This page is a woodland floor. Move your pointer and your animal will bound, trundle, step or dart after you. Choose a different animal at the bottom, and tap the notes to open them.
Macclesfield right now checking the sky…
Red squirrels grow long tufts on their ears in autumn and winter. Grey squirrels never have them.
There are thought to be fewer than 300,000 red squirrels in Britain, most of them in Scotland. Grey squirrels number in the millions.
In autumn they bury nuts and seeds to eat in winter. The ones they forget can grow into new trees.
A squirrel's nest is called a drey: a ball of twigs lined with moss and leaves, high up in a tree.
Squirrels don't hibernate. On cold days they stay in the drey and come out to visit their food stores.
The bushy tail helps a squirrel balance and steer when it leaps, and wraps round it like a blanket in the drey.
Meet them all
Sciurus vulgaris
Britain's native squirrel: russet red, with tufted ears and a big bushy tail.
Meles meles
A stocky grey animal with a black and white striped face, out and about after dark.
Capreolus capreolus
A small, graceful native deer: fox-red in summer, grey-brown in winter, with a pale patch on its rump.
Apodemus sylvaticus
Britain's most common mouse: golden brown, with big ears, big eyes and a long tail.
Garrulus glandarius
The most colourful of the crow family: pinkish brown, with a bright blue patch on each wing.
Certhia familiaris
A small, mouse-like bird, streaky brown above and white below, with a fine curved beak.
Through the year
The green months are when you're most likely to see each one in Britain. The animal following you is shown in red.
Reading the wood
Deer, badgers and mice are most active when the light is low. The first and last hour of the day are the best.
Stand still for a few minutes. A rustle in the leaves or a harsh screech overhead often gives an animal away.
Nibbled cones and nutshells, footprints in mud and tufts of hair on a fence all tell you who has been past.
Staying on the path protects wild flowers and ground-nesting birds, and keeps you clear of setts and burrows.
In spring and early summer, a dog on a lead won't disturb hidden fawns or birds nesting on the ground.
Fallen logs and standing dead trees are home to beetles, fungi and the birds that feed on them. Leave them be.
Real photos of the animals on this page. Tap one to see it bigger.
Photos are from Wikimedia Commons and are used under free licences. Open a photo to see who took it.
Go early or just before dusk, walk slowly and stop often. Most woodland animals hear you long before you see them.
Back to the topSnails and spiders aren't insects: a snail is a mollusc, and spiders have eight legs.
Pond animals live on the Pond page: choosing one takes you there.
Seashore animals live on the Seashore page: choosing one takes you there.