Birds in Cumbria
Explore 187 species found in this region.
Cumbria is one of England's most rewarding counties for birdwatching, with 184 recorded species found across its diverse landscapes of lakes, estuaries, upland fells, and ancient woodlands. The region's varied habitats attract everything from wintering wildfowl such as Pink-footed Goose and Northern Pintail on the Solway Firth to breeding waders like Northern Lapwing and Common Sandpiper along the Lake District's shores. Woodland species including Great Tit and the striking Mandarin Duck can also be encountered, while the county's coastline and river systems support populations of Common Merganser and Common Shelduck year-round.
Visiting in April? Look out for Black Grouse and Black Guillemot arriving this month, and Bar-tailed Godwit and Eurasian Bittern depart for the season.
Showing 47–69 of 187 species
Dipper
Cinclus cinclusLC
A prized resident of fast-flowing Lake District becks and rivers, bobbing on rocks before plunging underwater to feed.
Year-round
Dunlin
Calidris alpinaLC
An uncommon resident; breeds on upland moors in summer and gathers in flocks on estuarine mudflats through winter.
Year-round
Dunnock
Prunella modularisLC
A common but unobtrusive resident, shuffling through hedgerows and garden borders year-round with its thin, piping song.
Year-round
Eider
Somateria mollissimaNT
An uncommon coastal resident, most easily seen around the Solway Firth and Walney Island throughout the year.
Year-round
Eurasian Bittern
Botaurus stellarisLC
A rare passage visitor in March, occasionally flushed from reedbeds around Morecambe Bay and lowland wetlands. Secretive and far more often heard than seen.
Mar
Eurasian Collared Dove
Streptopelia decaoctoLC
An uncommon resident of villages and farmsteads, its monotonous cooing a familiar sound in lowland Cumbria.
Year-round
Eurasian Jay
Garrulus glandariusLC
An uncommon resident of broadleaved woodlands and mature gardens. Its harsh, screeching call often betrays its presence among the oaks.
Year-round
Eurasian Nuthatch
Sitta europaeaLC
A common resident of mature broadleaved woodlands, often seen spiralling head-first down oak trunks in the Lake District valleys.
Year-round
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Eurasian Oystercatcher
Haematopus ostralegusNT
A common resident breeding on shingle shores, farmland, and river margins. Noisy flocks gather on estuaries outside the breeding season.
Year-round
Eurasian Siskin
Spinus spinusLC
An uncommon resident breeding in Cumbria's conifer and mixed woodlands, often visiting garden nyjer feeders in winter flocks.
Year-round
Eurasian Skylark
Alauda arvensisLC
An uncommon resident of open farmland and upland pastures, declining nationally but still singing over Cumbrian fields.
Year-round
Eurasian Spoonbill
Platalea leucorodiaLC
A rare passage visitor recorded in winter and summer months at estuaries and wetlands. Increasingly seen in England as the species expands north.
Jan–Jul
Eurasian Tree Sparrow
Passer montanusLC
An uncommon resident found locally around farmyards and hedgerows in the Eden Valley and lowland Cumbria.
Year-round
Eurasian Wigeon
Mareca penelopeLC
An uncommon year-round resident, with numbers swelling in winter on estuaries and flooded fields. Breeds sparingly on upland tarns.
Year-round
Eurasian Woodcock
Scolopax rusticolaLC
A rare non-breeding visitor to Cumbrian woodlands and damp fields in winter. Numbers bolstered by continental migrants during cold spells.
Nov–Mar
Eurasian Wren
Troglodytes troglodytesLC
One of Cumbria's most abundant birds, its explosive song rings through hedgerows, gardens, and fell-side bracken year-round.
Year-round
European Bee-eater
Merops apiasterLC
An exceptionally rare passage vagrant, with occasional August records. A dazzling southern European species that causes great excitement when it appears.
Aug
European Goldfinch
Carduelis carduelisLC
A colourful and common year-round resident, increasingly seen on garden feeders and foraging on teasel and thistle heads across the county.
Year-round
European Green Woodpecker
Picus viridisLC
A rare resident found in parkland, open woodland and field edges. Its loud, laughing call carries far but it can be surprisingly hard to spot.
Year-round
European Herring Gull
Larus argentatusLC
A common resident seen year-round along the coast, in towns, and at landfill sites. Breeds on rooftops and coastal cliffs.
Year-round
European Pied Flycatcher
Ficedula hypoleucaLC
A prized summer visitor to Cumbrian oak woodlands, readily using nestboxes. The Lake District is a key UK stronghold.
Apr–Aug
European Robin
Erithacus rubeculaLC
A familiar year-round presence in Cumbrian gardens and woodlands, singing its sweet, wistful song even through winter.
Year-round
European Shag
Phalacrocorax aristotelisLC
A rare resident along rocky coastlines, breeding at St Bees Head. Smaller and darker than the Great Cormorant, preferring saltwater.
Jun–Apr