Birds of Lancaster
What has actually been seen around Lancaster: 178 species, the most recorded garden birds, the busiest months, and what to put out for them.
- Species on record
- 178 within 5 km
- Observation records
- 21,120 since 2010
- Most recorded bird
- Woodpigeon
- Busiest month
- May
- Elevation
- 23 m
- Daylight, June / December
- 17.2 h / 7.4 h
What the records say about Lancaster
178 bird species have been recorded within 5 km of the centre of Lancaster (Lancashire) since 2010, across 21,120 public observation records shared through GBIF. The most recorded are Woodpigeon, Magpie and Blackbird.
Lancaster is a garden-bird place: 60% of the records here are small songbirds, doves, woodpeckers and the other birds that come to feeders and garden trees. Woodpigeon, Magpie, Blackbird and Jackdaw make up the core of what you can expect at a feeder.
14 birds of prey are on record nearby, including Common Buzzard and Common Kestrel.
Records peak in May and are lowest in December — about 2.9 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.
Morecambe, 5 km to the north-west, has more species on record (187 against 178).
Daylight runs from 17 h 10 min at midsummer to 7 h 22 min at midwinter here. Sunrise is about 6:12 in mid-April and 4:37 in late June; the dawn chorus starts 30–60 minutes earlier.
Most recorded birds near Lancaster
| # | Bird | Records |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | WoodpigeonColumba palumbus | 1,000 |
| 2 | MagpiePica pica | 919 |
| 3 | BlackbirdTurdus merula | 887 |
| 4 | MallardAnas platyrhynchos | 688 |
| 5 | JackdawColoeus monedula | 682 |
| 6 | RobinErithacus rubecula | 679 |
| 7 | Carrion CrowCorvus corone | 673 |
| 8 | Black-headed GullChroicocephalus ridibundus | 653 |
| 9 | SwiftApus apus | 625 |
| 10 | Blue TitCyanistes caeruleus | 557 |
| 11 | WrenTroglodytes troglodytes | 553 |
| 12 | European Herring GullLarus argentatus | 515 |
| 13 | StarlingSturnus vulgaris | 467 |
| 14 | GoldfinchCarduelis carduelis | 457 |
| 15 | Great TitParus major | 436 |
| 16 | Eurasian OystercatcherHaematopus ostralegus | 413 |
| 17 | Rock PigeonColumba livia | 373 |
| 18 | Common MoorhenGallinula chloropus | 355 |
| 19 | Lesser Black-backed GullLarus fuscus | 345 |
| 20 | House SparrowPasser domesticus | 338 |
Records by month
What to put out in Lancaster
Seasonal bird notes for Lancashire
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 Lancaster?
The most recorded garden birds within 5 km of Lancaster are Woodpigeon, Magpie, Blackbird, Jackdaw and Robin, based on 21,120 public records since 2010.
How many bird species have been seen near Lancaster?
178 species have at least one record within 5 km of the town centre since 2010 (GBIF).
When is the best month for birds in Lancaster?
Observation records peak in May and are lowest in December. Sunrise in late June is around 4:37.
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.