Gallery - Birds of Built up Areas

Pigeons and Doves (Columbidae)

These birds have plump bodies,small heads and short legs. They can fly very fast.

Collard Dove (Streptopelia decaocto)

This species orginated in India and spread dramatically acroos Europe.It feeds on grain,seeds,berries and grasses.it lays two eggs in a flimsy nest of twigs in a tree or bush.

Swifts (Apodidae)

Swifts are masters of the air and are usually seen in flocks. wheeling high in the sky at great speed.They may spend weeks in the air without coming down as they catch flying insects for food and can sleep in flight.

Swift (Apus apus)

Swifts spend more time in flight than most birds catching insects, drinking and even sleeping on the wing. If they do land they have problems getting airborne again. The birds migrate to Africa to spend the winter

Swallows and Martins (Hirundinidae)

Swallows and Martins fly very fast, often near the ground, twisting and turning in the air as they chase insects. Unlike Swifts which cannot perch, flocks of Swallows and Martins often perch on telegraph wires, especially when they are about to migrate.

House Martin (Delichon urbica)

The House Martin is a amber list species-medium conservation concern.

Most house martins have abandoned nesting on cliffs and build their cup shaped nests of mud under the eves of houses in towns and villages.It eats insects which it catches in flight.

Tits (Paridae)

Tits are mainly woodland birds but several kinds visit gardens.

Blue Tit (Parus caeruleus)

A resident woodland species but will visit other habitats, such as gardens and reed-beds. Feeds on insects,fruits and seeds. A nest of moss and grasses is built in a hole in a tree or in a nest box.

Great Tit (Parus major)

The Great tit prefers the lowland deciduos forest but it may breed in more open habitats with a scattering of large trees.Visits other habitats outside the nesting season. Comes to gardens for food and will sometimes nest.Feeds on insects,seeds and nuts.Nests in holes in trees and uses nestboxs.

Wren (Troglodytidae)

All but one of the members of the wren family live in America. They are all very small birds.

Wren (Troglodytes troglodytes)

One of britains smallest birds, which lives in many places with low cover.It eats insects, especially beetles and spiders. The male builds several domed nests and one is chosen and lined by the female.

Thrushes (Turdidae)

This large family contains several birds that are well-known garden visitors. They feed mainly on berries and other fruits and insects, but are often seen looking for worms.

Robin (Erithacus rubecula)

A well loved bird in Great Britain where some are quite tame and live in gardens.Robins mainly feed on insects,a nest of grasses and leaves is built among tree roots or in other sheltered positions.

Black Redstart (Phoenicurus ochruros)

The Black Redstart is a Amber list species-Medium Conservation Concern.

This Robin sized bird is at home in busy town centres and industrial areas where it will sing from roof tops.

Blackbird (Turdus merula)

Some actions of a Blackbird are particularly characteristic, such as raising its tail on landing or turning over dead leaves under trees and shrubs as it searches for worms and other insects. It also eats fruit especially berries. The nest is built in a tree or bush.

Song Thrush (Turdus philomelos)

The Song Thrush is classed as a Red List Species-High Conservation Concern.

Many species eat snails, but only the Song Thrush methodically hammers open the larger ones,often using the same stone or other hard object. It also eats other insects and fruits. It lives where there are trees or bushes and open grassland. Nests in trees and shrubs.

Mistle Thrush (Turdus viscivorus)

The Mistle Thrush is listed as a Amber List Species-medium conservation concern. This bulky, upright thrush likes open woodland or parkland ut forms flocks in late summer. It eats invertebrates and fruit.

Blackcap (sylvia atricapilla)

This warbler eats insects and fruits but will also visit gardens and bird tables. Black caps nest low down in dense vegitation.

Flycatchers (Muscicapidae)

These birds are well named for they are most likely to be seen sitting watchfully on a perch and then suddenly darting out to capture a fly or some other flying insect.

Spotted Flycatcher (Muscicapa striata)

The Spotted Flycatcher is a Red list species-High conservation concern. A summer migrant to woodland glades and gardens with mature trees, it winters in southern Africa.

Accentors (Prunellidae)

Accentors are small birds that root about on the ground or among low plants seeking insects and spiders to eat, and also seeds in winter.

Dunnock (Prunella modularis)

The Dunnock has been classified as a Amber list species-medium conservation concern.

The Dunnock is a common but inconspicuous bird. It creeps like a mouse with jerky movements. It inhabits woods and shrubberies and feeds on insects. A nest is built in a hedge or bush.

Finches (Fringillidae)

Like tits,finches are generally among the most well-known and liked of birds, for they often come to gardens and parks,adding a touch of colour with their bright plumage.

Bullfinch (Pyrrhula pyrrhula)

The Bullfinch is classed as a Red list Species-High Conservation Concern.

This attractive species is unpopular with gardeners and fruit growers becouse it eats fruits and seeds,young Bullfinches feed on insects.They nest in woods,thickets and hedges which is made of small twigs.

Chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs)

A familiar bird of woodland and other areas with trees. The Chaffinch eats seeds and insects. It builds a neat nest of moss and lichen among branches or against a tree trunk.

Goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis)

This beautiful small finch has a longer and more pointed bill than the Greenfinch which it uses it to extract seeds from food plants such as thistles. The neat deep nest is built towards the end of a branch.

Greenfinch (Carduelis chloris)

The Greenfinchs large bill allows it to open seeds of various sizes including peanuts hung up in gardens. It breeds in loose colonies in woodland, parks and large gardens.A bulky nest is built in a thick shrub.

Sparrows (Ploceidae)

No bird is better known than the house sparrow which lives with man almost everywhere

House Sparrow (Passer domesticus)

The House Sparrow is a red list species-high conservation concern.

The House Sparrow association with man has taken it to every continent except Antarctica. It eats grain and many other foods. Nests in holes,often in buildings, but some times builds an untidy, domed nest in a tree or bush.

Starlings (Sturnidae)

Starlings like each others company and live in flocks that in winter may contain thousands of birds.

Starling (Sturnus vulgaris)

The Starling is classed as a Red list Species-High Conservation Concern.

Starlings probe the ground with long strong bills in their search for insects, they will also eat fruit. Very social bird and thousands roost together in winter.Nests in holes in trees,cliffs and buildings.

© Simon Thurgood 2010
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