Birds in Aberdeenshire
Our list for Aberdeenshire has 193 bird species recorded regularly there: 78 residents, 43 summer visitors, 24 winter visitors, 39 passage migrants and 8 scarce visitors
The list comes from 93,000 birdwatchers' records from 2019–2024, shared through the eBird Observation Dataset on GBIF. A bird is listed when it was recorded in at least 3 of the 6 years and has a Birdfact species guide, so more species occur here than are listed; the months show when it is recorded most years.
- Species on our list
- 193
- In October
- 130
- Common
- 100
- Busiest month
- May
What's special about Aberdeenshire
vs ScotlandThe birds recorded far more often here than across Scotland, as a share of all bird records. These are the ones Aberdeenshire is worth visiting for.
Common Crane30×Passage migrant · 0.06% of records here, 0.00% across Scotland
Eurasian Spoonbill15×Summer visitor · 0.06% of records here, 0.00% across Scotland
Corn Bunting8.4×Summer visitor · 0.18% of records here, 0.02% across Scotland
Great White Egret8.3×Summer visitor · 0.15% of records here, 0.02% across Scotland
Western Marsh-harrier7.7×Passage migrant · 0.21% of records here, 0.03% across Scotland
Little Tern6.8×Summer visitor · 0.15% of records here, 0.02% across Scotland
Eurasian Tree Sparrow4.7×Resident · 0.95% of records here, 0.20% across Scotland
Yellowhammer4.7×Resident · 1.5% of records here, 0.32% across Scotland
This month: October
GBIF · OctMost likely
Share of all bird records in Aberdeenshire in October, 2019–2024. “Arriving now” are the birds whose share rises most from last month. Each month links to that month’s page.
Near you this week
The birds most likely around your town or postcode right now, from the same records, for a square about 9 km across.
The bird calendar for Aberdeenshire
Month by monthWhen each bird is around, through the year. The darker the square, the closer that month is to the bird’s busiest. Filter by summer or winter visitors to see the seasons turn over.
| Bird | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Woodpigeon | ||||||||||||
| Carrion Crow | ||||||||||||
| European Herring Gull | ||||||||||||
| Jackdaw | ||||||||||||
| Blackbird | ||||||||||||
| European Robin | ||||||||||||
| Chaffinch | ||||||||||||
| Barn Swallow | ||||||||||||
| Eurasian Oystercatcher | ||||||||||||
| Eurasian Wren | ||||||||||||
| Buzzard | ||||||||||||
| Rook | ||||||||||||
| Pied Wagtail | ||||||||||||
| Common Gull | ||||||||||||
| Blue Tit | ||||||||||||
| Common Starling | ||||||||||||
| Black-headed Gull | ||||||||||||
| Great Cormorant | ||||||||||||
| Yellowhammer | ||||||||||||
| Mallard | ||||||||||||
| European Goldfinch | ||||||||||||
| Great Black-backed Gull | ||||||||||||
| Eider | ||||||||||||
| Eurasian Skylark | ||||||||||||
| Meadow Pipit | ||||||||||||
| House Sparrow | ||||||||||||
| Great Tit | ||||||||||||
| Dunnock | ||||||||||||
| Curlew | ||||||||||||
| Magpie |
The year in Aberdeenshire
Records by month| January | 5,910 |
|---|---|
| February | 4,261 |
| March | 5,072 |
| April | 8,418 |
| May | 16,505 |
| June | 15,333 |
| July | 7,706 |
| August | 6,754 |
| September | 8,003 |
| October | 7,699 |
| November | 4,345 |
| December | 2,913 |
May has the most records (17,000). Records follow birdwatchers as well as birds: a busy month means more people out looking, as well as more birds passing through.
By family
12 of 30How common
More of Scotland
- Birds in Shetland Islands207 species
- Birds in East Lothian200 species
- Birds in Highland200 species
- Birds in Fife199 species
All 193 birds, A to Z
- Arctic Jaeger
- Arctic Loon
- Arctic Tern
- Atlantic Puffin
- Bar-tailed Godwit
- Barn Owl
- Barn Swallow
- Barnacle Goose
- Bearded Tit
- Black Guillemot
- Black Redstart
- Black-headed Gull
- Black-tailed Godwit
- Blackbird
- Blackcap
- Blue Tit
- Bohemian Waxwing
- Brambling
- Brent Goose
- Bullfinch
- Buzzard
- Canada Goose
- Carrion Crow
- Chaffinch
Show all 193 birds
- Chiffchaff
- Coal Tit
- Common Crane
- Common Gull
- Common Kingfisher
- Common Loon
- Common Merganser
- Common Pheasant
- Common Quail
- Common Raven
- Common Redpoll
- Common Redstart
- Common Reed-warbler
- Common Sandpiper
- Common Scoter
- Common Shelduck
- Common Snipe
- Common Starling
- Common Swift
- Common Tern
- Coot
- Corn Bunting
- Crested Tit
- Cuckoo
- Curlew
- Curlew Sandpiper
- Dipper
- Dunlin
- Dunnock
- Eider
- Eurasian Collared Dove
- Eurasian Jay
- Eurasian Oystercatcher
- Eurasian Siskin
- Eurasian Skylark
- Eurasian Spoonbill
- Eurasian Teal
- Eurasian Tree Sparrow
- Eurasian Wigeon
- Eurasian Woodcock
- Eurasian Wren
- European Goldfinch
- European Green Woodpecker
- European Herring Gull
- European Pied Flycatcher
- European Robin
- European Shag
- Fieldfare
- Fulmar
- Gadwall
- Garden Warbler
- Garganey
- Glaucous Gull
- Goldcrest
- Golden Plover
- Goldeneye
- Grasshopper Warbler
- Great Black-backed Gull
- Great Cormorant
- Great Crested Grebe
- Great Skua
- Great Spotted Woodpecker
- Great Tit
- Great White Egret
- Greater Scaup
- Greater White-fronted Goose
- Green Sandpiper
- Greenfinch
- Greenshank
- Grey Heron
- Grey Partridge
- Grey Plover
- Grey Wagtail
- Greylag Goose
- Hen Harrier
- Hooded Crow
- House Martin
- House Sparrow
- Iceland Gull
- Jackdaw
- Kestrel
- King Eider
- Kittiwake
- Lesser Black-backed Gull
- Lesser Whitethroat
- Linnet
- Little Auk
- Little Egret
- Little Grebe
- Little Gull
- Little Ringed Plover
- Little Stint
- Little Tern
- Long-tailed Duck
- Long-tailed Tit
- Magpie
- Mallard
- Manx Shearwater
- Meadow Pipit
- Mediterranean Gull
- Merlin
- Mistle Thrush
- Moorhen
- Mute Swan
- Northern Gannet
- Northern Lapwing
- Northern Pintail
- Northern Shoveler
- Osprey
- Parrot Crossbill
- Pectoral Sandpiper
- Peregrine Falcon
- Pied Wagtail
- Pink-footed Goose
- Pochard
- Purple Sandpiper
- Razorbill
- Red Crossbill
- Red Grouse
- Red Kite
- Red Knot
- Red-backed Shrike
- Red-breasted Merganser
- Red-legged Partridge
- Red-throated Loon
- Redshank
- Redwing
- Reed Bunting
- Ring Ouzel
- Ringed Plover
- Rock Dove
- Rock Pipit
- Rock Ptarmigan
- Rook
- Ruddy Turnstone
- Ruff
- Sand Martin
- Sanderling
- Sandwich Tern
- Sedge Warbler
- Short-eared Owl
- Smew
- Snow Bunting
- Song Thrush
- Sooty Shearwater
- Sparrowhawk
- Spotted Flycatcher
- Spotted Redshank
- Stock Dove
- Stonechat
- Tawny Owl
- Tree Pipit
- Treecreeper
- Tufted Duck
- Twite
- Velvet Scoter
- Water Rail
- Western Marsh-harrier
- Wheatear
- Whimbrel
- Whinchat
- White-tailed Sea-eagle
- Whitethroat
- Whooper Swan
- Willow Warbler
- Wood Sandpiper
- Woodpigeon
- Yellow-browed Warbler
- Yellowhammer
Questions
4What birds is Aberdeenshire known for?
Compared with the rest of Scotland, Aberdeenshire stands out for Common Crane, Eurasian Spoonbill, Corn Bunting and Great White Egret. Each is recorded at least 8.3 times as often here as across Scotland, as a share of all bird records (2019–2024).
How many birds are on Birdfact's list for Aberdeenshire?
193 species, each recorded regularly in Aberdeenshire (in at least 3 of the 6 years 2019–2024): 78 residents, 43 summer visitors, 24 winter visitors, 39 passage migrants and 8 scarce visitors. The list includes only birds with a Birdfact species guide, so more species occur in Aberdeenshire, and rarer vagrants are not listed.
What birds can I see in Aberdeenshire in October?
130 species on our list for Aberdeenshire are recorded regularly in October. Of these, the most often recorded are Carrion Crow, European Herring Gull, Jackdaw, European Robin and Woodpigeon.
What are the most common birds in Aberdeenshire?
Of the birds on our list, the ones birdwatchers record most often in Aberdeenshire are European Herring Gull, Barn Swallow, Woodpigeon, European Robin and Carrion Crow.
Data: EOD – eBird Observation Dataset (Cornell Lab of Ornithology), accessed via GBIF.org, CC BY 4.0. Records from 2019–2024, aggregated and filtered by Birdfact. How these lists are made













