Perch Supply
Brighton and Hove · 50.83°N

Birds of Brighton

What has actually been seen around Brighton: 175 species, the most recorded garden birds, the busiest months, and what to put out for them.

Species on record
175 within 5 km
Observation records
19,724 since 2010
Most recorded bird
European Herring Gull
Busiest month
April
Elevation
29 m
Daylight, June / December
16.5 h / 7.9 h

What the records say about Brighton

175 bird species have been recorded within 5 km of the centre of Brighton (Brighton and Hove) since 2010, across 19,724 public observation records shared through GBIF. The most recorded are European Herring Gull, Rock Pigeon and Carrion Crow.

Brighton is a garden-bird place: 70% of the records here are small songbirds, doves, woodpeckers and the other birds that come to feeders and garden trees. Rock Pigeon, Carrion Crow, Woodpigeon and Magpie make up the core of what you can expect at a feeder.

13 birds of prey are on record nearby, including Common Kestrel, Common Buzzard and Eurasian Sparrowhawk. A hawk that hunts feeder birds is among them, so set feeders 2–3 metres from shrubs: close enough for cover, far enough that a cat can't ambush from it.

Records peak in April and are lowest in December — about 2.4 times as many in the busiest month. Part of that is birds (migrants and winter visitors), part is people: more birders are out in good weather, so treat the curve as activity, not a census.

Portslade, 6 km to the west, has a similar number of species on record (173 against 175). Birds logged far more often around Brighton than there include Graylag Goose and Northern Fulmar.

Daylight runs from 16 h 31 min at midsummer to 7 h 57 min at midwinter here. Sunrise is about 6:08 in mid-April and 4:46 in late June; the dawn chorus starts 30–60 minutes earlier.

Most recorded birds near Brighton

#BirdRecords
1European Herring GullLarus argentatus1,965
2Rock PigeonColumba livia1,173
3Carrion CrowCorvus corone1,069
4WoodpigeonColumba palumbus1,062
5MagpiePica pica878
6BlackbirdTurdus merula834
7StarlingSturnus vulgaris805
8SwiftApus apus773
9RobinErithacus rubecula750
10House SparrowPasser domesticus671
11JackdawColoeus monedula628
12Blue TitCyanistes caeruleus536
13WrenTroglodytes troglodytes487
14Black-headed GullChroicocephalus ridibundus466
15DunnockPrunella modularis456
16GoldfinchCarduelis carduelis422
17Great Black-backed GullLarus marinus416
18Pied WagtailMotacilla alba415
19Great TitParus major386
20Great CormorantPhalacrocorax carbo362

Records by month

What to put out in Brighton

Foods for the most recorded garden birds here, from our species notes.

Seasonal bird notes for Brighton and Hove

What's arriving, what to feed and when to clean feeders, written for UK gardens. One email a month at most.

Nearby places

Frequently asked

What birds visit gardens in Brighton?

The most recorded garden birds within 5 km of Brighton are Rock Pigeon, Carrion Crow, Woodpigeon, Magpie and Blackbird, based on 19,724 public records since 2010.

How many bird species have been seen near Brighton?

175 species have at least one record within 5 km of the town centre since 2010 (GBIF).

When is the best month for birds in Brighton?

Observation records peak in April and are lowest in December. Sunrise in late June is around 4:46.

Sources

  1. GBIF occurrence search (birds, class Aves, 2010 onward)
  2. GeoNames gazetteer (place, population, elevation)

Timing reflects typical patterns for the region as a whole; local dates vary with elevation and year. Check the linked eBird bar charts for your county.