Fieldfare
(Turdus pilaris)
Come October time, keep your eyes peeled for the fieldfare returning from Scandinavia to spend winter in the UK. The noisy, colourful thrushes migrate to the British countryside annually in flocks ranging from a dozen to several hundred so they are relatively easy to spot.
Many birds migrate to the UK during the autumn months but fieldfare only tend to spend the winter months here so it is the perfect window of opportunity to spot the charismatic bird.
These large, beautiful birds are sociable animals that stand very upright and move with sprightly hops. Its distinctive rattling call- a furious chatter- makes it thoroughly enjoyable to watch. They tend to look and behave much like a mistle thrush, and you can find them on farmland along hedges and in fields.
General characteristics
Males and females are alike in appearance with the distinguished marking of a blue-grey head, pale grey rump, brown wings and a long black tail; although the females tend to be slightly browner.
Its underwings and belly are white, with a speckled yellow-ochre throat and mottled chest, so they’re fairly recognisable.
Juveniles appear duller in colour and have extensive speckling but if you’re still not sure, just wait until it takes flight and you’ll hear its loud ‘chook-chook’ call.
Where to see one
Fieldfares occur in all habitat types across the UK including woodlands, parks, grassfields and open country habitat but hawthorn hedges with berries are a favourite feeding area. You may possibly spot them in your garden if there is severe weather and the countryside is covered in snow or the ground has frozen.
The birds normally arrive in the UK at the start of October and stay here until Springtime.
What do they eat
The fieldfare’s diet predominantly consists of eating a variety of molluscs, insects and worms in the summertime; and soft grain, berries and seeds in the winter. They do love to eat fallen fruit, so try coaxing one into your garden by leaving out berries and apples.
What is the Fieldfare’s nesting behaviour
Fieldfares often nest in small colonies and are extremely skilful in defending its nest (usually in a tree) against egg-thieves. The nest is made from twigs, dry grass and lined with mud. However breeding in the UK is very rare.
Taxonomy
The current Latinate name, Turdus pilaris, can be broken down as follows: Turdus is the Latin for ‘thrush’; and pilaris is New Latin from pilus for ‘a hair.’
However our name for it originates from the Anglo-Saxon word ‘fledware’ which means ‘traveller of the fields.’
What’s so special about Chorley and Norwich
Interest in the fieldfare is UK wide however, some digging in Google revealed a peculiar connection with the town Chorley and city Norwich. Are these special bird territories or resting places?
Related topics and queries of “Fieldfare”” since 2012
Sadly not! The only reason the bird’s moniker is trending in these areas is because a family pub shares the same name…
However, wherever you live in the UK, be it Chorley or Norwich, please do send us your pictures if you spot a Fieldfare this winter. We’d love to see them and share them on our social channels.
when you click on the bullet point for the fieldfare head it actually shows picture of a redwing……whoops!
I enjoy reading your ” All about articles” thank you
Love the information you post,as a 73 year old i have loved birding from ever i remember ,sadly to many of the birds i grew up with i do not hear or see i.e.the curlew,corncrake,lapwing,yellow hammer,im sure there are others,its heart breaking the young people today do not know what they are missing.I do hope these birds can still be seen and heard in parts of the U.K.
Regards William Harry.
We have a lone fieldfare in he garden who has been with us since October.He feeds on our fallen apples..left deliberately for our winter visitors. He has a distinctive limp. We are sure that he’s been the same one for the last 3 years. Is this unusual?
Saw this Fieldfare all alone in next doors hedge – Pitcorthie, Dunfermline. First time I have seen this variety.
I saw 4 in my garden in Mildenhall, Suffolk this morning about 10 am. I have not seen them before and have only just got round to identified them. They looked very cold and puffed up sitting in the snow!
Fieldfare flock drinking from the pond in snow today
Saw 2 fieldfares in my garden tkday feeding on apples i lut out for blackbirds. Last saw these 30 years ago . Csrnforth lancs
Srry no photo as couldnt get near enougj.
Fieldfare in my garden this morning. All puffed up. Very pretty sitting in a bush feeding on the berries. First time I have seen one. Rochester Kent
We have 1 field fare and upto 4 redwings in our garden today, feeding on crab apples hanging on the treee. St Albans, Herts.
Field fare feeding on an apple in my garden – in the centre of Oxford!
Spotted today, near Norwich!
Fieldfares spotted for the first time in my garden in Rotherham. Left some apples out on a cleared patch of snow
This afternoon a fieldfare came into my garden, the first I have ever seen. It started to eat a very large apple that I had put out for the blackbirds. It took two and a half hours to eat the the whole apple. I guess it must have been starving, because normally the blackbirds take 3 or 4 days to completely eat one between them this was in Redcar
Fieldfare group spotted today in Friockeim,Arbroath,Angus,Scotland.There was 10 in total & they spent all day feeding on a berry bush.
I have had about 10 Fieldfares in my garden for the last three days. Very territorial birds who chase off the resident blackbirds and there own kind in search of food.
Also had one solitary Redwing visit
Fieldfare in our garden this morning not unusual for this area but the closest and first for our garden a very pretty bird when close up
Hey ho winter is here
Cromer , Norfolk, NR270AN
four been in my garden for a week. eating apples put down for my blackbirds! chasing everything away and guarding the apples fiercly. never had them in garden before!
There are a pair of field fare in my garden today. I live in Bury St Edmunds. Feeding on berries and eating snow.
Field fare in my garden.
We have had three in the garden, lovely to watch them. Stourbridge in the West Midlands.
One fieldfare midday in Bromley south kent. Not seen one here before
A flock of field fare in our garden today the first we have ever seen. Amesbury Wiltshire
hi, i have a lone Field Fare in my Garden it arrived yesterday. i am making sure all the birds have plenty of food and water. it came back today. is there anything else i can do for it? i think he has lost his way.
We have a pair of Field Fare in our garden arrived yesterday – Claygate Surrey. They are eating apple and biscuit that we have put out. Only problem is that today they have become territorial and chasing off the other birds – especial got it in for the Black Birds – is this usual?
Saw this Fieldfare in my garden in Worcestershire today. Never seen one in my garden before.
I have had ten fieldfares in my garden since the snow arrived three days ago. I was happy at first but they are chasing away all my lovely pied wagtails, blackbirds, tits and robins etc and anything else they see. I always feed my birds daily with apples, pears, grated cheese, mealworms, seeds, fatballs etc. Hate to say it, but I can’t wait for the snow to go just so the thuggish fieldfares go too! Often they just sit guarding the food even though they are not eating it!
we have a lone fieldfare who arrived this afternoon,we are in essex, never seen one before i found out what they eat left some cut apple for him, he defends the apple from other birds, normally blackbirds. puffs himself up and chases them off. my photos not good.
Stafford – Staffordshire. I put out some apples stored from September. I quartered the apples so there was plenty for all. This attracted 8 Fieldfare who promptly “guarded” the food and fought with the blackbirds and thrush (and amongst themselves)over them . One poor field fare was subject to attack from everyone. Although entertaining to watch – the fieldfare seem to be bullies! Survival of the fittest I suppose!
I have a lone fieldfare in the garden this morning, feeding and guarding the bird table and chasing off the blackbirds. It’s been sitting there for ages now. Froxfield, Hampshire
Field fare in my garden eating cooking apples off the tree past few days first time I have seen one in dronfield derbyshire
We have around six fieldfares visiting our garden currently, they are eating porridge oaks and cornflakes.
First time I’ve ever seen them, magpies are chasing them off! There are about 8 of them in my garden at the moment. Central Norwich.
Have had 5 or 6 in our garden over the last few days, also sheltered behind walls to keep away from the wind and snow drifts. Never seen them before. From Easton near Norwich
This is the first time I’ve seen a Fieldfare. It’s been here all day, feeding and perching in the trees until it spots a blackbird, at which point it swoops down and chases it off. As others have mentioned, they definitely seem to have a beef with blackbirds.
We’ve had one in our garden in Winchester for the last couple of days – haven’t seen one before. Looked in a poor state when it arrived but perked up after a while of feeding on mealworms etc and has then spent it’s time chasing off the blackbirds……..
Love it when it snows as a gang of 20 fieldfares descend on our crab apple tree and our neighbours crab apple tree.
Within 7 days, all the apples will be gone. A joy to watch.
Here is one fieldfare on a crab apple tree in Witney, Oxfordshire. His other 19 mates are currently gobbling up the apples on the tree next door. A rare treat for us to see the fieldfares. They only visit when we have a heavy snowfall.
Never seen before in forty years at this address, well chuffed to see and and get a picture! Little beauty! … Bearsden, Glasgow. 03.03.18
We had one Fieldfare in the garden yesterday but didn’t know what it was. He was back today with a ‘friend’ and stayed much longer so we were able to identify them. This is a first for our garden in Chelsfield Kent
Found in my garden in Newcastle today
I saw one of these gorgeous little birds in my garden this afternoon…sadly I didn’t have my camera ready but I put some mealworms and fruit out for itvwhen it returns and I’ll have my camera on standby…to be honest I didn’t know what it was at first, then I saw this article on face book.
I live in Co. Durham.
Arrived in our garden in Yeovil Somerset on 03/03/2018 and seems to be taking up residence after feeding on the garden berries and the golden delicious apples we put out for it.
fieldfare has been in my garden for the past three days feeding on apple on the bird table and thinks he owns the place chases off birds that come any where near
,,
Cannot recall seeing Fieldfares before in our area, beside the River Medway in Halling, near Rochester in Kent. They had possibly come across from the woodland and marshes opposite on the Wouldham side. Last week during the Artic winter weather conditions many were feeding on rose hip shrubs along the River bank. Such unusually social birds and swooping around us as we braved the elements! Too quick for us to photograph.
A pair of Fieldfare spotted sheltering in our garden (Sleaford, Lincs) last week during blizzard conditions
Is it usual to see Fieldfair at this time of year in the East midlsnds have just spotted four or five.
Over 50 Fieldfare flew into our neighbors garden this morning, 25/01/19 to feed on hundreds of apples which are laying as windfalls. They are still there after two hours. Strumpshaw near Norwich.
Spotted a fieldfare eating apples in an apple tree in Innellan, Argyll&Bute, Scotland. 15/11/19.
We seem to have one lone fieldfare in our garden. We have been watching for more but it seems to be just this one. Any thoughts. Regards Gill
A recent arrival in our garden. One fieldfare on his own. Seems to love apples.
Photographed this morning. Difficult to get near, flies off when sees any movement only managed to photograph through the Bramley apple tree.
Charlton Musgrove
Somerset
I have had a single Fieldfare in my Wexford garden since before Christmas, he is feeding on the remains of my cooking apples and he chases off the local blackbirds. Never had one in my garden before and I’m wondering did he take a wrong turn as he seems to be on his own.
We had two field fares in our garden yesterday as the area was snowy They enjoyed the
Fruit we had on the floor They were so lovely and disappointed they had moved to new
Pastures today
Have a flock of fieldfare in my garden been in the tree for a few days fly off in smallish groups then return. Never seen them here before. Lovely birds.
A Fieldfare has started visiting my garden in Seaham County Durham. It’s the first time I have ever seen one!
A flock of around 10 or 12 Fieldfare have taken over our garden today in Montrose, North Angus (19.01.24). We have never seen Fieldfare here before. They have been feasting on the berries on our Cotoneaster trees.