Brambling (fringilla montifringilla)

Brambling are beautiful little birds. They are from the finch family and have lovely patterns and colours on their wings. They are a real joy to see. 

Brambling are winter migrants to the UK. They spend their summers in more northern countries like Russia and Scandinavia, but in the autumn they fly south to the UK to escape the extreme cold of their summer habitat. It's strange to think of our country as a warm winter destination!

In summer they tend to eat insects, whereas in winter their diet is made up of seeds, berries and nuts. Their favourite winter foods are beech nuts, and they will often keep travelling through woods until they find it. For this reason, the best place to see them is in woodland.

Like many small birds, in winter they tend to move around in flocks and sometimes in mixed flocks which means they are sometimes confused with chaffinches. Having said that, brambling are renown for forming huge flocks of tens of thousands of birds at a time whilst migrating. Here in Scotswood Garden, we occasionally see them passing through.