British wildlife is often overlooked, but the animals inhabiting the British Isles are remarkably resourceful, and they could teach you some unexpected lessons.
The Bank of England (BoE) announced a new series of banknotes in 2025. As well as updated security features, the new notes showcase a nature theme, including four iconic animals that call the UK home.
After a public consultation of almost 500,000 people, the BoE (7 October 2026) revealed the new notes will include images of the barn owl, buff-tailed bumblebee, European hedgehog, and Atlantic puffin.
It’ll be some time before the new notes are in your wallet. The BoE noted that creating a new series of banknotes is a detailed, multi-year process that involves testing and printing the notes to ensure they are high-quality, resilient, accessible, and incorporate the latest anti-counterfeiting technology.
In the meantime, here are some valuable lessons you could learn from the creatures that will be included in the new designs.
1. Barn owl: Pay attention to the small details
Barn owls are excellent hunters. They use not only their sight but also their hearing to track down their prey. Paying attention to subtle signs is one of the reasons they’re efficient hunters.
From a financial perspective, the barn owl offers an important reminder that the small details matter. While big issues, such as creating a retirement fund, are crucial, so too are smaller outgoings and goals.
Checking that you’ve cancelled unused subscriptions or shopping around for financial products with lower fees could boost your day-to-day budget. You might even use those small savings to support larger goals, as their impact could add up over the long term.
2. Hedgehog: Be prepared and consider how to protect yourself
Adult hedgehogs are covered in thousands of quills that help protect them from predators. Their ability to curl up into a spiky ball when they feel threatened offers even greater protection.
Sharp quills don’t offer much protection from financial risks, but the hedgehog reminds us that we can take steps to be prepared for the unexpected.
To improve your resilience to financial shocks, you could build an emergency fund so you have cash to hand to cover unexpected outgoings, such as home repairs. It’s often a good idea to have at least three months of essential outgoings in an easy access cash account for this reason.
For larger financial shocks, you might benefit from taking out appropriate financial protection. For example, income protection would pay you a regular income if you were unable to work due to an accident or illness. Payments would usually continue until you return to work, retire, or reach the end of the policy.
You’d need to make regular premium payments to maintain the cover that financial protection provides. It’s also important to be aware of the conditions under which the policy would pay out, as these can vary from provider to provider.
Taking steps to prepare for financial shocks could help protect you and provide peace of mind, just as a hedgehog’s spines help protect it.
3. Puffin: Recognise the value of a long-term plan
Atlantic puffins typically live between 20 and 30 years in the wild. They’ll usually return to the same breeding site and often the same underground burrow every year. Finding and digging a new nest is physically demanding, so they create an environment they can return to after months at sea.
Much like puffins, you could benefit from laying the groundwork for your long-term goals.
For example, retirement is often a goal you’re working towards over several decades. Contributing early in your career, rather than waiting until your 40s or 50s, can make reaching your retirement goals more manageable.
According to figures from Royal London (5 April 2026), assuming steady yearly growth of 3%, paying £100 a month into a pension from the age of 18 to 68 would build a pension pot of more than £137,207. More than £77,000 of this sum would come from compound returns – where investment gains are reinvested to potentially generate further returns.
If you put off contributing to a pension until you’re 43, under the same conditions, you’d have £44,349 at the age of 68. Not only would your overall contributions be lower, but the compound returns would add just £14,349 to your pension pot.
So, contributing to a pension earlier could provide you with greater flexibility in the future.
4. Bumblebee: Carry out tasks consistently
In the BoE consultation, bumblebees received the most nominations. We often see them in our gardens and the countryside, and they encapsulate many traits people value, such as hard work and teamwork.
The bumblebee could teach investors some essential lessons too. Bumblebees consistently carry out the same tasks to collect nectar, and they’ll visit numerous flowers.
Investors who invest consistently and diversify in line with their investment goals could be better placed to achieve them. You might make it a priority to use your ISA allowance each tax year, as returns from investments held in an ISA are not liable for Capital Gains Tax. Over the long term, this could reduce your overall tax bill by a significant amount.
Get in touch to put these lessons into practice
If you’d like to apply some of these wildlife lessons to your finances, please get in touch. We could help you identify your goals and the steps you need to take to reach them.
Please note: This article is for general information only and does not constitute advice. The information is aimed at individuals only.
All information is correct at the time of writing and is subject to change in the future.
Please do not act based on anything you might read in this article. All contents are based on our understanding of HMRC legislation, which is subject to change.
The value of your investments (and any income from them) can go down as well as up and you may not get back the full amount you invested. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance.
Investments should be considered over the longer term and should fit in with your overall attitude to risk and financial circumstances.
A pension is a long-term investment not normally accessible until 55 (57 from April 2028). The fund value may fluctuate and can go down, which would have an impact on the level of pension benefits available.
Note that financial protection plans typically have no cash-in value at any time and cover will cease at the end of the term. If premiums stop, then cover will lapse.
Cover is subject to terms and conditions and may have exclusions. Definitions of illnesses vary from product provider and will be explained within the policy documentation.