Birds of Thornton Dale
What has actually been seen around Thornton Dale: 128 species, the most recorded garden birds, the busiest months, and what to put out for them.
- Species on record
- 128 within 5 km
- Observation records
- 3,744 since 2010
- Most recorded bird
- Woodpigeon
- Busiest month
- January
- Elevation
- 37 m
- Daylight, June / December
- 17.2 h / 7.3 h
What the records say about Thornton Dale
128 bird species have been recorded within 5 km of the centre of Thornton Dale (North Yorkshire) since 2010, across 3,744 public observation records shared through GBIF. The most recorded are Woodpigeon, Blackbird and Swift.
Thornton Dale 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, Chaffinch and Robin make up the core of what you can expect at a feeder.
12 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 January and are lowest in October — about 6.8 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.
Pickering, 3 km to the north-west, has fewer species on record (121 against 128). Birds logged far more often around Thornton Dale than there include Pink-footed Goose and Eurasian Wigeon.
Daylight runs from 17 h 12 min at midsummer to 7 h 20 min at midwinter here. Sunrise is about 6:03 in mid-April and 4:28 in late June; the dawn chorus starts 30–60 minutes earlier.
Most recorded birds near Thornton Dale
| # | Bird | Records |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | WoodpigeonColumba palumbus | 165 |
| 2 | BlackbirdTurdus merula | 139 |
| 3 | SwiftApus apus | 119 |
| 4 | Common BuzzardButeo buteo | 118 |
| 5 | ChaffinchFringilla coelebs | 114 |
| 6 | RobinErithacus rubecula | 107 |
| 7 | WrenTroglodytes troglodytes | 100 |
| 8 | Blue TitCyanistes caeruleus | 99 |
| 9 | MallardAnas platyrhynchos | 91 |
| 10 | SiskinSpinus spinus | 90 |
| 11 | Carrion CrowCorvus corone | 86 |
| 12 | Great TitParus major | 78 |
| 13 | Red CrossbillLoxia curvirostra | 72 |
| 14 | Common PheasantPhasianus colchicus | 70 |
| 15 | Grey WagtailMotacilla cinerea | 68 |
| 16 | Marsh TitPoecile palustris | 67 |
| 17 | GoldfinchCarduelis carduelis | 66 |
| 18 | JackdawColoeus monedula | 64 |
| 19 | House SparrowPasser domesticus | 61 |
| 20 | Coal TitPeriparus ater | 60 |
Records by month
What to put out in Thornton Dale
Foods for the most recorded garden birds here, from our species notes.
Seasonal bird notes for North Yorkshire
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 Thornton Dale?
The most recorded garden birds within 5 km of Thornton Dale are Woodpigeon, Blackbird, Chaffinch, Robin and Wren, based on 3,744 public records since 2010.
How many bird species have been seen near Thornton Dale?
128 species have at least one record within 5 km of the town centre since 2010 (GBIF).
When is the best month for birds in Thornton Dale?
Observation records peak in January and are lowest in October. Sunrise in late June is around 4:28.
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.