14 Spring Birds to Attract to Your Garden

As the season changes, gardens across the UK welcome spring birds returning from their wintering grounds or emerging from local woodlands. Their cheerful songs and vibrant plumage signal the arrival of spring and bring life to outdoor spaces.

Migratory Birds That Return in Spring

1. Robin (Erithacus rubecula)

Robins are one of the most recognizable and cherished garden birds in the UK. With their bright red breasts and inquisitive nature, they are frequent visitors throughout the year, but they become particularly active during the breeding season in spring.

How to Attract Robins?

• Food Preferences: Mealworms, suet pellets, and specially formulated robin food mixes.
• Best Feeding Stations: Ground feeders or low-hanging bird tables.
• Nesting Needs: Robins prefer open-fronted bird boxes placed in hidden corners of the garden.

📌 Providing a well-positioned bird box can encourage robins to nest in your garden.

2. Blue Tit (Cyanistes caeruleus)

Recognisable by their bright blue and yellow plumage, Blue Tits are agile and acrobatic visitors to gardens. They are fond of insects, caterpillars, and spiders, making them valuable allies in natural pest control. Supplement their natural diet by offering sunflower seeds, peanuts, fat balls and mealworms. Specially designed feeders with small access holes are ideal for these nimble birds.

How to Attract Blue Tits?

• Food Preferences: Sunflower seeds, peanuts, fat balls, and mealworms.
• Best Feeding Stations: Feeders with small access holes to suit their nimble nature.
• Nesting Needs: They readily use nesting boxes with small entrance holes.

📌 A sturdy wooden bird feeder station stocked with nutritious bird food will attract Blue Tits throughout the season.

3. Great Tit (Parus major)

Closely related to Blue Tits, Great Tits share similar dietary preferences. These bold and charismatic birds have a distinct black head, white cheeks and a vibrant yellow-green body. Along with insects and spiders, they love seeds, peanuts, and suet-based products. Ensure your feeders have enough space for their larger size.

How to Attract Great Tits?

• Food Preferences: Seeds, peanuts, suet products, and mealworms.
• Best Feeding Stations: Hanging feeders or bird tables.
• Nesting Needs: Similar to Blue Tits, they prefer small nest boxes.

📌 Installing a bird table can create an inviting feeding spot for Great Tits and other garden visitors.

4. Chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs)

Chaffinches are a common sight in UK gardens, especially during Spring. The males showcase a striking pink breast and a slate-blue crown, while females have more subtle plumage. These particular finches prefer seeds, including sunflower hearts, black sunflower seeds, and nyjer seeds. Dining stations or seed trays can attract chaffinches, allowing them to forage comfortably.

How to Attract Chaffinches?

• Food Preferences: Sunflower hearts, black sunflower seeds, and nyjer seeds.
• Best Feeding Stations: Seed trays or open feeders.
• Nesting Needs: Dense hedges and shrubs provide shelter for nesting.

📌 Positioning a well-stocked squirrel-proof bird feeder can help ensure Chaffinches and other small birds get their share of food.

5. Goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis)

Goldfinches are known for their stunning plumage, featuring vibrant red faces, black and white wings, and yellow accents. They have a distinct preference for Nyjer seeds, making them a bright addition to gardens. Nyjer feeders with small ports are ideal for these small-beaked finches.

How to Attract Goldfinches?

• Food Preferences: Nyjer seeds, sunflower hearts.
• Best Feeding Stations: Nyjer seed feeders with small ports.
• Nesting Needs: Prefer tall trees and dense shrubs for nesting.

📌 Using a high-quality bird food mix containing nyjer seeds can increase your chances of attracting Goldfinches.

Migratory Birds That Return in Spring

Spring migration brings an array of bird species back to the UK from their wintering grounds. These birds travel vast distances to breed, taking advantage of the warmer weather and abundant food sources.

6. Swallow (Hirundo rustica)

Swallows are among the first migratory birds to return in spring. With their long forked tails and agile flight, they can be seen darting over fields and lakes catching insects.

How to Attract Swallows?

• Food Preferences: Swallows feed exclusively on flying insects.
• Best Nesting Sites: Open-fronted nesting areas such as barns, sheds, and ledges.
• Additional Support: Providing a source of mud helps them build their distinctive nests.

📌 Installing a bird box camera near nesting sites can provide fascinating insights into swallow nesting behavior.

7. House Martin (Delichon urbicum)

Similar to swallows but with a shorter tail and white rump, House Martins arrive in spring to breed in the UK, often nesting under the eaves of houses.

How to Attract House Martins?

• Food Preferences: Primarily aerial insects.
• Best Nesting Sites: Mud nests on sheltered walls or under eaves.
• Additional Support: Providing artificial nest cups can encourage breeding.

📌 Encouraging a healthy insect population in the garden benefits insectivorous birds like House Martins.

8. Blackcap (Sylvia atricapilla)

Blackcaps are warblers known for their melodic songs. While some overwinter in the UK, many migrate from Southern Europe and Africa to breed.

How to Attract Blackcaps?

• Food Preferences: Insects, berries, and soft fruits.
• Best Feeding Stations: Berry-producing shrubs or soft fruit offerings on bird tables.
• Nesting Needs: Dense undergrowth or hedgerows.

📌 Planting fruit-bearing bushes like elderberry or hawthorn can provide food for Blackcaps and other fruit-eating birds.

9. Chiffchaff (Phylloscopus collybita)

Chiffchaffs are small, olive-green warblers that herald spring with their repetitive “chiff-chaff” song. These tiny birds are active foragers, flitting through trees in search of insects.

How to Attract Chiffchaffs

• Food Preferences: Insects and spiders.
• Best Nesting Sites: Low shrubbery and woodland edges.
• Additional Support: Planting native flowers to encourage insect populations.

📌 Leaving a section of the garden wild can help create a suitable habitat for insect-eating birds like Chiffchaffs.

Birds of Prey in Spring

Raptors play a crucial role in the ecosystem, controlling rodent and insect populations. Many birds of prey are more active in spring as they establish territories and begin nesting.

10. Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus)

Kestrels are often seen hovering over fields and roadsides, scanning the ground for small mammals.

How to Spot Kestrels?

• Distinctive Features: Reddish-brown plumage, black streaks, and sharp talons.
• Hunting Style: Hovering motion before diving to catch prey.
• Best Locations: Open countryside, farmland, and roadside verges.

11. Barn Owl (Tyto alba)

With their ghostly white appearance and silent flight, Barn Owls are a spectacular sight in rural areas during dusk and dawn.

How to Support Barn Owls?

• Food Preferences: Small rodents such as voles and mice.
• Best Nesting Sites: Hollow trees, barns, and nest boxes.
• Additional Support: Providing a dedicated owl box can encourage breeding.

📌 Barn Owls benefit from carefully positioned nest boxes in open fields or woodland edges.

Spring Waterfowl and Wetland Birds

As wetlands come to life in spring, water birds begin their breeding season. Some species return from migration, while others remain year-round but become more visible as they nest and raise chicks.

12. Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)

Mallards are one of the most common ducks in the UK, easily recognized by the males’ glossy green heads and the females’ mottled brown plumage.

How to Support Mallards?

• Food Preferences: Aquatic plants, grains, and small invertebrates.
• Best Nesting Sites: Tall grass or vegetation near ponds and rivers.
• Additional Support: Avoid feeding bread—offer grain, oats, or birdseed instead.

📌 Providing a safe water source in the garden, such as a small pond, can attract Mallards and other waterfowl.

13. Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus)

Moorhens are shy water birds that prefer ponds with dense vegetation for cover.

How to Spot Moorhens?

• Distinctive Features: Blackish plumage, red and yellow beak, long greenish legs.
• Best Locations: Garden ponds, lakes, and slow-moving rivers.
• Breeding Behavior: Builds floating nests among reeds.

14. Common Sandpiper (Actitis hypoleucos)

This small wading bird returns to the UK in spring to breed along rivers and lakesides.

How to Spot Common Sandpipers?

• Distinctive Features: Brown upperparts, white underparts, and a distinctive bobbing motion.
• Best Locations: Gravelly riverbanks and lakeshores.
• Migration Path: Winters in Africa before returning to Europe in spring.

Spring Birds Frequently Asked Questions:

When Do Birds Start Singing in Spring?

Birds begin singing in late winter and early spring, typically from February onwards. The increase in daylight hours triggers hormonal changes that encourage males to sing for:

• Territory defense against rivals.
• Attracting mates by demonstrating strength and vitality.

What Birds Can You Hear in Spring?

Some of the most common birds singing in spring include:

1. Robin – A sweet, warbling song, often heard at dawn and dusk.
2. Blackbird – A flute-like, melodious tune.
3. Chaffinch – A distinctive ‘fast-falling’ song.
4. Song Thrush – Loud, repetitive phrases.
5. Wren – A surprisingly powerful song for such a small bird.

📌 Positioning a bird table near your home provides the perfect spot to enjoy birdsong up close.

When Do Birds Build Nests in Spring?

Most birds start building nests between March and May, depending on the species. Early nesters include:

1. Robins and Blackbirds – Often start as early as February.
2. Blue Tits and Great Tits – Begin in March and April.
3. Swallows and House Martins – Return in April and start nesting shortly after.

When Do Birds Lay Eggs in Spring?

Most birds lay eggs between April and June, aligning with warmer weather and increased food availability. However, some species, like Woodpigeons, can lay eggs almost year-round.

📌 Providing a wooden bird feeder station ensures nesting birds have a steady food source.

When Do Birds Hatch in Spring?

Egg incubation typically lasts 10–21 days, depending on the species. This means most baby birds begin hatching by late April to early June.

How Long Do Birds Nest in Spring?

Once hatched, chicks remain in the nest for:

• Songbirds: 10–14 days (e.g., Robins, Blue Tits).
• Raptors and larger birds: 4–8 weeks (e.g., Owls, Buzzards).

When Do Birds Stop Building Nests in Spring?

Most birds finish nest-building by July, though some, like Blackbirds and Swallows, may raise multiple broods and continue into August.

📌 Keeping a bird box camera allows you to observe the nesting cycle without disturbing the birds.

Why Do Birds Need Extra Food in Spring?

Spring is demanding for birds because:

1. Energy is needed for nesting and raising chicks.
2. Migratory birds arrive exhausted and require quick nourishment.
3. Unpredictable weather can reduce food availability.

What to Feed Birds in Spring?

Providing the right bird food supports both resident and migratory birds:

🥜 Mealworms & Insects – Crucial protein for breeding birds.

🌿 Sunflower Hearts – Ideal for finches and tits.

🍏 Fruit & Berries – Blackbirds and thrushes love apples and raisins.

🛑 Avoid Bread – Lacks nutrients and can harm young birds.