RSPB Big garden bird watch 2024

[Smollet]

This years attempts to count birds is 26-28/1.
A tip for those who think the birds bugger off during the hour you’ve designated is to start the hour when you have at least 2 birds in your garden.
Happy counting.

[Simpo Two]

Smollet said:

A tip for those who think the birds bugger off during the hour you’ve designated is to start the hour when you have at least 2 birds in your garden.

Wouldn't that skew the results?

[Silvanus]

Link for anyone who's not familiar.

https://www.rspb.org.uk/whats-happening/big-garden...

[Smollet]

Simpo Two said:

Wouldn't that skew the results?

I don’t see why although I’m sure someone will argue it could. I always pick one hour but only start counting when a bird turns up. If no bird has turned up in that hour I record a zero count

Edited by Smollet on Saturday 6th January 10:16

[Smollet]

Silvanus said:

Link for anyone who's not familiar.

https://www.rspb.org.uk/whats-happening/big-garden...

Thanks. I knew I’d forgotten something.

[Silvanus]

Smollet said:

Simpo Two said:

Wouldn't that skew the results?

I don’t see why although I’m sure someone will argue it could. I always pick one hour but only start counting when a bird turns up. If no bird has turned up in that hour I record a zero count

Edited by Smollet on Saturday 6th January 10:16

I guess it would be no more skewed than someone doing their survey at 7am just after they've topped up their bird feeders, and someone doing theirs at midday.

[rossub]

Completely impossible for me. There can be up to 30 birds on and around the feeders at times.

[Simpo Two]

Smollet said:

Simpo Two said:

Wouldn't that skew the results?

I don’t see why although I’m sure someone will argue it could.

Because you're waiting for birds to be present before you start counting, so your results will be higher. The absence of birds is equally important.

[Smint]

rossub said:

Completely impossible for me. There can be up to 30 birds on and around the feeders at times.

Indeed the speed with which the tits and sparrows are emptying the feeders we've got half the district songbirds in our hedges and surrounding trees.
Two seed feeders (3 and 4 full cups respectively) 7 fat balls between two feeders and a cupful of peanuts can all empty in one cold day, can't afford to retire.

[Silvanus]

Smint said:

rossub said:

Completely impossible for me. There can be up to 30 birds on and around the feeders at times.

Indeed the speed with which the tits and sparrows are emptying the feeders we've got half the district songbirds in our hedges and surrounding trees.
Two seed feeders (3 and 4 full cups respectively) 7 fat balls between two feeders and a cupful of peanuts can all empty in one cold day, can't afford to retire.

You count the highest number of species at any one time in the hour. If you count 10 blue tits on your feeder/garden and half an hour you count 7 on your feeder, the total is 10, not 17. If you are lucky enough to have a lot of birds it's worth making and educated estimate as it's worth getting an idea of high numbers as well as low numbers.

[Smollet]

Smint said:

rossub said:

Completely impossible for me. There can be up to 30 birds on and around the feeders at times.

Indeed the speed with which the tits and sparrows are emptying the feeders we've got half the district songbirds in our hedges and surrounding trees.
Two seed feeders (3 and 4 full cups respectively) 7 fat balls between two feeders and a cupful of peanuts can all empty in one cold day, can't afford to retire.

Keep up the good work. Retirement is very boring. I may be lying

[bigpriest]

Smint said:

rossub said:

Completely impossible for me. There can be up to 30 birds on and around the feeders at times.

Indeed the speed with which the tits and sparrows are emptying the feeders we've got half the district songbirds in our hedges and surrounding trees.
Two seed feeders (3 and 4 full cups respectively) 7 fat balls between two feeders and a cupful of peanuts can all empty in one cold day, can't afford to retire.

Same with goldfinches - they seem to double in numbers by the week and have an annoying habit of eating half a sunflower heart at a time, the other half dropping on the ground and growing furry mould. Fewer gardens with hedges and feeders having an impact?

[rossub]

bigpriest said:

Same with goldfinches - they seem to double in numbers by the week and have an annoying habit of eating half a sunflower heart at a time, the other half dropping on the ground and growing furry mould. Fewer gardens with hedges and feeders having an impact?

No chance of the hearts going to waste here - they never stay on the ground long!

Agree on the goldfinches. We have a nice flock of them these days. Never used to see any a few years ago.

[Smollet]

bigpriest said:

Same with goldfinches - they seem to double in numbers by the week and have an annoying habit of eating half a sunflower heart at a time, the other half dropping on the ground and growing furry mould. Fewer gardens with hedges and feeders having an impact?

I’ve had an increase in jackdaws and magpies and they excel at hoovering

[Mort7]

Our numbers, should anyone be interested:-

16 goldfinch
7 blue tit
4 chaffinch
1 coal tit
2 great tit
2 robin
3 wood pigeon
2 dunnock
1 blackbird
1 great spotted woodpecker
I pheasant

Well down on usual numbers - we normally have a flock of around 30 goldfinches, and many other species not seen today. Maybe there's a lot more food available during the Birdwatch weekend, so much greater choice and no need to travel as far.

As far as skewing the results goes, as neither the date nor the time is recorded, then as long as only the maximum number seen at any one time is logged then the time period that they are recorded over shouldn't matter, should it?

[Smollet]

Just done mine
4 feral pigeon
4 starling
2 goldfinch
I robin
1 house sparrow
1 blue tit
1 woodpigeon
Missing from today are jackdaws, magpies, collared doves, LTTs and great tits that are regular visitors.

[so called]

I forgot !!!

From memory,
3 Jays
4 Magpies,
6 Pidgins,
1 Robin
memory now failing.......