Blackbird

What do they look like?
The male blackbird is black with a bright yellow bill, while the female is brown often with spots and streaks on its breast. Blackbirds have a long tail and often hop along the ground with their tail up.

What do they eat?
They feed on berries, scraps and apples, and search for worms on lawns. 

Starling

What do they look like?
Starlings are noisy characters usually seen foraging in small flocks. At a distance, starlings look black, but close up you can see they have green and purple glossy feathers, covered in white and buff spots. Their flight is fast and direct and they walk and run confidently on the ground. Noisy and sociable, starlings spend a lot of the year in flocks.

What do they eat?
Starlings feed on insects such as spiders, craneflies and leatherjackets. They will also feed from seed and nut feeders and probe into lawns and playing fields for worms and grubs.

Carrion crow

What do they look like?
The all-black carrion crow is one of the cleverest and most adaptable of our birds. It will come to school grounds for food and although often cautious initially, they soon learn when it is safe, and will return repeatedly to take advantage of whatever is on offer. They are solitary, usually found alone or in pairs.

What do they eat?
Crow will eat insects, worms, grain, small mammals, and scraps and will also steal eggs.

Woodpigeon

What do they look like?
Woodpigeons are the UK's largest and commonest pigeon. They have a small, round, grey head, greyish back, tail and wings with a pink breast and white neck patch. In flight, they have distinctive white wing patches and the tail has a dark band at the end. Their call is a cooing sound.

What do they eat?
Woodpigeons feed on grain, seeds and scraps and on berries and buds.

Black-headed gull

What do they look like?
Not really a black-headed bird, more chocolate-brown. In fact, for much of the year, it has a white head. It only gets its black head in summer. It is most definitely not a 'seagull' and is found commonly almost anywhere inland. Black-headed gulls are sociable, quarrelsome, noisy birds, usually seen in small groups or flocks, often gathering into larger parties where there is plenty of food, or when they are roosting.

What do they eat?
The black-headed gull eats insects, fish, seeds, worms, scraps and carrion in towns.

House sparrow

What do they look like?
House sparrows are often seen in small flocks. Males have a grey crown, black bib, reddish-brown back streaked with black, and grey breast and belly, while females have brown, streaky backs and are buff below. House sparrows are sedentary, rarely moving more than two kilometres from their birthplace.

What do they eat?
They feed on seeds, grains and scraps on the ground and on bird tables. House sparrows also feed from nut feeders. 

Blue tit

What so they look like?
Its colourful mix of blue, yellow, white and green make the blue tit one of the most attractive resident garden birds. An agile bird, the blue tit is most often seen flitting on bird feeders.

What do they eat?
Blue tits will feed on seeds and scraps from bird tables and feeders. In winter, family flocks of blue tits are joined by great tits, long-tailed tits and other woodland species, as they search for food.

Common gull

What do they look like?
It looks like a small, gentler version of the herring gull, with greenish legs and a yellow bill. Despite its name, it is not at all common in some inland areas, though often abundant on the coast and in some eastern counties. They are now seen more often in towns and on housing estates in winter.

What do they eat?
The common gull feasts on worms, insects, fish, carrion and rubbish.

Chaffinch

What do they look like?
The chaffinch is arguably the most colourful of the UK’s finches. Its patterned plumage helps it to blend in when feeding on the ground and it becomes most obvious when it flies, revealing a flash of white on the wings and white outer tail feathers. You'll usually hear chaffinches before you see them, with their loud song and varied calls.

What so they eat?
It does not feed openly on bird feeders - it prefers to hop about under the bird table or under the hedge, feeding on seeds and insects.

Magpie

What do they look like?
From a distance, the magpie appears black and white, although close up a subtle blue and green sheen can be seen. It is often seen in pairs or small groups. It is a noisy bird with a harsh, chattering call.

What do they eat?
Magpies seem to be jacks-of-all-trades - scavengers, predators and pest-destroyers; their challenging, almost arrogant attitude has won them few friends