Fersiwn Gymraeg ar gael yma
January can be a rather grey and testing month for many, as we try to brush off the Christmas cobwebs and get back into the swing of things in the new year.
But we like to think that there’s light at the end of the month, as the Big Garden Birdwatch takes place over the final weekend of 27-29 January. We fill our feeders and put the kettle on as, for an hour, we shall sit down to count the birds that visit our gardens, bounce on our balconies or graze in our green spaces. And while this could merely be seen as an interesting, fun weekend activity – the truth is that it is also hugely important to our work all year round, and the conservational status of our garden birds.
Citizen Science at its best The Big Garden Birdwatch, taking place in the heart of winter when our garden birds depend on garden foraging the most, is our golden opportunity to see quite how they are faring. Indeed, it is the largest citizen science project in the UK, where we take a small sample from hundreds of thousands of gardens, balconies and green spaces to see which birds are doing well and which ones may need more of our conservation help in the future. Not only is this form of research easy to partake in, but it is also a very direct, straight-forward way of building data that will helps us understand which birds are struggling, and our attention. The results are usually mixed in terms of news – while we often see heart-warming increases for some birds (the Goldfinch has made great progress in the last decade), we also see the saddening plight facing other birds.
The Greenfinch and Chaffinch have both suffered devastating decreases in their numbers over the last decade, with their declines strongly linked to the trichomonosis disease which is easily contracted through unclean bird feeders. It is imperative that we all keep our feeders clean, disinfecting them regularly - weekly if possible.
Historic Birdwatches over several decades also give us a great insight into the long-term trends that face our birds. Indeed, we have sadly seen a loss of 38 million birds across these islands in the last 50 years. There are varying reasons for this of course – climate change, loss of habitat - but the numbers are nevertheless sobering.
But it isn’t all bad news. We’ve seen heartening comebacks from some birds in the last few years. Last year we saw the aforementioned Goldfinch fly up two places from tenth to eighth in a much unchanged top ten, which also saw the Woodpigeon re-enter from 12 to 10. 2019 saw the Long-tailed Tit suffering a devastating drop in numbers following 2018’s ‘Beast From the East’ snow storm – only for it to make an astounding comeback in the 2020 Big Garden Birdwatch. Taking part is as easy as 1,2,3:
Once you’ve completed your birdwatching hour and recorded your findings, how about commemorating your garden’s most frequent flier by picking up a pin badge of your number one bird? With locations across Wales hosting our pin badge boxes, from RSPB reserves to local coffeeshops, and an Ebay shopwith a variety of stock, pin badges are a great way to show your support for giving nature a home.
So wherever you are and whomever you are, expert or beginner – get involved this January and do your bit for the nature on your doorstep – sign up here for Big Garden Birdwatch 2023!