The Local Patch
Quite simply, this is a 5-mile radius from home and encompasses all the places I naturally visit regularly during the course of the year. The idea came into being following successive 'National Lockdowns' in relation to the Covid-19 pandemic of March 2020 onwards. Five miles from home, while correlating very well with the Government restrictions on movement at the time of the pandemic, also happened to encircle my own natural, local movement. I have been tempted at times to extend the radius to 10km or 6.2 miles but areas that I really never visit then become included and it didn't feel quite as reflective of my own local patch. Of course, over the last few years, this has meant foregoing a few decent species from the list!
Of course, included in this radius are my other 'sub-patches' such as Stanborough and Tyttenhanger Gravel Pits, and my garden. These all feed into my '5-mile list' and receive varying degrees of attention as my fancy takes. My annual target is to record (see or hear) 150 different species of bird and, to date, I first achieved this in 2023. As with all annual lists, they accelerate early in the year only to hit the doldrums in June as bird passage slows and hopes are pinned on autumn migration and winter visitors. While I intend to document my local discoveries on other pages - notably The Blog and Stanborough GPs - I have reserved this page to list the birds I see.
Of course, included in this radius are my other 'sub-patches' such as Stanborough and Tyttenhanger Gravel Pits, and my garden. These all feed into my '5-mile list' and receive varying degrees of attention as my fancy takes. My annual target is to record (see or hear) 150 different species of bird and, to date, I first achieved this in 2023. As with all annual lists, they accelerate early in the year only to hit the doldrums in June as bird passage slows and hopes are pinned on autumn migration and winter visitors. While I intend to document my local discoveries on other pages - notably The Blog and Stanborough GPs - I have reserved this page to list the birds I see.
The 5 miles from home list: 2026
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1. Mute Swan 1st Jan Stanborough GPs
2. Canada Goose 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 3. Greylag Goose 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 4. Egyptian Goose 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 5. Pochard 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 6. Tufted Duck 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 7. Garganey 1st Jan Coursers GPs 8. Shoveler 1st Jan Coursers GPs 9. Gadwall 1st Jan Coursers GPs 10. Wigeon 1st Jan Coursers GPs 11. Mallard 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 12. Teal 1st Jan Coursers GPs 13. Great Crested Grebe 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 14. Collared Dove 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 15. Woodpigeon 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 16. Rock Dove (Feral Pigeon) 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 17. Stock Dove 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 18. Moorhen 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 19. Coot 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 20. Lapwing 1st Jan Coursers GPs 21. Jack Snipe 1st Jan Stanborough GPs 22. Snipe 1st Jan Coursers GPs 23. Black-headed Gull 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 24. Mediterranean Gull 1st Jan Verulamium Park 25. Common Gull 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 26. Herring Gull 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 27. Lesser Black-backed Gull 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 28. Cormorant 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 29. Little Egret 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 30. Grey Heron 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 31. Barn Owl 1st Jan Stanborough GPs 32. Red Kite 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 33. Buzzard 1st Jan Stanborough GPs 34. Kingfisher 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 35. Green Woodpecker 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 36. Great Spotted Woodpecker 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 37. Kestrel 1st Jan Stanborough GPs 38. Peregrine 1st Jan St Albans Cathedral 39. Ring-necked Parakeet 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 40. Jay 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 41. Magpie 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 42. Jackdaw 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 43. Carrion Crow 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 44. Blue Tit 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 45. Great Tit 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 46. Coal Tit 1st Jan Verulamium Park 47. Skylark 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 48. Long-tailed Tit 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 49. Yellow-browed Warbler 1st Jan Verulamium Park 50. Chiffchaff 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 51. Goldcrest 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 52. Nuthatch 1st Jan Verulamium Park 53. Wren 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 54. Starling 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 55. Song Thrush 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 56. Redwing 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 57. Blackbird 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 58. Fieldfare 1st Jan Stanborough GPs 59. Robin 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 60. Stonechat 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 61. Dunnock 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 62. House Sparrow 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 63. Grey Wagtail 1st Jan Coursers GPs 64. Pied Wagtail 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 65. Meadow Pipit 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 66. Brambling 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 67. Chaffinch 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 68. Greenfinch 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 69. Linnet 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 70. Goldfinch 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 71. Siskin 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 72. Reed Bunting 1st Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 73. Pheasant 10th Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 74. Yellow-legged Gull 10th Jan Stanborough GPs 75. Little Owl 10th Jan Willows Farm 76. Sparrowhawk 10th Jan Stanborough GPs 77. Rook 10th Jan Stanborough GPs 78. Redpoll 10th Jan Stanborough GPs 79. Red-legged Partridge 11th Jan Redbournbury 80. Cetti's Warbler 11th Jan Redbournbury 81. Firecrest 11th Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 82. Mistle Thrush 11th Jan Redbourn 83. Yellowhammer 11th Jan Redbournbury 84. Treecreeper 12th Jan Symondshyde Great Wood 85. Common Crossbill 12th Jan Symondshyde Great Wood 86. Raven 13th Jan Symondshyde Great Wood 87. Goosander 14th Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 88. Water Rail 14th Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 89. Little Grebe 16th Jan Stanborough GPs 90. Green Sandpiper 16th Jan Stanborough GPs 91. Great Black-backed Gull 16th Jan Stanborough GPs 92. Tawny Owl 16th Jan Symondshyde Great Wood 93. Blackcap 16th Jan St Albans Garden 94. Woodcock 17th Jan Highfield Farm 95. Caspian Gull 17th Jan Tyttenhanger GPs 96. Bullfinch 17th Jan Watercress LNR 97. Mandarin Duck 20th Jan Coopers Green GPs 98. Marsh Harrier 22nd Jan Redbournbury 99. Golden Plover 22nd Jan Stanborough GPs 100. Oystercatcher 8th Feb Tyttenhanger GPs 101. Grey Partridge 14th Feb Stanborough GPs 102. Pintail 16th Feb Otterspool |
Previous Years2021 - 142 species
2022 - 148 species
2023 - 150 species
2024 - 153 species
2025 - 157 species
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