In a typical year, around 160 species of bird are seen at Paxton Pits, though many of these are passage migrants which stay for only a day or even an hour. In total, 235 species have been recorded at Paxton Pits, or the land that now forms the Pits complex, since 1900. Below is a checklist of all the species recorded so far. The list is set out in the order adopted by the British Ornithologists’ Union.

Key

R
 Resident
A
 Occasional (annual)
S
 Summer Visitor
O
 Occasional (less than annual)
W
 Winter/Non-breeding
V
 Vagrant
P
 Passage migration
X
 Not in the last 50 years

Checklist

R
Mute swan
V
Iceland gull
O
Bewick’s swan
V
Glaucous gull
O
Whooper swan
W
Great black-backed gull
V
Bean goose
V
Kittiwake
O
Pink-footed goose
V
Caspian tern
V
White-fronted goose
O
Sandwich tern
R
Greylag goose
V
Roseate tern
R
Canada goose
S
Common tern
R
Barnacle goose
P
Arctic tern
V
Brent goose
V
Little tern
A
Egyptian goose
P
Black tern
V
Ruddy shelduck
V
Guillemot
R
Shelduck
V
Little auk
O
Mandarin duck
R
Rock dove/feral pigeon
W
Wigeon
R
Stock dove
R
Gadwall
R
Woodpigeon
R
Teal
R
Collared dove
R
Mallard
S
Turtle dove
A
Pintail
V
Ring-necked parakeet
A
Garganey
S
Cuckoo
V
Blue-winged teal
A
Barn owl
R
Shoveler
A
Little owl
O
Red-crested pochard
R
Tawny owl
W
Pochard
O
Long-eared owl
V
Ring-necked duck
A
Short-eared owl
V
Ferruginous duck
V
Nightjar
R
Tufted duck
S
Swift
O
Scaup
V
Alpine swift
V
Eider
R
Kingfisher
V
Long-tailed duck
V
Hoopoe
O
Common scoter
V
Wryneck
W
Goldeneye
R
Green woodpecker
W
Smew
R
Great spotted woodpecker
V
Red-breasted merganser
A
Lesser spotted woodpecker
W
Goosander
V
Woodlark
A
Ruddy duck
R
Skylark
R
Red-legged partridge
S
Sand martin
O
Grey partridge
S
Swallow
V
Quail
S
House martin
R
Pheasant
V
Tree pipit
V
Red-throated diver
W
Meadow pipit
V
Black-throated diver
O
Rock pipit
V
Great northern diver
V
Water pipit
R
Little grebe
S
Yellow wagtail
R
Great crested grebe
R
Grey wagtail
O
Red-necked grebe
R
Pied wagtail
O
Slavonian grebe
V
Waxwing
A
Black-necked grebe
R
Wren
V
Fulmar
R
Robin
R
Cormorant
R
Dunnock
V
Shag
S
Nightingale
W
Bittern
O
Black redstart
R
Little egret
O
Redstart
V
Great white egret
A
Whinchat
R
Grey heron
W
Stonechat
V
Purple heron
P
Wheatear
V
White stork
V
Ring ouzel
V
Spoonbill
R
Blackbird
V
Honey-buzzard
W
Fieldfare
A
Red kite
R
Song thrush
A
Marsh harrier
W
Redwing
V
Hen harrier
R
Mistle thrush
V
Montagu’s harrier
V
Cetti’s warbler
V
Goshawk
A
Grasshopper warbler
R
Sparrowhawk
S
Sedge warbler
R
Buzzard
V
Marsh warbler
O
Osprey
S
Reed warbler
R
Kestrel
S
Lesser whitethroat
V
Red-footed falcon
S
Whitethroat
A
Merlin
S
Garden warbler
S
Hobby
S
Blackcap
A
Peregrine
V
Yellow-browed warbler
R
Water rail
V
Wood warbler
V
Spotted crake
R
Chiffchaff
X
Corncrake
S
Willow warbler
R
Moorhen
R
Goldcrest
R
Coot
V
Firecrest
S
Oystercatcher
S
Spotted flycatcher
V
Avocet
V
Pied flycatcher
S
Little ringed plover
V
Bearded tit
S
Ringed plover
R
Long-tailed tit
X
Killdeer
R
Marsh tit
V
American golden plover
V
Willow tit
W
Golden plover
A
Coal tit
O
Grey plover
R
Blue tit
R
Lapwing
R
Great tit
O
Knot
V
Nuthatch
O
Sanderling
R
Treecreeper
A
Little stint
V
Golden oriole
V
Temminck’s stint
V
Great grey shrike
V
Pectoral sandpiper
R
Jay
O
Curlew sandpiper
X
Nutcracker
P
Dunlin
R
Magpie
P
Ruff
R
Jackdaw
A
Jack snipe
R
Rook
W
Snipe
R
Carrion crow
W
Woodcock
V
Raven
P
Black-tailed godwit
R
Starling
O
Bar-tailed godwit
V
Rose-coloured starling
P
Curlew
R
House sparrow
P
Whimbrel
V
Tree sparrow
O
Spotted redshank
R
Chaffinch
R
Redshank
W
Brambling
P
Greenshank
R
Greenfinch
W
Green sandpiper
R
Goldfinch
P
Wood sandpiper
W
Siskin
P
Common sandpiper
R
Linnet
A
Turnstone
V
Twite
V
Red-necked phalarope
W
Lesser redpoll
V
Grey phalarope
V
Mealy redpoll
V
Arctic skua
V
Crossbill
A
Mediterranean gull
R
Bullfinch
P
Little gull
V
Hawfinch
R
Black-headed gull
V
 Snow bunting
W
Common gull
R
 Yellowhammer
W
Lesser black-backed gull
R
 Reed bunting
R
Herring gull
R
 Corn bunting
R
Yellow-legged gull