Windermere: Birdspotting
Over a thousand ducks, geese and swans live on Windermere throughout the year. This more than doubles to over two and half thousand birds during the winter!
Many birds fly from Scandinavia and Eastern Europe to spend the winter. Windermere has more birds on it in the winter than any other lake in the Lake District. It's one of the top places in Britain for wintering goldeneye, tufted duck, coot, pochard and red-breasted merganser.
All year:
Canada goose - copyright Arthur Grosset
Coot - copyright Arthur Grosset
Cormorant - copyright Peter Wallack
Greylag goose - copyright Arthur Grosset
Mallard duck, the most common species - copyright Arthur Grosset
Mute swan - copyright Helen Reynolds
Red-breasted merganser - copyright Peter Wallack
Between October and April:
Goldeneye - copyright Arthur Grosset
I am a very shy bird and feed close to the shore in the quieter bays. I have to work all day to find enough food to eat. If I get spooked it forces me to fly, using up valuable energy. And I may not get enough food to survive the winter - so please don't get too close. About 250 of us migrate from Europe to Windermere each year. Normally we don't bother with English lakes, but Windermere is perfect for us!
Great-crested grebe - copyright Arthur Grosset
Gull - copyright Arthur Grosset
Pochard - copyright Arthur Grosset
Tufted duck - copyright Arthur Grosset
Where do birds live on Windermere?
Reed beds offer essential safe and sheltered resting places for overwintering birds and breeding birds in the spring and summer. As the reed beds on and around the Windermere shoreline disappear, so do the number of places for birds to live in.
How can I help protect birds?
No one would want a juggernaut driving through their bedroom and flattening their bed, and the same goes for the birds of Windermere. Don't drag boats through or land your boats on shoreline areas with reed beds, even if they've already been damaged.
Please look at Your guide to Windermere leaflet (opens Document Library) for a map showing where the wildlife refuges are on the lake.
Reed bed areas are getting smaller and smaller and we don't know why. So we're working with organisations such as Cumbria Wildlife Trust and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds to solve the mystery and help the reed beds start growing again.
Want even more visitor information?
Visit Golakes (opens in new window), the official website of the tourist board for The Lake District and Cumbria. Browse and book accommodation and attractions online and see what's on in the area.
