Torfaen County Borough · 51.70°N

Birds of Pontypool

What has actually been seen around Pontypool: 104 species, the most recorded garden birds, the busiest months, and what to put out for them.

Species on record: 104 within 5 km
Observation records: 1,668 since 2010
Most recorded bird: Blackbird
Busiest month: June
Elevation: 173 m
Daylight, June / December: 16.7 h / 7.8 h

What the records say about Pontypool

104 bird species have been recorded within 5 km of the centre of Pontypool (Torfaen County Borough) since 2010, across 1,668 public observation records shared through GBIF. The most recorded are Blackbird, Woodpigeon and Robin.

Pontypool is a garden-bird place: 74% of the records here are small songbirds, doves, woodpeckers and the other birds that come to feeders and garden trees. Blackbird, Woodpigeon, Robin and Magpie make up the core of what you can expect at a feeder.

11 birds of prey are on record nearby, including Common Buzzard, Eurasian Sparrowhawk and Peregrine Falcon. 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 June and are lowest in December — about 3.9 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.

Cwmbran, 5 km to the south, has more species on record (153 against 104). Birds logged far more often around Pontypool than there include Swift.

Daylight runs from 16 h 41 min at midsummer to 7 h 48 min at midwinter here. Sunrise is about 6:17 in mid-April and 4:53 in late June; the dawn chorus starts 30–60 minutes earlier.

Most recorded birds near Pontypool

#	Bird	Records
1	BlackbirdTurdus merula	87
2	WoodpigeonColumba palumbus	83
3	RobinErithacus rubecula	80
4	SwiftApus apus	75
5	MagpiePica pica	75
6	Canada GooseBranta canadensis	64
7	Blue TitCyanistes caeruleus	63
8	JackdawColoeus monedula	58
9	Carrion CrowCorvus corone	58
10	House SparrowPasser domesticus	55
11	MallardAnas platyrhynchos	53
12	Great TitParus major	49
13	Common BuzzardButeo buteo	46
14	WrenTroglodytes troglodytes	43
15	GoldfinchCarduelis carduelis	40
16	Common MoorhenGallinula chloropus	33
17	StarlingSturnus vulgaris	33
18	ChaffinchFringilla coelebs	32
19	DunnockPrunella modularis	31
20	Song ThrushTurdus philomelos	31

Records by month

What to put out in Pontypool

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

Blackbird
Soaked sultanas · Apples · Mealworms
Woodpigeon
Seed mix
Robin
Mealworms · Suet pellets · Sunflower hearts
Blue Tit
Sunflower hearts · Peanuts (mesh feeder only) · Suet
Jackdaw
Suet · Kitchen scraps
House Sparrow
Seed mix · Sunflower hearts · Suet

Seasonal bird notes for Torfaen County Borough

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 Pontypool?

The most recorded garden birds within 5 km of Pontypool are Blackbird, Woodpigeon, Robin, Magpie and Blue Tit, based on 1,668 public records since 2010.

How many bird species have been seen near Pontypool?

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

When is the best month for birds in Pontypool?

Observation records peak in June and are lowest in December. Sunrise in late June is around 4:53.

Sources

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.