Top ten winter garden birdsIt has been shown that feeding the birds that visit your area can significantly increase their survival in the winter months. Some smaller bird species need to consume almost one third of their own body weight in food every day, so providing high energy food for them will be having a very positive effect.In the spring and summer sunflower seeds (often known as sunflower hearts without their husks) or live foods such as mealworms will be greatly appreciated by parent birds. The adult birds will use your food supply for themselves and reserve the protein rich insects they find in your garden for their chicks.
The kinds of birds you can expect to visit your garden, allotment or the area around your workplace will depend on your location, the time of year and the habitat round about you. Urban gardens are more likely to have house sparrows, starlings, blackbirds, robins and tits, whereas a more rural area may attract woodpeckers, thrushes, chaffinches and even pheasants. Each of these species will have its own preferred way of feeding – from a hanging feeder, a high bird table or on the ground. Try to feed your birds in a variety of different ways to reflect their preferences.
Research by the British Trust for Ornithology lists the ten birds below as the ones most likely to visit gardens in the winter.
1. Robin. In a survey of garden birds carried out in the winter of 2002/3 a robin was found in every garden surveyed. This little bird can be very aggressive when defending its territory. Robins occasionally nest in unusual (and sometimes unsuitable) places. In the garden they may choose a spot in a dense creeper quite close to the ground. They will also use an open fronted nest box. They are mainly insect feeders, so a garden managed organically will enable them to find the food they need. Supplementary food – fats, ground peanuts, mealworms.
2. Blue tit. The blue tit is naturally a woodland bird, but adapts well to using our gardens and is common in parks and urban areas. This species will be attracted to a garden with lots of small insects, including aphids living in the shrubs, trees and herbaceous plants. Being very agile, blue tits can cling to any hanging feeder and are tough enough to compete with the larger great tit. They will use a nest box on a tree or fence. Supplementary food – sunflower seeds, peanuts, fats.
3. Blackbird. The male blackbird is familiar to everyone, with his wonderful fluting song, shiny black plumage and bright orange bill. In the garden blackbirds feed predominantly on soil invertebrates including earthworms, so a garden with flower beds and lawns will particularly attract them, as will berry bearing shrubs in the winter. They nest in thick shrubs and hedges and may take advantage of mild weather as early as February to lay their first eggs. Supplementary food – fruit, raisins, kitchen scraps.
4. Great tit. The great tit is another familiar bird in gardens, parks and open spaces wherever there may be a tree. Boldly marked in black, yellow and blue, this adaptable bird enjoys our gardens for feeding and breeding, when a hole-fronted nest box will be readily used. Great tits are largely insect feeders and a garden managed to attract many invertebrates will naturally have its population of great tits. In the winter they feed in woodlands on insects and tree seeds, particularly beech nuts (mast) . Supplementary food – sunflower seeds, peanuts, fats.
5. Chaffinch. Chaffinches, the male with his attractive pink breast and slate blue head, spend much of their time feeding on the ground, often under seed feeders or bird tables. They are quite sedentary birds and the same individuals may be around in your garden for four or five years. They feed on insects and small seeds and build mossy nests in shrubs and hedges. Supplementary food – seeds, peanut pieces.
6. Greenfinch. Greenfinches are primarily seed feeders, and can also be quite sedentary, often finding a spot on a seed feeder and apparently sitting there all day! The male’s breeding plumage is yellowy green, but becomes a dull olive green in the winter. Juveniles are streaky brown. This bird likes a thick hedge for nesting, even Leyland cypress if it is kept well clipped and dense. Supplementary food – sunflower seeds, nyger seed.
7. Dunnock. The dunnock is the small brown bird that was once known as the hedge sparrow, but is not closely related to the house sparrow. Often overlooked, this little bird is actually very attractive with streaky grey and brown plumage and a fine pointed beak. It tends to feed on the ground, searching amongst leaves for insects and grubs but in the winter when these may be in short supply, seeds are a priority. Supplementary food – nyger seed, sunflower hearts, grated cheese, breadcrumbs.
8. Collared dove. The collared dove bred in this country for the very first time in 1953. Since then it has spread across the country and can now be found in gardens and parks everywhere. They build small twiggy nests in trees and tall hedges and have a very long breeding season. These gentle birds are a soft grey in colour and feed exclusively on seeds. Supplementary food – mixed seeds and grains.
9. Coal tit. The tiny black and white coal tit can be recognised by the white stripe down the back of its head. It will use a nest box (with a very small opening) in a garden, especially one where there are conifers. Coal tits feed on small insects and seeds. They are more likely to be seen in gardens in the winter months, when they have a habit of taking seeds from feeders and hiding them for later use. Supplementary food – sunflower seeds, peanut pieces.
10. House sparrow. The house sparrow was once a common bird in our towns and cities, occurring in very large numbers. In the last 40 years, 50% of our sparrows have disappeared and although in the garden they will eat most types of food, they very much relied on grain in the winter time, in stubble fields and farmyards. This food resource has gone and this loss is a contributory factor in their decline. In the garden they will nest under house eaves, and the fact that many newer houses and offices no longer have these small spaces means that house sparrows are short of nest sites as well as food. They will use a nest box and prefer to nest communally, so boxes especially for them usually have space for several families. Supplementary food – grain and seeds, kitchen scraps.
• Many other species will visit even the smallest garden for food, water and shelter. Look out for starlings, nuthatches, woodpeckers, song thrushes, goldfinches, long tailed tits and wrens. To really enjoy the bird life in your area, invest in a pair of binoculars and a good identification guide. |
