
© 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.

© Danny Green/2020VISION
Starling murmurations
Experience
David Tipling
Barn owls
Experience
© Margaret Holland
Otters
Experience
© Eleanor Stone
Seal pups
Experience
©Margaret Holland
Wagtails
Experience
©Bertie Gregory/2020VISION
Birds of prey
Experience
© Terry Whittaker/2020VISION
Brent geese
Experience
©Mike Keene
Geology and fossils
Experience
©David Tipling/2020VISION
Arctic waders
Experience
© Neil Aldridge
Cranes
Experience
©Zsuzsanna Bird
Mistletoe
Experience
Meathop Moss nature reserve, Cumbria Wildlife Trust
Year round wildlife
Experience
©Jon Hawkins Surrey Hills Photography
Waxwings
Experience
Common gull ©Tom Hibbert
Gull roosts
Experience
Hawfinch ©John Bridges