Tag Archives: Big Garden Birdwatch

Big Garden Birdwatch 2026

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We’ve just done our hour taking part in this years Big Garden Birdwatch and we recorded quite a good list of birds.

We get a lot of different birds in and above the garden and I’ve record 65 species, seen or heard from the garden since we moved here nearly five years ago. Obviously, we were never going to record that many in just an hour but a total of 14 species in those 60 minutes is quite good, I think.

Our list is okay included the following:

  • Blackbird – 2 individuals
  • Blackcap – 1
  • Blue tit – 4
  • Chaffinch – 1
  • Coal tit – 2
  • Dunnock – 3
  • Goldfinch – 4
  • Great spotted woodpecker – 2
  • Great tit – 5
  • House sparrow – 6
  • Jackdaw – 4
  • Robin – 1
  • Starling – 2
  • Wood pigeon – 4

Despite such a good list, we missed some of our regulars including greenfinch and long-tailed tits. We also saw ravens and a red kite flying overhead but birds only count if they land in the garden. We’ve also had a grey wagtail in the garden several times recently and sometimes get a brambling at this time of year but sadly no sign of them today.

When we entered our data on the website, well over 2 million over entries had been made, which makes this a huge citizen science event. In this time of divisive politics and social discord, it’s quite heartening that so many people put aside an hour to join in something so positive.

The power of volunteers

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I have a few large posts in the offing but I just wanted to highlight two great examples of volunteering and what can be achieved by many people putting contributing a little (and in some cases not so little) of their time.

Late last year, the British Trust for Ornithology, Birdwatch Ireland and the Scottish Ornithologist Club released the 2007-2011 Bird Atlas.  This is an amazing book that details the breeding and wintering ranges of all bird species in the British Isles and not only is it a scientific marvel, it is a lovely ‘coffee table book’ too (if fact it’s almost as big as a coffee table!).  The book importantly also highlights how bird populations have changed over the past few decades and, in many cases, is quite a depressing read.  However, it’s an extremely helpful aid to the work of conservation organisations and fascinating for those of us who like wildlife, statistics and maps!

The most startling thing about it, is that 40,000 people helped to create it by collecting bird survey data and they’re all named in the back – it’s just a pity my name’s not in there and it will be many years until the next one comes out.

ImageThe other great example of volunteering is one that is much better known – the Big Garden Birdwatch. The results of the 2014 survey came out today and again it makes for interesting reading.  Nearly half a million people took part in the survey (sadly down from last year) and 7.27million birds were counted.  The annual survey has now been going for 36 years and data collected over that period can provide very good insights into the state of Britain’s birds.

You can find out more on the Bird Atlas and the Bid Garden Birdwatch at the following locations:

http://www.bto.org/volunteer-surveys/birdatlas

http://www.rspb.org.uk/birdwatch/previous-results.aspx