Bird Migration in Britain

Spring arrivals from Africa, autumn departures + the unexpected guests blown in on the wrong wind. The migration year, plotted month-by-month.

Spring arrivals (March – May)

• March: First Sand Martin (early March), Wheatear (mid-March), Chiffchaff, Sand Martin coastal arrivals.
• April: Swallow, Willow Warbler, Blackcap, Whitethroat, Sedge Warbler, Reed Warbler, House Martin, Cuckoo, Hobby, Tree Pipit.
• May: Swift (late April / early May), Spotted Flycatcher (mid-May, latest), Garden Warbler, Lesser Whitethroat, Wood Warbler, Pied Flycatcher, Turtle Dove.

Autumn passage (July – November)

• Late July: First failed-breeder waders heading south — spotted redshank, greenshank, green sandpiper.
• August: Wader peak diversity. Willow warbler exodus. Seabird gales. Yellow wagtail flocks.
• September: PEAK migration. Drift migrants on east coasts after east winds. Pelagics (great + Cory's shearwaters).
• October: Vagrants from Asia (yellow-browed warbler annual) + America (Pectoral Sandpiper). Northern thrushes (redwing, fieldfare) arrive.
• November: Wildfowl arrival continues. Pink-foots peak. First short-eared owls.

Why winds matter

Migrating birds want a tailwind. When wind direction goes wrong (e.g. an east wind sweeping across northern Europe), birds get displaced — Siberian/Scandinavian birds end up on the British east coast. Hence the autumn rule: east wind = east coast bonanza. Spring is similar but reversed; south winds + warm fronts = continental drift north into Britain.

Where to watch migration

• Bird Observatories: Spurn (E Yorks), Filey (N Yorks), Flamborough, Bardsey (N Wales), Portland (Dorset), Sandwich Bay (Kent), Calf of Man, Fair Isle (Shetland).
• Coastal headlands in the right wind — Cornwall in SW gales, Norfolk in E winds.
• Estuaries — for wader passage, Aug–Sep + Apr–May.
• Reservoirs + gravel pits inland — terns, hobbies, the odd sea duck blown in.