BIRDS of a feather
THESE ARE THE TEN MOST COMMON VISITORS TO OUR GARDENS - WITH THE HOUSE SPARROW SOARING BUT ROBINS GETTING RARER
BLACKBIRD and robins have become less common in our gardens in the last year, while goldfinch sightings have risen significantly.
Those are among the findings of the Big Garden Birdwatch for 2018.
The annual event, co-ordinated by the RSPB, found blackbirds were spotted in just 88 per cent of gardens compared to 93 per cent the previous year. Similarly, robins were spotted in 96 per cent of gardens last year but only 84 per cent in 2018. Both species still made the top ten in the number of sightings per garden, however. In first place was the house sparrow, with an average 4.3 sightings per garden per hour.
The starling came in second, with three sightings per garden per hour, ahead of the blue tit which had 2.6 viewings per garden per hour.
Some 2.4 blackbirds were spotted per garden per hour, putting them in fourth place.
The woodpigeon came close behind in fifth place, with 2.1 sightings per garden per hour.
The goldfinch, great tit, robin, longtailed and chaffinch completed the top ten.
Daniel Hayhow, conservation scientist for the RSPB said: “Our garden birds are a part of our everyday life, whether it’s the robin perched on the garden fence or the flock of starlings you see on your way to work.
“Last summer was a really good year for many breeding birds, with warm weather creating great conditions for many smaller birds to raise their young to adulthood.
“The rise in sightings of goldfinch, longtailed tit and coal tit, along with chaffinches and greenfinches, goes to show that in the absence of cold weather they can survive the winter months in good numbers. “Looking at the results it is likely that across the UK this is what people are seeing in their garden.” The RSPB’s annual count, which is open to professional and amateur birdwatchers across the UK, takes place in January. People are asked to count birds for an hour and submit their data for analysis.