January means one thing for me.
It is time again for the Big Garden Birdwatch.
Have you heard of it? It is the RSPB’s annual call to arms to discover which birds use our back gardens.
The idea started off in the 1970’s, when children were encouraged to spend a little bit of time one weekend in January, spotting their feathered friends.
Well, it proved very popular, and requests came in to repeat it.
So pretty soon it was an annual event, open to adults as well as children.
These days over 600,000 people settle down for a spot of garden birdwatching on the last weekend of January. Including over 11,000 in Lincolnshire.
So what does it involve?
Well, all you have to do is sit in a nice comfy chair for an hour, and see what birds arrive in your garden.
You note down the maximum number of each type of bird you see at any one time, and fill in an online form on the RSPB website.
Or you can pick up a postal form from our reserve at Frampton Marsh.
Easy-peasey!
Too busy to spare an hour?
You can always break it up into smaller segments.
Don’t have a garden? You can do it in the park, or pop round to a friend’s.
Not sure what you are looking at? The RSPB website has a nifty guide to help you.
Not seeing many birds? Don’t fret, low numbers are just as important as high ones.
After all, if no-one reported the low numbers, we wouldn’t see when commoner birds were declining.
And that really is the point.
With so many people taking part, and with data going back so many years, it allows us a glimpse into the fortunes of our garden birds.
Which ones are doing well (collared doves and goldfinches for example) and which ones aren’t.
So do please lend a hand. And make your count, count.
by Dr Chris Andrews
RSPB Frampton Marsh
