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 brown shrimp blends perfectly with its seabed home and is found all around the coasts of the UK.

Despite its name, Common knotgrass is not a grass, but is actually related to the docks. It has wiry stems that grow along the ground, and is a weed of waste ground, gardens and arable fields.

Common couch is a tall, tuft-forming grass of roadside verges, waste ground and arable land. It is very tough and can shade out more delicate plants. Look for flat, blade-like leaves and thin…

A low-growing plant of sand dunes, heaths and grassy places, Common centaury is in bloom over summer. Look for clusters of pretty, pink, five-petalled flowers.

The common blue butterfly lives up to its name - it's bright blue and found in all kinds of sunny, grassy habitats throughout the UK! Look out for it in your garden, too.

Despite its name, the "common" skate is not so common anymore. In fact, they are Critically Endangered.

The smaller of our two UK seal species, common seals are also known as harbour seals. Despite being called "Common", they are actually less common than grey seals!