Scilly is a paradise for birds providing a home to native species and hosting exciting and rare visitors.

Local and migrants there are many birds to see from the local friendly thrushes and sparrows to the rare and exotic migrant blown off course.

The resident Sparrows and Song thrushes are famously bold in Scilly, perhaps due to the lack of predators.  While Scilly's male Blackbirds are renowned for their bright orange bills. In summer visitors from Africa like Cuckoos, Wheatears and various warblers stop off, some remaining to breed.

Gulls and Shags are relatively common in Scilly but most of the other species of seabirds that nest need protection. There were once around 100,000 Puffins in Scilly - today there are fewer than 100 pairs. Terns and Kittiwakes have decreased rapidly, and the Roseate tern has already disappeared. Manx shearwater and Storm petrel cling on in their only English breeding colonies.

In Autumn large numbers of migrating birds such as waders, thrushes, redstarts and flycatchers arrive in the islands; some spend the winter and others are just passing through. Scilly is an important staging post for these long distance travellers and are essential to their survival. During the winter, waders and ducks feed up before heading off in the spring.