Thousands of 'winter migrant' birds flocking to UK gardens from September

Tens of thousands of migrants will be flooding into the UK every day this winter - not by boat, but by air.

That's because several major species of birds are set to ignore sovereign borders and flock back into the UK this September and October ahead of the colder winter months.

While many of us are familiar with the migrant birds which travel south for the winter, like the iconic flocks of starlings painted in autumn skylines, many probably don't realise that there's a strong contingent of migrant birds which also return back to the UK over winter.

And soon, excited gardeners and bird watchers will be able to spot them out in gardens or in the wild forests, lakes, wetlands, rivers and fields that make up the British countryside.

The most common migrants heading to the UK in winter are redwings and fieldfares, according to the Lancashire Wildlife Trust.

The Trust says: "Our most famous winter migrants are redwings and fieldfares. These thrushes arrive from Scandinavia (where they have escaped the bitter cold and depleted food supplies), and can be seen gorging on berries among our trees and hedgerows as well as foraging in the fields."

Redwings are the UK's smallest thrush. They rarely visit gardens, mostly sticking to countryside, but will do during heavy snow when they can't access food in fields, according to the RSPB.

Worcestershire Wildlife Trust says fieldfares are large, colourful thrushes that visit the UK from October to april, foraging for berries mostly in hedgerows but also woodlands and fields. Much like redwings, they will move to gardens during snow and ice, in search of food they can't find on frozen farms.

Bramblings are migratory finches, coming to the UK from Scandinavia. They can be found in beech woodlands and near other wooded areas. According to Vine House Farm: "Bramblings can be found in beech woodlands and near to other wooded areas, and often visit gardens in search of food in mixed flocks with chaffinches."

"In gardens, Bramblings will readily take to food put out for them and will even go onto hanging seed feeders. However, Bramblings are more likely to feed on food which is on the ground, a table or ground feeder, with favourite foods including sunflower hearts."

Wetlands are even more inundated with migrating birds. Lancashire Wildlife Trust adds: "Keep your eye out for bramblings, Bewick's swans and whooper swans, too, as well as huge influxes of waders. Every autumn the UK's coasts and wetlands are inundated with around 1.5 million lapwings, half a million dunlin, 300,000 knot, 300,000 oystercatchers, 60,000 bar-tailed godwits, 50,000, redshanks and 40,000 grey plovers!"

But there are some birds which only come back to the UK if conditions are poor overseas, a phenomenon known as 'irruptions'.

This affects waxwings in particular, who will return to the UK in 'huge numbers' if the crop is poor in Scandinavia and Eastern Europe. Another fun fact is that waxwings' favourite berries grow on rowan trees, which are commonly seen planted in supermarket car parks.

The Trust adds: "These stunning birds live in Scandinavia and eastern Europe for most of the year, but if their berry crop is poor, they'll fly to the UK in huge numbers called 'irruptions'. We normally get a couple of hundred birds, but when the berry crop back home is particularly bad we can see tens of thousands flooding trees around the UK."