Birds
With a diverse range of habitats, Ely Wildspace and its surrounding area is temporary or permanent home to over 200 species of birds. Some are nationally rare, such as the Bittern, some common. Some live in the Wildspace permanently, some for part of the year, some are 'birds of passage' stopping en route as they migrate and a few are 'exotics', having lost their way, or been blown off course.
In January 2022 we restarted the Ely bird race, in which teams will be sent out to find as many birds as possible within the boundaries of Elywildspace/Roswell Pits and Meadows over a 3 1/2 period.
Keep an eye on the Wildspace Facebook page for information about this annual event.
If you would like to see what a particular species looks like, go to the website of the National Biodiversity Network and type the Binomial name of the species into the 'Search for Taxa' box. Or simply use Google search.
Logging species is an important aspect of our work in Ely Wildspace. If you would like to find out more please visit our page on Biological Recording
| Binomial name | Common name |
|---|---|
| Acanthis cabaret | Lesser Redpoll |
| Accipiter nisus | Sparrowhawk |
| Acrocephalus schoenobaen | Sedge Warbler |
| Acrocephalus scirpaceus | Reed Warbler |
| Actitis hypoleucos | Common Sandpiper |
| Aegithalos caudatus | Long-tailed Tit |
| Aix galericulata | Mandarin |
| Alauda arvensis | Skylark |
| Alcedo atthis | Kingfisher |
| Alectoris rufa | Red-legged Partridge |
| Alopochen aegyptiaca | Egyptian Goose |
| Anas acuta | Pintail |
| Anas clypeata | Shoveler |
| Anas crecca | Teal |
| Anas penelope | Wigeon |
| Anas platyrhynchos | Mallard |
| Anas querquedula | Garganey |
| Anas strepera | Gadwall |
| Anser albifrons | White-fronted Goose |
| Anser anser | Greylag Goose |
| Anser brachyrhynchus | Pink-footed Goose |
| Anser fabilis | Bean Goose |
| Anthus petrosus | Rock Pipit |
| Anthus pratensis | Meadow Pipit |
| Anthus spinoletta | Water Pipit |
| Anthus trivialis | Tree Pipit |
| Apus apus | Swift |
| Ardea cineria | Grey Heron |
| Ardeola ralloides | Squacco Heron |
| Arenaria interpres | Turnstone |
| Aseo flammeus | Short-eared Owl |
| Asio otus | Long-eared Owl |
| Athene noctua | Little Owl |
| Aythra ferina | Pochard |
| Aythra fuligula | Tufted Duck |
| Aythra marila | Scaup |
| Aythya nyroca | Ferruginous Duck |
| Bombycilla garrulus | Waxwing |
| Botaurus stellaris | Bittern |
| Branta bernicla | Brent Goose |
| Branta canadensis | Canada Goose |
| Branta leucopsis | Barnacle Goose |
| Bucephala clangula | Goldeneye |
| Buteo buteo | Buzzard |
| Buteo lagopus | Rough-legged Buzzard |
| Calidris alba | Sanderling |
| Calidris alpina | Dunlin |
| Calidris ferruginea | Curlew Sandpiper |
| Calidris melanotos | Pectoral Sandpiper |
| Calidris pusilla | Little Stint |
| Calidris temminckii | Temminck's Stint |
| Calidris tenuirostris | Great Knot |
| Carduelis cannabina | Linnet |
| Carduelis carduelis | Goldfinch |
| Carduelis chloris | Greenfinch |
| Carduelis spinus | Siskin |
| Certhis familiaris | Treecreeper |
| Cettia cetti | Cetti's Warbler |
| Charadrius dubius | Little Ringed Plover |
| Charadrius hiaticula | Ringed Plover |
| Chlidonias hybrida | Whiskered Tern |
| Chlidonias leucopterus | White-winged Black Tern |
| Chlidonias niger | Black Tern |
| Ciconia ciconia | White Stork |
| Circus aeruginosus | Marsh Harrier |
| Circus cyaneus | Hen Harrier |
| Circus pygargus | Montagu's Harrier |
| Clangula hyemalis | Long-tailed Duck |
| Columba livia | Rock Dove (Feral Pigeon) |
| Columba oenas | Stock Dove |
| Columba palumbus | Woodpigeon |
| Corvus cornix | Hooded Crow |
| Corvus corone | Carrion Crow |
| Corvus frugilegus | Rook |
| Corvus monedula | Jackdaw |
| Cuculus canorus | Cuckoo |
| Cygnus columbarius | Bewick's Swan |
| Cygnus cygnus | Whooper Swan |
| Cygnus olor | Mute Swan |
| Delichon urbica | House Martin |
| Dendrocopus major | Great Spotted Woodpecker |
| Dendrocopus minor | Lesser Spotted Woodpecker |
| Egretta garzetta | Little Egret |
| Emberiza cirlus | Cirl Bunting |
| Emberiza citrinella | Yellowhammer |
| Emberiza schoeniclus | Reed Bunting |
| Erithacus rubecula | Robin |
| Falco columbarius | Merlin |
| Falco peregrinus | Peregrine |
| Falco subbuteo | Hobby |
| Falco tinnunculus | Kestrel |
| Falco vespertinus | Red-footed Falcon |
| Ficedula hypoleuca | Pied Flycatcher |
| Fringilla coelebs | Chaffinch |
| Fringilla montifringilla | Brambling |
| Fulica atra | Coot |
| Gallinago gallinago | Snipe |
| Gallinula chloropus | Moorhen |
| Garrulus glandarius | Jay |
| Gavia stellata | Red-throated Diver |
| Haematopus ostralegus | Oystercatcher |
| Hirundo rustica | Swallow |
| Jynx torquilla | Wryneck |
| Lanius excubitor | Great Grey Shrike |
| Larus argentatus | Herring Gull |
| Larus canus | Common Gull |
| Larus fuscus | Lesser Black-backed Gull |
| Larus marinus | Great Black-backed Gull |
| Larus melanocephalus | Mediterranean Gull |
| Larus minutus | Little Gull |
| Larus ridibundus | Black-headed Gull |
| Limosa lapponica | Bar-tailed Godwit |
| Limosa limosa | Black-tailed Godwit |
| Linaria flavirostris | Twite |
| Locustella naevia | Grasshopper Warbler |
| Luscinia megarhynchos | Nightingale |
| Lymnocryptes minimus | Jack Snipe |
| Melanitta fusca | Velvet Scoter |
| Melanitta nigra | Common Scoter |
| Mergus albellus | Smew |
| Mergus merganser | Goosander |
| Mergus serrator | Red-breasted Merganser |
| Miliaria calandra | Corn Bunting |
| Milvus milvus | Red Kite |
| Morus bassanus | Gannet |
| Motacilla alba | Pied Wagtail |
| Motacilla cinerea | Grey Wagtail |
| Motacilla flava | Yellow Wagtail |
| Muscicapa striata | Spotted Flycatcher |
| Netta rufina | Red-crested Pochard |
| Numenius arquata | Curlew |
| Numenius phaepus | Whimbrel |
| Nycticorax nycticorax | Night Heron |
| Oenanthe oenanthe | Wheatear |
| Oriolus oriolus | Golden Oriole |
| Oxyura jamaicensis | Ruddy Duck |
| Pandion haliaetus | Osprey |
| Panurus biarmicus | Bearded Tit |
| Parus ater | Coal Tit |
| Parus caeruleus | Blue Tit |
| Parus major | Great Tit |
| Parus montanus | Willow Tit |
| Passer domesticus | House Sparrow |
| Passer montanus | Tree Sparrow |
| Perdix perdix | Grey Partridge |
| Phalacrocorax aristotelis | Shag |
| Phalacrocorax carbo | Cormorant |
| Phalaropus fuilcarius | Grey Phalarope |
| Phalaropus lobatus | Red-necked Phalarope |
| Phalaropus tricolor | Wilson's Phalarope |
| Phasianus colchicus | Pheasant |
| Philomachus pugnax | Ruff |
| Phoenicurus phoenicurus | Redstart |
| Phylloscopus collybita | Chiffchaff |
| Phylloscopus trochilus | Willow Warbler |
| Pica pica | Magpie |
| Picus viridis | Green Woodpecker |
| Pluvialis apricaria | Golden Plover |
| Pluvialis squatarola | Grey Plover |
| Podiceps auritus | Slavonian Grebe |
| Podiceps cristatus | Great Crested Grebe |
| Podiceps nigricollis | Black-necked Grebe |
| Porzana porzana | Spotted Crake |
| Prunella modularis | Dunnock |
| Psittacula krameri | Ring-necked Parakeet |
| Pyrrhula pyrrhula | Bullfinch |
| Rallus aquticus | Water Rail |
| Recurvirostra avosetta | Avocet |
| Regulus ignicapilla | Firecrest |
| Regulus regulus | Goldcrest |
| Remiz pendulinus | Penduline Tit |
| Riparia riparia | Sand Martin |
| Rissa tridactyla | Kittiwake |
| Saxicola rubetra | Whinchat |
| Saxicola torquata | Stonechat |
| Scolopax rusticola | Woodcock |
| Steptopelia decaocto | Collared Dove |
| Steptopelia turtur | Turtle Dove |
| Stercorarius longicaudus | Long-tailed Skua |
| Stercorarius parasiticus | Arctic Skua |
| Sterna albifrons | Little Tern |
| Sterna hirundo | Common Tern |
| Sterna paradisaea | Arctic Tern |
| Sterna sandvichensis | Sandwich Tern |
| Sternus vulgaris | Starling |
| Strix aluco | Tawny Owl |
| Sylvia atricapilla | Blackcap |
| Sylvia borin | Garden Warbler |
| Sylvia communis | Whitethroat |
| Sylvia curruca | Lesser Whitethroat |
| Tachybaptus ruficollis | Little Grebe |
| Tadorna tadorna | Shelduck |
| Tringa erythropus | Spotted Redshank |
| Tringa glareola | Wood Sandpiper |
| Tringa nebularia | Greenshank |
| Tringa ochropus | Green Sandpiper |
| Tringa totanus | Redshank |
| Troglodytes troglodytes | Wren |
| Turdu viscivorus | Mistle Thrush |
| Turdus iliacus | Redwing |
| Turdus merula | Blackbird |
| Turdus philomelos | Song Thrush |
| Turdus pilaris | Fieldfare |
| Turdus torquatus | Ring Ouzel |
| Tyto alba | Barn Owl |
| Vanellus vanellus | Lapwing |
| Xema sabini | Sabine's Gull |
