Sunday Mirror (Northern Ireland)
The rules of… Flight club
Where would we be without flying visits from our favourite wildlife? Birds are not only friends to your garden but they can bring peace of mind
This month, bird is the word! Our feathered friends are great for our gardens. But as we get ready to take part in the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch, from January 25 to 27, it’s time to get to know the common birds that bless our gardens throughout the year and learn what makes them so wonderful.
A garden tweet
Birds do wonders for our green spaces. Not only can they eat thousands of insects, but finches and sparrows also help to control weed populations by eating the seed heads.
Some bird species even contribute to plant pollination. Blue tits, for instance, have been found to feed on the nectar of Fritillaria imperialis (Crown imperial) when in flower during spring. As well as this, birds in the garden can be uplifting to see and hear every day.
Research shows that watching garden birds can make people less
The more you learn about birds, the more you will love them anxious and depressed – even when not in a rural area.
If you’ve got young kids around, encouraging garden birds into your garden gives an opportunity for learning and interacting with wildlife.
This can be really rewarding for them and is a good way to spend time together outside in the fresh air.
To attract birds to your plot all you need to do is provide them with food, water and shelter.
There’s advice on how to do this on my website, daviddomoney.com. Once you make a start, birds will begin to come back quite frequently – especially during the winter when they rely on a continual supply of food and many other water sources may be frozen.
Pass it on
The more you learn about birds, the more you’ll love them. And this interest spans the generations, so it’s fun for the whole family. Share these informative tit-bits with loved ones…
The bird that’s a staple in most gardens at this time of year is the robin and they’re known as the gardener’s friend because as ground foragers, they often watch gardeners and wait for any unearthed worms or insects.
A pair of robins only weigh as much as one chicken’s egg, yet these little birds have been known to donate food to feed the chicks of other birds.
Wrens are known to nest in strange places. You might find them in greenhouses, hanging baskets or even in the pockets of laundry on the washing line from February onwards. Rather
than forage for food alone, Great tit couples often forego food in order to stay close to their partner – on whom they rely to raise young.
There are 620 species of bird on the official British list and the birds you will see in your garden all depend on where in the country you live.
As bird populations differ regionally, to some extent, we’ve all got our own idea of what “garden birds” are, depending on which are most common to the area we live.
For instance, green woodpecker populations have been increasing in the South East areas of the UK but not in Scotland.
Bullfinches have been seen to increase in western parts of the UK, including Ireland, and the same goes for swallows.
Goldcrests and coal tits have shot up in number within the Scottish regions, whereas you’re most likely to see Great tits in the Midlands.
Join the flock
To find out what you’ve got in your plot, sign up for the RSPB’s Garden Birdwatch 2020.
It will open you up to the world of winged wonders. The idea is to get counting the birds that visit your garden and make a note of what you see. Involve the whole family or observe them on your own – you’ll be joining over half a million people who take part every year.
All you have to do is sign up via rspb.org.uk and they’ll send you a pack with everything you need.
Last year’s survey results confirmed that the top three birds sighted in gardens in 2019 were house sparrows, starlings and blue tits.
It’s vital this work continues so we can better understand our local bird populations and how they’re changing.
Best of birdwatching
Now you know the wonders of winged wildlife, make your garden bird-abundant and it will reward you with brilliant birdwatching and a plentiful green oasis.