Birds of Potters Bar
What has actually been seen around Potters Bar: 127 species, the most recorded garden birds, the busiest months, and what to put out for them.
- Species on record
- 127 within 5 km
- Observation records
- 12,039 since 2010
- Most recorded bird
- Woodpigeon
- Busiest month
- April
- Elevation
- 125 m
- Daylight, June / December
- 16.7 h / 7.8 h
What the records say about Potters Bar
127 bird species have been recorded within 5 km of the centre of Potters Bar (Hertfordshire) since 2010, across 12,039 public observation records shared through GBIF. The most recorded are Woodpigeon, Robin and Blue Tit.
Potters Bar is a garden-bird place: 73% of the records here are small songbirds, doves, woodpeckers and the other birds that come to feeders and garden trees. Woodpigeon, Robin, Blue Tit and Carrion Crow make up the core of what you can expect at a feeder.
9 birds of prey are on record nearby, including Red Kite, Common Buzzard and Common Kestrel. 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 August — about 5.0 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.
Brookmans Park, 3 km to the north-west, has more species on record (148 against 127). Birds logged far more often around Potters Bar than there include Mandarin Duck and Egyptian Goose.
Daylight runs from 16 h 41 min at midsummer to 7 h 48 min at midwinter here. Sunrise is about 6:06 in mid-April and 4:41 in late June; the dawn chorus starts 30–60 minutes earlier.
Most recorded birds near Potters Bar
| # | Bird | Records |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | WoodpigeonColumba palumbus | 553 |
| 2 | RobinErithacus rubecula | 502 |
| 3 | Blue TitCyanistes caeruleus | 490 |
| 4 | Carrion CrowCorvus corone | 484 |
| 5 | MagpiePica pica | 469 |
| 6 | JackdawColoeus monedula | 417 |
| 7 | BlackbirdTurdus merula | 404 |
| 8 | Great TitParus major | 393 |
| 9 | Rose-ringed ParakeetPsittacula krameri | 324 |
| 10 | WrenTroglodytes troglodytes | 303 |
| 11 | Great Spotted WoodpeckerDendrocopos major | 269 |
| 12 | MallardAnas platyrhynchos | 261 |
| 13 | Red KiteMilvus milvus | 251 |
| 14 | Common BuzzardButeo buteo | 231 |
| 15 | Long-tailed TitAegithalos caudatus | 231 |
| 16 | GoldfinchCarduelis carduelis | 230 |
| 17 | DunnockPrunella modularis | 229 |
| 18 | Common MoorhenGallinula chloropus | 227 |
| 19 | NuthatchSitta europaea | 223 |
| 20 | Green WoodpeckerPicus viridis | 199 |
Records by month
What to put out in Potters Bar
Foods for the most recorded garden birds here, from our species notes.
Seasonal bird notes for Hertfordshire
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 Potters Bar?
The most recorded garden birds within 5 km of Potters Bar are Woodpigeon, Robin, Blue Tit, Carrion Crow and Magpie, based on 12,039 public records since 2010.
How many bird species have been seen near Potters Bar?
127 species have at least one record within 5 km of the town centre since 2010 (GBIF).
When is the best month for birds in Potters Bar?
Observation records peak in April and are lowest in August. Sunrise in late June is around 4:41.
Sources
- GBIF occurrence search (birds, class Aves, 2010 onward)
- 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.