Urban Birding in Bath

In an isolated tree in the middle of Southgate shopping centre in Bath, hundreds of Pied Wagtails flock together to roost on winter nights. I never would have noticed them, had I not been walking by late one night last year and wondered why the tree still had leaves in the winter. It was only on a second glance that I realised those "leaves" were moving!

Since then, I've been back many times. There are few things more peaceful than standing on a cold winter night in the middle of a busy city watching these birds huddled together, sleeping peacefully overhead. For me, birding has always been an escape and a way to release stress; this sight has to be up there as one of the most calming.

During my three years of university, I have shown the Pied Wagtails to many non-birding friends, and every time without fail they've been met with reactions of surprise and awe, and invariably seem to spark an interest in why they're there and what sort of bird they are. 

The Wagtails inspired this post, because I think they epitomise urban birding - it's where wildlife and people come together and live happily alongside one another. The passers-by wandering obliviously below the roosting wagtails, unaware of what is above them, literally and figuratively going over their heads!

It just takes people on a small scale like you and I to show them to our friends, to tend to urban gardens or feed the local birds to make a small difference. The more we can inspire people to take an interest in the wildlife in their busy city, the more we can encourage this harmony and turn our cities into more wildlife-friendly areas.

It's easy to take local wildlife for granted - I do it far too often - scrolling through twitter wondering why I can't have a piece of untouched coastline as my local patch. I rarely go birding while I'm at uni, under the illusion that there's not very much to see here, so over the last few weeks of term I made a concerted effort to enjoy and photograph the birds in the city. The thing is, birding is all relative, I couldn't imagine growing tired of seeing Yellow-Browed Warblers (probably my most sought-after patch bird here) but by the end of an autumn on Shetland I probably would, so sometimes it's good to reset and realise what you do have on your doorstep. 

I am lucky enough to live in a flat alongside the river Avon this year, and my walk to the shop regularly includes the blue flash of a Kingfisher darting downstream. Grey Wagtails are a more regular feature along the riverbank and in Royal Victoria Park. I've spent a lot of time recently enjoying these birds, which in my opinion are grossly underrated! They never fail to improve a walk. Moorhen, Mute Swan, Grey Heron and a large Cormorant roost in the riverside trees provide a more common supporting cast.

My regular walk to Twerton Mill along the river usually turns up a tit flock or two, hiding amongst it Goldcrests, Coal Tits, occasional Treecreepers and the possibility of something scarcer. Last week I found my first Blackcaps since the end of October - a wintering pair in a riverside garden.

My apartment list this year consists of a strange assortment of over-flying birds, water birds that can be seen passing on the small sliver of river that I can see from the window and visitors to any of about 5 trees! During the term I've added interesting birds such as Jay, Moorhen, Meadow Pipit, Sparrowhawk, Cormorant and, most recently, a strange call alerted me to a Common Gull passing overhead. 

Gulls are a regular and vocal feature in the city, especially in the summer when juvenile Herring and Lesser-Black-Backed Gulls are everywhere, providing good practice for Gull ID.

A local birder I've seen on Twitter has Water Rail and Badgers as regular visitors to his city garden. I've never been lucky enough to find either in Bath, but it just goes to show what's about to find, if you look in the right places!