The turtle dove is the UK's fastest declining bird species and is on the brink of extinction. A small and pretty pigeon, it breeds in lowland England and winters in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The fluffy, white heads of common cotton-grass dot our brown, boggy moors and heaths as if a giant bag of cotton wool balls has been thrown across the landscape!

The stock dove looks very much like the woodpigeon, but without the white neck and wing patches. It can be spotted in woodlands and parks, and on farmland in winter, but rarely visits our gardens…

The tightly packed, thistle-like purple flower heads of common knapweed bloom on all kinds of grasslands. Also regularly called black knapweed, this plant attracts clouds of butterflies.

The collared dove is a pretty little pigeon that is a regular sight in our gardens, woodlands and parks. Listen out for its familiar cooing call, which you may hear before you see the bird itself…