Bird survey was a hit
Across Scotland over 36,000 people joined in the world’s largest garden wildlife survey during the last weekend in January 2016.
Participants counted 626,335 feathered visitors during the 37th RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch.
There was a rise in sightings of smaller gardens birds such as coal tits and great tits.
Keith Morton, Species Policy Officer at RSPB Scotland, said: “2016 was another great year for Big Garden Birdwatch in Scotland. “Different birds are affected in different ways by the weather and this winter has seen milder temperatures and some very wet periods in parts of Scotland, although several areas did have a lot of snow fall over Big Garden Birdwatch weekend.
“The increase in smaller garden birds recorded, such as longtailed tits, suggests that the lack of sustained cold weather helps these species survive in far greater numbers over the winter months.”
Despite this boost in numbers many other garden favourites are still struggling.
In Scotland sightings of well known species such as starlings and song thrushes have experienced another drop during the Big Garden Birdwatch this year.
Big Garden Birdwatch and Big Schools’ Birdwatch are a part of the RSPB’s Giving Nature a Home campaign asking people to provide a place for wildlife in their garden whether it’s putting up a nest box for birds, creating a pond for frogs or building a home for hedgehogs.