Nightingale - Luscinia megarhynchos

Description

Nightingales are slightly larger than robins, with a robust, broad-tailed, rather plain brown appearance.

Identification difficulty
Habitat

A secretive bird which likes nothing better than hiding in the middle of an impenetrable bush or thicket. In the UK they breed mostly south of the Severn-Wash line and east from Dorset to Kent. The highest densities are found in the south east: Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk, Kent and Sussex.

When to see it

They arrive in April and sing until late May and early June. They leave again from July to September. They can be heard singing throughout the day, as well as at night.

Life History

They feed on insects.

UK Status

Local and occasional in the UK with nearly all records coming from an area south of a line from the Severn to the Humber.

VC55 Status

Infrequent in Leicestershire and Rutland.

Leicestershire & Rutland Map

MAP KEY:

Yellow squares = NBN records (all known data)
Coloured circles = NatureSpot records: 2020+ | 2015-2019 | pre-2015

UK Map

Species profile

Common names
Common Nightingale, Nightingale
Species group:
Birds
Kingdom:
Animalia
Order:
Passeriformes
Family:
Muscicapidae
Records on NatureSpot:
14
First record:
25/04/2008 (Chris Lythall)
Last record:
19/05/2019 (Palmer, Paul)

Total records by month

% of records within its species group

10km squares with records

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