Small birds helped by the mild winter

WILDLIFE: A mild winter has helped the survival rate of our small garden birds, according to a report by the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO).

Figures from the annual BTO Garden BirdWatch Survey, show a marked increase in the numbers of species such as wrens and goldcrests in our gardens.

A MILD winter has helped the survival rate of our small garden birds, according to a report by the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO).

Figures from the annual BTO Garden BirdWatch Survey, show a marked increase in the numbers of species such as wrens and goldcrests in our gardens, birds which can struggle during hard frosts and prolonged snow cover.

The report showed a rise of 11 per cent in the numbers of both species, with the long-tailed tit, which can also be badly hit during the winter months, showing a rise of three per cent.

Researchers running the weekly BTO Garden Birdwatch, which feeds into the annual report, said gardens and their wildlife have provided a “significant opportunity” for people to “engage with nature” during the lockdown.

While more than 12,000 people normally submit information from their gardens as part of the research charity’s weekly survey, during 2020, those numbers more than doubled.

This, the charity said, gave BTO scientists a “unique window” into gardens during what has been a “unique year”.

Rob Jaques, from the BTO Garden BirdWatch team, said: “The survey provides wellbeing and learning benefits to its participants, both of which have been particularly important over the last year.

“To see the number of people signing up to participate double during lockdown demonstrates the importance of garden wildlife during this difficult period.

“Active participation in ‘citizen science’ increases engagement with both science and the natural world, leading those who participate to increase their support of wider campaigns and to take positive action to support the natural world. Being able to capture this new-found interest and enthusiasm means we can do even more for garden wildlife.”

This year’s report also showed 2020 was a strong year for sparrowhawks in gardens, which the scientists said, underlined the species’ recovery and recolonisation.

However, milder weather also meant fewer migrant finches and thrushes using gardens. Instead the birds were able to stay out in the wider countryside or winter further north and east across Europe.

Brambling, redwing and fieldfare were also an uncommon sight in gardens this past winter.

However, while the milder winter helped many small birds, the report also highlights the poor 2020 breeding season for many core garden bird species.

Both blue tits and great tits seem to have suffered a drop in breeding success with a fall in the number of reported sightings in gardens during summer and early autumn.

A dry weather from early summer also impacted on those birds reliant on soil invertebrates to feed themselves and their young, with food sources locked away under hard-baked earth. Garden BirdWatch reporting rates showed both song thrush and blackbird struggled.

Along with bird species, the weekly watch showed an early emergence of holly blue butterflies due to 2020’s exceptionally warm spring.

Records of the first brood of the little butterfly peaked at 29 per cent of gardens in the week beginning April 19, 2020, compared with the longer term average from 2010-2019, of 11 per cent for the same week.

The survey provides wellbeing and learning benefits to participants. Rob Jaques, from the BTO Garden BirdWatch team.

AT LEAST two people protesting against last month’s military coup were reportedly shot and killed by security forces yesterday after a morning of peaceful marches in parts of Myanmar.

Security forces have killed scores of their countrymen in recent days, and the UN has put the nationwide death toll at 149 since the February 1 coup that toppled Aung San Suu Kyi’s elected government.

The independent Assistance Association for Political Prisoners said 183 people have died.

Violence was reported yesterday in Myanmar’s biggest city, Yangon, where casualties have been the highest. Police used rubber bullets against crowds in several neighbourhoods, and one man was reported as shot dead.

Another killing was reported in Kawlin city in the north-western Sagaing region.

UN Human Rights Office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani said at least 11 people were killed on Monday, adding to 57 deaths over the weekend. While there were many more reports of killings, it was unable to corroborate them.

“The killing of demonstrators, arbitrary arrests and the reported torture of prisoners violate fundamental human rights and stand in clear defiance of calls by the Security Council for restraint, dialogue and a return to Myanmar’s democratic path,” UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres said in a statement.

State television MRTV announced on Tuesday evening that a leading figure in the Committee Representing Pyihtaungsu Hluttaw, comprising elected members of parliament who were not allowed to take their seats, has been charged with high treason, which carries a death sentence.

Dr Sasa – a medical doctor who uses a single name, is a member of the Chin ethnic minority and was appointed a special UN envoy by the CRPH – is accused of stirring up internal conflict and acting against the junta.

He is the public face of the Myanmar resistance in the international arena, even though he is reportedly in hiding.

The coup reversed years of slow progress towards democracy in Myanmar, which for five decades suffered strict military rule that led to international isolation and sanctions.

Protesters in some areas have recently started to use tactics meant to avoid violent confrontations. Yesterday, reports on social media said candlelit marches before sunrise were held in Mawlamyaing in Mon state in southeastern Myanmar.

Another tactic has been to use signboards as proxies for human protesters, placing them in neat rows in public places. This tactic was reported to have been used in the second-biggest city, Mandalay, in central Myanmar.

More conventional peaceful protests of the sort that have been occurring daily were held without incident yesterday in Monywa and Ye-U in central Myanmar, the city of Loikaw in the eastern state of Kayaw, and Kalaw in Southern Shan state.

Complicating efforts to organise new protests as well as media coverage, mobile phone internet service was cut on Sunday night, although access was still available through broadband connections.

Mobile data service had been used to stream live video coverage of protests, often showing security forces attacking demonstrators. It previously had been turned off only from 1am to 9am for several weeks, with no official explanation.

While there were many more reports of killings, the UN was unable to corroborate them.