Birds of Crawley
What has actually been seen around Crawley: 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
- 17,306 since 2010
- Most recorded bird
- Woodpigeon
- Busiest month
- March
- Elevation
- 84 m
- Daylight, June / December
- 16.6 h / 7.9 h
What the records say about Crawley
127 bird species have been recorded within 5 km of the centre of Crawley (West Sussex) since 2010, across 17,306 public observation records shared through GBIF. The most recorded are Woodpigeon, Carrion Crow and Magpie.
Crawley 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. Woodpigeon, Carrion Crow, Magpie and Blue Tit make up the core of what you can expect at a feeder.
10 birds of prey are on record nearby, including Common Buzzard, Eurasian Sparrowhawk 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 March and are lowest in September — about 4.2 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.
Copthorne, 5 km to the north-east, has more species on record (137 against 127). Birds logged far more often around Crawley than there include Siskin, Marsh Tit, Common Redpoll and Red Crossbill.
Daylight runs from 16 h 34 min at midsummer to 7 h 54 min at midwinter here. Sunrise is about 6:07 in mid-April and 4:44 in late June; the dawn chorus starts 30–60 minutes earlier.
Most recorded birds near Crawley
| # | Bird | Records |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | WoodpigeonColumba palumbus | 1,065 |
| 2 | Carrion CrowCorvus corone | 965 |
| 3 | MagpiePica pica | 878 |
| 4 | Blue TitCyanistes caeruleus | 790 |
| 5 | RobinErithacus rubecula | 774 |
| 6 | BlackbirdTurdus merula | 713 |
| 7 | European Herring GullLarus argentatus | 654 |
| 8 | Rock PigeonColumba livia | 630 |
| 9 | GoldfinchCarduelis carduelis | 522 |
| 10 | Great TitParus major | 478 |
| 11 | MallardAnas platyrhynchos | 450 |
| 12 | StarlingSturnus vulgaris | 445 |
| 13 | WrenTroglodytes troglodytes | 433 |
| 14 | House SparrowPasser domesticus | 403 |
| 15 | Common MoorhenGallinula chloropus | 359 |
| 16 | JackdawColoeus monedula | 353 |
| 17 | SwiftApus apus | 342 |
| 18 | Canada GooseBranta canadensis | 336 |
| 19 | NuthatchSitta europaea | 316 |
| 20 | GoldcrestRegulus regulus | 288 |
Records by month
What to put out in Crawley
Foods for the most recorded garden birds here, from our species notes.
Seasonal bird notes for West Sussex
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 Crawley?
The most recorded garden birds within 5 km of Crawley are Woodpigeon, Carrion Crow, Magpie, Blue Tit and Robin, based on 17,306 public records since 2010.
How many bird species have been seen near Crawley?
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 Crawley?
Observation records peak in March and are lowest in September. Sunrise in late June is around 4:44.
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.