Birds In Our Gardens

Wondering whether to do some birdwatching? Well, rather than head for the nearest nature reserve to sit in cold hides in the hope of spotting something unusual, why not begin at home in your garden or a nearby park? These places often have a wider diversity of habitats and so a wide range of birds and you can pop back inside whenever you are cold and want a cup of tea! Or you can do it from the warmth of your home through a window. If you want a place to start, see the information on the upcoming RSPB's Big Garden Birdwatch at the end of this article.

Spotting different species

The number of different species, never mind differences between males, females and juveniles, can put people off. But don't be. Start with the birds you see most often in your garden and then expand your scope as and when you are ready. Many of us never progress to all of the more tricky waders and warblers!

A pair of binoculars will increase your enjoyment, but is not necessary to start with. A guide book is useful though, so you can flick through the pictures, even when you don't know what family of birds you are looking at - although you soon learn where birds of certain types are in the book. There are some just on garden birds, which avoid sifting through all the birds you are very unlikely to be looking at.

Attracting birds to your garden

Your enjoyment and learning will clearly be enhanced if you can attract more birds into your garden. Bird feeders are the obvious place to start - we have one of fat (with mealworms embedded) and one with sunflower seed kernels. If you buy feeders with cages around them, this can help keep off the squirrels and jackdaws if you wish. An inverted cone on the stem of the feeder also deters squirrels (see photo).

Bird baths, nest boxes and planting bushes for food and cover will further help attract the birds. Berry bushes such as Pyracantha and Cotoneaster are particularly good since they fruit in the autumn and provide food into the winter.

**Bird feeders and cone to deter squirrels**

So, what will you see?

Well, don't assume it's sparrows! I haven't seen a single house sparrow in our garden in the eight years we have lived here. However, I've kept a rather imperfect list and have 44 different species on it - including birds flying overhead, so don't forget to look up! Each garden will be different, but various species of tit (blue, great, long-tailed, coal, marsh) will probably feature in most. Blackbirds of course, with dunnocks, robins and wrens. And larger birds fly above our gardens - buzzards, ravens and even peregrine falcons flying to and from their nest in Bath.

Need a focus to start you off?

Then why not participate in the RSPB's BIG GARDEN BIRDWATCH later this month (28-30 January)? All you need is an hour to spot birds in your garden and everything you need is on the RSPB website.

If you also send us a list of what you record we will combine all our lists and share with you all the species spotted during that weekend - just email your list to thenaturechain@gmail.com

Article by Steve Best

NATURE CHAIN would love to hear from you so if you have a little story and some photos about your wildlife gardening, please send it in to thenaturechain@gmail.com