
Experience![Dark-bellied brent goose migrating against an orange sky, The Wildlife Trusts](/sites/default/files/styles/spotlight_default/public/2018-04/wildlifetrusts_40678186404.jpg?h=265e640d&itok=QDcfAbvM)
© Terry Whittaker/2020VISION
Brent geese
Experience![Tout quarry stone sculpture](/sites/default/files/styles/spotlight_default/public/2018-05/TOUT%20QUARRY%20%C2%A9%20Mike%20Keene.jpg?h=ada05aa9&itok=EtIxl0EI)
©Mike Keene
Geology and fossils
Experience![Black-tailed Godwit in flight](/sites/default/files/styles/spotlight_default/public/2018-01/DTI04_14032011Blackwit0479.jpg?h=543d497f&itok=Jk-gCyr7)
©David Tipling/2020VISION
Arctic waders
Experience![Common crane, The Wildlife Trusts](/sites/default/files/styles/spotlight_default/public/2018-04/wildlifetrusts_40330640659.jpg?h=02ce9656&itok=nKWoeQlV)
© Neil Aldridge
Cranes
Experience![Mistletoe](/sites/default/files/styles/spotlight_default/public/2018-01/Mistletoe%20Zsuzsanna%20Bird.jpg?h=625e6b2c&itok=ZBtjqBF7)
©Zsuzsanna Bird
Mistletoe
Experience![Meathop Moss nature reserve, Cumbria Wildlife Trust](/sites/default/files/styles/spotlight_default/public/2017-12/Meathop%20Moss%20Nature%20Reserve%202.jpg?h=0d27ee61&itok=4X0L8O6t)
Meathop Moss nature reserve, Cumbria Wildlife Trust
Year round wildlife
Experience![Waxwing](/sites/default/files/styles/spotlight_default/public/2017-12/Waxwing020%C2%A9jonhawkinsSurreyHillsPhotography.jpg?h=69d097d0&itok=Bh_W-Uad)
©Jon Hawkins Surrey Hills Photography
Waxwings
Experience![Common gull](/sites/default/files/styles/spotlight_default/public/2018-12/wildlifetrusts_52051347412.jpg?h=2b2ef5e2&itok=wKVGVDIh)
Common gull ©Tom Hibbert
Gull roosts
Experience![Hawfinch](/sites/default/files/styles/spotlight_default/public/2018-11/hawfinch-00014.jpg?h=5daca66f&itok=QpMFmP8H)
Hawfinch ©John Bridges