The world is full of the most extraordinary examples of natural beauty. Here are our favourite sights and sounds of our natural world, one for each month of the year. Which is your favourite?
January: The stoop of a peregrine falcon
February: The flash of a kingfisher
March: Black grouse lekking
April: A bluebell wood
May: Cow parsley in our hedgerows
June: A trout rising to a mayfly
July: Swifts swooping and screaming
August: Chalkhill blue butterflies on the downs
September: A barn owl hunting at dusk
October: Red-deer stags roaring in the rut
November: Hounds in full cry
December: Ash burning on an open fire
Exhibition review: Ordinary Beauty – The Photography of Edwin Smith
Country Life reviews Ordinary Beauty: The photography of Edwin Smith at the Royal Institute of British Architects.
Barn owls bounce back
The British Trust for Ornithology has reported a rise in barn owl nesting figures.
Grey squirrels to be culled
Grey squirrel crackdown planned.
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A well-connected rural playground with 23 acres on the edge of the South Downs National ParkOld House Farm is an impressive family home with a wealth of amenities that would inspire any rural passion.
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The UK gets its first ‘European stork village’ — and it's in West SussexAlthough the mortality rate among white storks can be up to 90%, the future looks rosy for breeding pairs in southern England.
