So, it’s that time of year again. The weekend where the RSPB encourage us to do nothing more than sit in the comfort of our homes and look out the window for a dedicated hour to enjoy the birds that visit the garden. I have to admit that I always look forward to it. I spend a lot of time on nature reserves or walking pastures new and familiar, but it has been a little while at least since I stood back and admired the birds in my own garden. It seems silly, but it was a bit of a treat if truth be told and today seemed the right day for it with Never Cry Wolf, the TV movie of the book by the Farley Mowat finishing on TV.
It didn’t take long after refilling the feeders for the birds to arrive. When I do refill the feeders, I am normally very aware of the flitting in the bushes and observant eyes watching as I do. Often, as soon as I close the conservatory door and make my way inside, they streak from their hiding places and form a not so orderly queue for the prized perches around the feeding pole. The small apple tree closest to it is normally stock full of birds by the time I’m sitting down and today was no exception.
The first to arrive and normally the longest to stay are the goldfinches. They are such brightly coloured birds that it is very hard to miss them, so maybe I just notice them first instead. Either way, they don’t seem to have the same nervousness as the other smaller birds and dine in relative comfort, and without interruption as none of the others seem interested in their dedicated nijer seed.
Wood pigeons, blackbirds and a robin thought over the spoils at ground level, whilst great tits and blue tits bustled each other off the peanuts and sunflower seeds in continuous bursts of rivalry. They were soon joined by the acrobats of the garden, the long-tailed tits, who arrived in a small gang and immediately took over both feeders by sheer force of numbers. Not only are they gorgeous little birds, but they are immensely entertaining to watch. They pip to each other constantly and they will seemingly take up any position that affords them food. I watched as they hung upside down, sideways, swung back and forth, dangled from above and dropped and jumped from one side of the feeders to the next in an effort to take advantage of every last morsel before they moved on. They were always on the move, never stopping for a moment. Just watching them was making the hour go by all too quickly.
After the hustle and bustle of the other tits, the most nervous and twitchy of my garden birds made a brief appearance, the coal tit. I have only been noticing coal tits in the garden for the last few months, but they are a very welcome addition and I am over the moon to be able to count them as a visitor. They just seem something a little bit more special and out of the ordinary, especially as the only other place I’ve seen them this year is in Cumbrian woodland. Plus, today I was able to get really good views of them as they enjoyed the remains of the suet. Normally, by the time I’ve lifted my binoculars they’ve already made a hasty retreat!
Towards the end of the hour, two greenfinches turned up and seemingly couldn’t believe their luck when they saw I had filled the standing feeder with sunflower seeds. They then tried to get as much into their beaks as they possibly could in one sitting and were very reluctant to leave, even when the alarms of the crows called out as the resident sparrowhawk passed overhead. Incidentally, I have begun to notice that the crows make different alarm calls depending on the predator. When they spy a cat stalking the gardens, they make a very long and loud singular caw, repeated three or four times. This is normally made by one bird and seems to be more about general awareness. However, the sparrowhawk is identified by a seemingly more urgent and panicky cackle, often made by two or three birds. I’ve even found myself nonchalantly looking out the window when I hear the cat call and racing over to it when I hear the sparrowhawk one!
All too soon, my hour was up but in that time I had seen fifteen different species of birds in quite large numbers all from the comfort of my kitchen. Each year I loom forward to it and each year I am surprised by how rewarding it is. It’s also really easy and a great thing to do with children, who nine times out of ten are far better at spotting birds than adults too! The big garden birdwatch is happening all weekend, so it’s not too late to get out a notebook and binoculars if you’ve got them. Putting food out definitely helps, but remember that white bread is a no-no these days, although you can soak it in milk to make it slightly nutritional. Fat is what they need most, so lard, dripping, suet, bacon rind and so forth are all good. Alternatively, good value specialist bird food can be bought at most supermarkets, pet shops, DIY stores, garden centres and even online.
The whole point of the big garden bird watch is to record the species that visit British gardens and to gauge population blooms and declines, as well as monitor changes in behaviour. This is hugely important research and brings new things to light every year. For instance, it is only in the last few years that long-tailed tits have appeared in the top ten of the survey, showing their ability to adapt and change from primarily insect feeding to taking advantage of peanut feeders. We have seen birds like bullfinch and siskin drop out of the common garden bird category. We have become aware of the plight of starlings and house sparrows. It only takes an hour, can be done in the comfort of your own home with a mug of tea yet can truly make a difference. Follow the links to the RSPB site below for a results form and more information. There is even a big schools birdwatch for those in education! I mean, we never got to do that at school!
Wild Wild Things 