Buteo buteo
Silhouette: ChrBar · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~80% in a week >90%
The common buzzard (Buteo buteo) is a medium-sized bird of prey with a large range. It is a member of the genus Buteo in the family Accipitridae. The species lives in most of Europe and extends its breeding range across much of the Palearctic as far as northwestern China (Tian Shan), far western Siberia and northwestern Mongolia. Over much of its range, it is a year-round resident. However, buzzards from the colder parts of the Northern Hemisphere as well as those that breed in the eastern part of their range typically migrate south for the northern winter, many journeying as far as South Africa.
The common buzzard is an opportunistic predator that can take a wide variety of prey, but it feeds mostly on small mammals, especially rodents such as voles. It typically hunts from a perch. Like most accipitrid birds of prey, it builds a nest, typically in trees in this species, and is a devoted parent to a relatively small brood of young. The common buzzard appears to be the most common diurnal raptor in Europe, as estimates of its total global population run well into the millions.
The first formal description of the common buzzard was by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus... Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Berlin | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 2 | Milan | 🇮🇹 Italy | |
| 3 | Cologne | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 4 | Birmingham | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 5 | Essen | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 6 | Istanbul | 🇹🇷 Turkey | |
| 7 | Hamburg | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 8 | Brussels | 🇧🇪 Belgium | |
| 9 | Manchester | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 10 | Porto | 🇵🇹 Portugal |
Likely
About 40% of wildlife watchers report a Common Buzzard sighting in Cairngorms National Park on a given day, based on 1,517 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 14th most-seen of the 140 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 80%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February and October
In those months about 60% of wildlife watchers report a Common Buzzard in Cairngorms National Park on a given day, against about 40% in April–August and November, the lowest months.
Between noon and 3 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Common Buzzard sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
7th of 76
Of the 76 parks where we can rate Common Buzzard sightings, Cairngorms National Park ranks 7th at about 40%. The best odds are in Kiskunság National Park (Hungary, about 70%), Hortobágy National Park (Hungary, about 50%) and Fertő-Hanság National Park (Hungary, about 50%). All parks ranked.
Same family: Accipitridae
The closest relatives of the Common Buzzard that you can see in Cairngorms National Park (family Accipitridae, Hawks, Eagles, and Kites) are Red Kite (about 10%), Golden Eagle (about 10%) and Eurasian Sparrowhawk (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Common Buzzard is recorded against all the birds logged in Cairngorms National Park (1,517 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
