Birds of Great Glen
What has actually been seen around Great Glen: 152 species, the most recorded garden birds, the busiest months, and what to put out for them.
- Species on record
- 152 within 5 km
- Observation records
- 28,520 since 2010
- Most recorded bird
- Woodpigeon
- Busiest month
- March
- Elevation
- 99 m
- Daylight, June / December
- 16.8 h / 7.6 h
What the records say about Great Glen
152 bird species have been recorded within 5 km of the centre of Great Glen (Leicestershire) since 2010, across 28,520 public observation records shared through GBIF. The most recorded are Woodpigeon, Blackbird and Robin.
Great Glen 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, Blackbird, Robin and Blue Tit make up the core of what you can expect at a feeder.
14 birds of prey are on record nearby, including Common Buzzard, Common Kestrel 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 March and are lowest in July — about 3.7 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.
Wigston Magna, 4 km to the west, has a similar number of species on record (152 against 152).
Daylight runs from 16 h 51 min at midsummer to 7 h 39 min at midwinter here. Sunrise is about 6:08 in mid-April and 4:39 in late June; the dawn chorus starts 30–60 minutes earlier.
Most recorded birds near Great Glen
| # | Bird | Records |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | WoodpigeonColumba palumbus | 1,286 |
| 2 | BlackbirdTurdus merula | 1,142 |
| 3 | RobinErithacus rubecula | 1,112 |
| 4 | Blue TitCyanistes caeruleus | 1,018 |
| 5 | Common BuzzardButeo buteo | 999 |
| 6 | MagpiePica pica | 968 |
| 7 | Carrion CrowCorvus corone | 908 |
| 8 | Great TitParus major | 800 |
| 9 | GoldfinchCarduelis carduelis | 796 |
| 10 | DunnockPrunella modularis | 767 |
| 11 | ChaffinchFringilla coelebs | 633 |
| 12 | StarlingSturnus vulgaris | 600 |
| 13 | WrenTroglodytes troglodytes | 562 |
| 14 | JackdawColoeus monedula | 554 |
| 15 | Green WoodpeckerPicus viridis | 536 |
| 16 | House SparrowPasser domesticus | 515 |
| 17 | Collared DoveStreptopelia decaocto | 511 |
| 18 | MallardAnas platyrhynchos | 505 |
| 19 | ChiffchaffPhylloscopus collybita | 486 |
| 20 | Black-headed GullChroicocephalus ridibundus | 486 |
Records by month
What to put out in Great Glen
Foods for the most recorded garden birds here, from our species notes.
Seasonal bird notes for Leicestershire
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 Great Glen?
The most recorded garden birds within 5 km of Great Glen are Woodpigeon, Blackbird, Robin, Blue Tit and Magpie, based on 28,520 public records since 2010.
How many bird species have been seen near Great Glen?
152 species have at least one record within 5 km of the town centre since 2010 (GBIF).
When is the best month for birds in Great Glen?
Observation records peak in March and are lowest in July. Sunrise in late June is around 4:39.
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.