Birds to See in Shetland Islands in March
97 species listed for March · birdwatchers' records, 2019–2024
97 bird species on our list for Shetland Islands are recorded regularly in March. Of these, the most often recorded are Eurasian Oystercatcher, Common Starling, European Herring Gull, Greylag Goose and Curlew. New this month: Pied Wagtail, Chiffchaff, Eurasian Siskin and Dunnock and 11 more.
Residents
(48)Recorded all year
Eurasian Oystercatcher
Haematopus ostralegusNT
Recorded all year

Common Starling
Sturnus vulgarisLC
Recorded all year

European Herring Gull
Larus argentatusLC
Recorded all year

Greylag Goose
Anser anserLC
Recorded all year

Curlew
Numenius arquataNT
Recorded all year

Common Gull
Larus canusLC
Recorded all year

Blackbird
Turdus merulaLC
Recorded all year

Redshank
Tringa totanusLC
Recorded all year

Hooded Crow
Corvus cornixLC
Recorded all year

Fulmar
Fulmarus glacialisLC
Recorded all year

Great Black-backed Gull
Larus marinusLC
Recorded all year

European Shag
Gulosus aristotelisLC
Recorded all year

House Sparrow
Passer domesticusLC
Recorded all year

Rock Dove
Columba liviaLC
Recorded all year

Ruddy Turnstone
Arenaria interpresLC
Recorded all year

Northern Lapwing
Vanellus vanellusNT
Recorded all year

Mallard
Anas platyrhynchosLC
Recorded all year

Black Guillemot
Cepphus grylleLC
Recorded all year

Eurasian Wren
Troglodytes troglodytesLC
Recorded all year

Common Raven
Corvus coraxLC
Recorded all year

Black-headed Gull
Chroicocephalus ridibundusLC
Recorded all year

Ringed Plover
Charadrius hiaticulaLC
Recorded all year

Rock Pipit
Anthus petrosusLC
Recorded all year

Northern Gannet
Morus bassanusLC
Recorded all year

Common Loon
Gavia immerLC
Recorded all year

Eider
Somateria mollissimaNT
Recorded all year

Common Snipe
Gallinago gallinagoLC
Recorded all year

Eurasian Collared Dove
Streptopelia decaoctoLC
Recorded all year

Red-throated Loon
Gavia stellataLC
Recorded all year

Kittiwake
Rissa tridactylaVU
Recorded all year

Twite
Linaria flavirostrisLC
Recorded all year

Red-breasted Merganser
Mergus serratorLC
Recorded all year

Mute Swan
Cygnus olorLC
Recorded all year

Golden Plover
Pluvialis apricariaLC
Recorded all year

Great Cormorant
Phalacrocorax carboLC
Recorded all year

Tufted Duck
Aythya fuligulaLC
Recorded all year

Common Shelduck
Tadorna tadornaLC
Regularly Nov–Jul

Dunlin
Calidris alpinaLC
Recorded all year

Rook
Corvus frugilegusLC
Recorded all year

Barnacle Goose
Branta leucopsisLC
Regularly Sep–Jul

Great Tit
Parus majorLC
Regularly Oct–Apr

Little Grebe
Tachybaptus ruficollisLC
Regularly Nov–Mar

Sparrowhawk
Accipiter nisusLC
Recorded all year

Mistle Thrush
Turdus viscivorusLC
Regularly Oct–Apr

Jackdaw
Coloeus monedulaLC
Regularly Mar–Oct

Common Merganser
Mergus merganserLC
Regularly Jan–Oct

European Goldfinch
Carduelis carduelisLC
Regularly Oct–May

Great Spotted Woodpecker
Dendrocopos majorLC
Regularly Aug–Mar
Summer visitors
(15)Arrives to breed; scarce or absent in winter
Eurasian Skylark
Alauda arvensisLC
Regularly Feb–Dec

Meadow Pipit
Anthus pratensisLC
Recorded all year

Woodpigeon
Columba palumbusLC
Regularly Feb–Dec

Razorbill
Alca tordaLC
Recorded all year

Lesser Black-backed Gull
Larus fuscusLC
Regularly Feb–Oct

Pied Wagtail
Motacilla albaLC
Regularly Mar–Oct

Chiffchaff
Phylloscopus collybitaLC
Regularly Mar–Jan

Carrion Crow
Corvus coroneLC
Recorded all year

Eurasian Siskin
Spinus spinusLC
Regularly Mar–Nov

Grey Wagtail
Motacilla cinereaLC
Regularly Mar–Dec

Bar-tailed Godwit
Limosa lapponicaNT
Regularly Jan–Nov

Sanderling
Calidris albaLC
Regularly May–Mar

Common Redpoll
Acanthis flammeaLC
Regularly Feb–Dec

Reed Bunting
Emberiza schoeniclusLC
Regularly Mar–Nov

Short-eared Owl
Asio flammeusLC
Regularly Mar–Oct
Winter visitors
(25)Present outside the breeding season
Redwing
Turdus iliacusNT
Regularly Sep–Apr

European Robin
Erithacus rubeculaLC
Regularly Sep–Jun

Fieldfare
Turdus pilarisLC
Regularly Oct–Apr

Eurasian Teal
Anas creccaLC
Recorded all year

Goldeneye
Bucephala clangulaLC
Regularly Sep–Apr

Long-tailed Duck
Clangula hyemalisVU
Regularly Sep–Jun

Chaffinch
Fringilla coelebsLC
Regularly Sep–Jun

Purple Sandpiper
Calidris maritimaLC
Regularly Aug–Apr

Eurasian Wigeon
Mareca penelopeLC
Regularly Aug–Jun

Whooper Swan
Cygnus cygnusLC
Regularly Aug–Mar

Iceland Gull
Larus glaucoidesLC
Regularly Nov–May

Song Thrush
Turdus philomelosLC
Regularly Sep–May

Pink-footed Goose
Anser brachyrhynchusLC
Regularly Sep–Jun

Grey Heron
Ardea cinereaLC
Recorded all year

Glaucous Gull
Larus hyperboreusLC
Regularly Jul–Apr

Merlin
Falco columbariusLC
Recorded all year

Moorhen
Gallinula chloropusLC
Recorded all year

Snow Bunting
Plectrophenax nivalisLC
Regularly Sep–May

Eurasian Woodcock
Scolopax rusticolaLC
Regularly Oct–Mar

Water Rail
Rallus aquaticusLC
Regularly Sep–Jun

Jack Snipe
Lymnocryptes minimusLC
Regularly Sep–Apr

Common Scoter
Melanitta nigraLC
Regularly Sep–Mar

Coot
Fulica atraLC
Regularly Oct–May

Horned Grebe
Podiceps auritusVU
Regularly Sep–Mar

Red Knot
Calidris canutusNT
Regularly Jul–May
Passage migrants
(9)Seen mainly in spring and autumn migration
Goldcrest
Regulus regulusLC
Regularly Sep–May

Tundra Bean Goose
Anser serrirostrisLC
Regularly Jan–Apr

Stonechat
Saxicola rubicolaLC
Regularly Mar–Nov

Greater White-fronted Goose
Anser albifronsLC
Regularly Oct–Apr

Northern Pintail
Anas acutaLC
Regularly Sep–Jun

Brambling
Fringilla montifringillaLC
Regularly Sep–Apr

Dunnock
Prunella modularisLC
Regularly Mar–Nov

Greater Scaup
Aythya marilaLC
Regularly Sep–Mar

Black Redstart
Phoenicurus ochrurosLC
Regularly Sep–Jun
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