Wildlife Wonders: A Nature-Lover’s Guide to April in the UK

April in the UK is a season of celebration. The air is gentler, birdsong fills the morning stillness, and gardens and woodlands are alive with the bright stirrings of spring. If March whispered that winter was over, April sings it—bold and beautiful.

This is the time to slow down, look closer, and witness the wonder that’s blooming, flying, hopping, and swimming all around us. Whether you’re in a city park or countryside lane, April offers so much to see—if you pause long enough to notice.

Here’s your nature-lover’s guide to what’s happening this month in the wild—and a look at one of Britain’s most fascinating but often-forgotten mammals: the incredible water shrew.

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Frogs and Toads: A Spring Chorus by the Pond

April is the peak of the amphibian breeding season. Garden ponds, woodland pools, and even roadside ditches become vibrant hubs of activity as frogs and toads lay their eggs.

• Frogspawn appears as soft clusters of jelly-like eggs floating on the surface.

• Toadspawn is laid in long, curly strings wrapped around aquatic plants.

• On warm nights, the sound of croaking males fills the air—part love song, part territory warning.

If you have a pond, you may spot wriggling clouds of tadpoles by mid-month. These tiny creatures mark the start of one of nature’s most fascinating transformations.

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Butterflies: Spring’s First Dancers

The flutter of a butterfly is one of the purest joys of spring. Several species begin to emerge and become more active in April.

Look out for:

• Brimstones – Pale yellow, often the first to appear.

• Peacocks – Bold, with eye-spotted wings to deter predators.

• Small tortoiseshells – Rust-orange with black markings, often seen sunbathing on stones.

• Orange tips – The males are unmistakable with their vivid orange wing tips.

They’re not just beautiful—they’re pollinators, indicators of healthy habitats, and signs that the season is truly shifting.

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Nesting Birds: Songs and New Beginnings

April is a bustling time for our feathered friends. Songbirds are in full voice, and nests are already cradling eggs and hungry hatchlings.

Watch and listen for:

• Robins and blackbirds, collecting moss and dried grass.

• Blue tits darting to and from nest boxes.

• Wrens, loud and confident despite their tiny size.

Gardeners and wildlife lovers can help by keeping feeders topped up and offering fresh water. Avoid disturbing hedges—many birds nest low and hidden.

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Wildflowers in Bloom: Nature’s Paintbox

The countryside is beginning to blush with colour. April’s wildflowers are subtle and early—perfect for foraging bees and admiring humans.

Spotted this month:

1. Bluebells (Hyacinthoides non-scripta) Over half the world’s bluebells are found in the UK! They are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act.
Where to Find: Ancient woodlands, shaded areas, and bluebell woods—especially in southern and western England.

2. Dog Violets (Viola riviniana) Unlike sweet violets, dog violets have no scent, but they are a vital food source for the caterpillars of fritillary butterflies.
Where to Find: Woodland edges, grassy banks, hedgerows, and roadsides.

3. Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) Often dismissed as weeds, but vital for pollinators. Read about these amazing plants and their health benefits in our blog called The Mighty Dandelion. Every part of the dandelion is edible, and its deep taproots help aerate and nourish soil.
Where to Find: Lawns, paths, meadows, and anywhere the ground has been disturbed.

4. Speedwell (Veronica spp.) Speedwell was traditionally carried as a good luck charm for travellers. Its tiny blue flowers resemble open eyes.
Where to Find: Grassy verges, meadows, open fields, and garden lawns.

5. Wood Anemones (Anemone nemorosa) These flowers spread very slowly through underground rhizomes—only about six feet per century!
Where to Find: Ancient woodlands and damp, shady woodland floors.

6. Cowslips (Primula veris) Once common in meadows, cowslips declined due to habitat loss, but are now bouncing back thanks to conservation efforts.
Where to Find: Open grasslands, verges, traditional hay meadows, and chalky banks.

7. Lesser Celandine (Ficaria verna) One of the first wildflowers to bloom in spring—Wordsworth even wrote three poems about it!
Where to Find: Damp woodlands, stream banks, ditches, and shaded gardens.

8. Greater Stitchwort (Stellaria holostea) Its petals look like ten, but each is split down the middle—so it only has five!
Where to Find: Hedgerows, woodland margins, and grassy lanes.

Take a walk in an ancient woodland or meadow and notice how colour creeps back into the landscape like a gentle tide.

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Nocturnal Neighbours: Hedgehogs and Badgers

As temperatures rise, nocturnal mammals reappear. Hedgehogs emerge from hibernation, hungry and dehydrated. Leave out shallow water and cat or dog food (no milk or bread!).

Badgers are also more visible in spring. At dusk, you might catch a glimpse of them foraging near setts, often accompanied by playful cubs.

Signs to look for:

• Snuffling sounds under hedges.

• Tracks and droppings (badger latrines are surprisingly tidy).

• Well-worn paths in long grass or along fences.

These mammals often visit gardens at night, especially if you keep areas wild or connected with “hedgehog highways.”

Have you got a Hedgehog visiting your garden? You can see if any have been spotted in your area through the Big Hedgehog Map.

Hedgehogs roam up to a mile each night in search of food, mates, and nesting spots. But fences, walls, and closed gardens block their path.

Cut a small 13cm x 13cm hole at the base of your fence or wall (just bigger than a CD case). If you can, chat with neighbours and link your gardens together—more routes = more safety.

Mark your hedgehog hole with a friendly sign or painted paw print to let others know it’s part of a wildlife corridor.

Offer Food and Water

After hibernation (in March/April), hedgehogs need high-protein snacks and plenty of water. Place food and water in a quiet, sheltered spot at dusk. You might be surprised how quickly a hungry hog arrives.

DO offer: Meaty cat/dog food (wet or dry)  🦔 Specialist hedgehog food 🦔 Fresh water in a shallow bowl

DON’T offer: Milk (they’re lactose intolerant) 🦔  Bread (nutritionally poor and causes tummy issues)

Provide Shelter

Hedgehogs need places to rest during the day, escape predators, and even nest their young.

Build or buy a hedgehog house—a wooden box with a tunnel entrance is ideal. Tuck it into a quiet corner under shrubs or behind a shed.
Make a wild pile—logs, twigs, dry leaves. These “messy” corners are perfect for nesting and attract insects for food.

Don’t forget: once you’ve placed a hedgehog house, leave it undisturbed. They’re shy creatures who value peace and quiet.

Be a Safe Haven

Some everyday garden habits can accidentally harm hedgehogs. A few simple swaps can make all the difference.

• Check before you strim long grass or hedgerows—hedgehogs love sleeping in thick vegetation.
• Never light a fire without checking underneath—what looks like a log pile might be someone’s bedroom.
• Avoid pesticides and slug pellets—hedgehogs eat garden pests naturally. Chemicals hurt them and their food sources.

Instead, encourage natural balance—let frogs, toads, and beetles do the pest control for you.

Think of your garden as a mini-wildlife reserve. The more diverse and “imperfect” it is, the better it will be for hedgehogs (and bees, birds, butterflies too!).

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Spotlight: Water Shrew – Britain’s Secretive Aquatic Hunter

While foxes, hedgehogs, and squirrels take much of the spotlight, the water shrew (Neomys fodiens) is a rarely seen marvel of British wildlife—and a true April star if you’re near a stream or pond.

What Makes the Water Shrew So Special?

It’s the largest of the UK’s three shrew species, with velvety black fur and a silvery belly.

A natural swimmer, it thrives near clean, unpolluted streams, ditches, and wetlands.

Its fur traps air, helping it float and shimmer like mercury beneath the surface.

It produces venomous saliva—a rare trait in mammals—to paralyse prey such as tadpoles and aquatic insects.

This solitary hunter is nocturnal and elusive, but if you’re patient and still, you might spot it zipping across the surface or diving like a silver shadow.

A sighting of a water shrew is incredibly rare—and a sign of a thriving, healthy ecosystem.

 

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Skywatching in April

Full Pink Moon – 13 April

Despite its name, the moon won’t turn pink! The name refers to pink wildflowers that bloom this time of year. It’s still a beautiful full moon to enjoy outdoors or photograph.

April’s full moon is also known as:

• Sprouting Grass Moon

• Egg Moon (linked to birds laying eggs)

• Fish Moon (referencing seasonal fish migrations)

• Seed Moon (in some pagan or Wiccan calendars)

All of these names connect to themes of fertility, birth, growth, and abundance.

Look for the Lyrid meteor shower, peaking around 22–23 April.

On a clear night, step outside, lie on a blanket, and just be still. The sky tells its own stories in April.

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Garden Notes: April To-Do List

April is prime time for spring prep in the garden. Here’s your wildlife-friendly checklist:

• Sow wildflower seeds – Bees and butterflies will thank you.

• Plant vegetables – Carrots, potatoes, beetroot, and onions.

• Prune shrubs and deadhead spring bulbs.

• Leave wild corners – They’re perfect for insects and nesting birds.

• Avoid pesticides – Embrace natural pest control like ladybirds and frogs.

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Notable Nature Dates in April 2025

• 7–13 April – National Gardening Week

• 13 April – Full Pink Moon

• 22 April – Earth Day

• 22–23 April – Lyrid Meteor Shower Peak

• Late April – Hedgehog Awareness Week

April invites us into nature’s renewal. Every leaf, every birdsong, every flicker of butterfly wing is a reminder that life is always returning.

Whether you’re watching tadpoles wriggle in a pond, spotting a sleepy hedgehog, or catching the glimmer of a water shrew, this is your season to reconnect.

So go on—step outside. Watch. Listen. Breathe it in. April is here, and it’s full of magic.

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