Broom's Barn Applied Crop Sciences
Broom's Barn's birdlife
Broom's Barn's bird population was monitored in the 1990's as part of the British Trust for Ornithology's Common Bird Census. Although this was discontinued in 2000, we still have a good idea which birds breed on the station, and which others visit us regularly.
* indicates that nesting or presence of fledgeling birds has been confirmed
# breeding indicated by bird surveys (CBC style) and frequency of sightings during nesting season
Current regular
Kestrel *(in nest box)
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Present locally and may nest occasionallyMagpieSwift *(in roof of one of the cottages, 1980's) Spotted flycatcher *(nest box, 2000) Long-tailed tit (often seen, esp in winter, not known to nest) Chiffchaff #(has held territory most years from 2004 onwards) Lesser whitethroat (nests on adjacent railway embankment) Yellowhammer (currently nests in adjacent hedgerows) Bullfinch (often seen, may nest occasionally) House sparrow *(once numerous, now seen only occasionally; last nested 1998) Yellow wagtail (thought to have nested in 2009) Frequent visitorsSparrowhawk, Buzzard, Little owl, Tawny owl, Goldenplover, Carrion crow, Rook, Jay, Green woodpecker, Great spotted woodpecker, Turtle dove, Domestic pigeon, Black-headed gull, Lesser black-backed gull, Great black-backed gull, Common gull, Redwing, Fieldfare, Wheatear (during migration), Meadow pipit, House martin, Heron |
The lists above are not a complete compilation of birds seen on Broom's Barn, just those which are resident or locally common (either all year round or at certain times of the year) and which we consider part of the station's bird life.
Over the last 30 years we have gained several birds as breeding species due to the growth of trees and planting of hedgerows, e.g. blackcap, mistle thrush, goldcrest. Also, lapwings started to breed in 2000, and have done so each year since, probably due to the set-aside as that is where they usually nest. Flocks of some birds, such as fieldfares, lapwings, golden plovers, rooks, wood pigeons and black-headed gulls, may number several hundred, maybe thousands. Yellow wagtails nested for the first time in 2009
However, tree sparrows and lesser redpolls, which were formerly resident, disappeared in the 1970's. Both these species appear to be in long-term decline in Suffolk.
Black headed gull on harvested beet field Jackdaw
