when you walk around mersehead you might see this shy bird hiding in the hedgerow or feeding at the visitor centre. Tree sparrow is smaller than house sparrow and has a chestnut brown head and back of the neck where as a house sparrow has a grey cap. The most obvious feature which helps to identify tree from house sparrow is its two black cheek spots. Tree sparrows are usually found in small colonies on farmland and rural areas with mature trees with holes in which to nest. They need insects to feed young in the spring and water bodies for foraging.
Photo by Steve Knell (rspb-images.com)
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The BTO Atlas indicates that the tree sparrow population has shown some localised increases in northeast England and northeast Scotland but the population remains significantly lower than before its severe decline in the 1970’s. As a farmland bird tree sparrow require habitat which provides insect food for their chicks and seed food in the winter.
At Mersehead and at other key areas in Dumfries and Galloway , we are working within our reserves and local farmers to provide a home for these birds by providing nest boxes and creating new areas of habitat. Around mersehead the warden has gone out and placed over 50 new nest boxes to help these birds and this year we have had a breeding pair of tree sparrows with two fledged young.
Photo by Kirsty Griffiths
If you see any of these birds we would like to know please contact Julia Gallagher on 01556 670478 or email julia.gallagher@rspb.org.uk