And a partridge in a pear tree


Starlings
Starlings are long term residents in my garden: this was 2004

This morning I have spent an hour recording the number of birds in my garden as part of the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch – an annual event in which people all over the UK help to gather information on which of our garden birds are thriving and which are struggling.

You record the highest number of birds of a particular species that you see at any time during the hour. Mine was 7 starlings, 5 sparrows, a pair of collared doves, a blackbird and an enormously fat woodpigeon.

There’s still time to take part – you just need to spend an hour today or tomorrow birdwatching. You can register and submit your results online, and print out a recording sheet that helps you to recognise some of the more common birds.

If you discover that you like being an amateur ecologist then there are plenty of other ways to get involved with wildlife recording. Nature’s Calendar uses data recorded by amateurs to track the changing seasons (it’s called Phenology). And there’s more information on Phenology on the BBC’s Spring Watch site.

Plantlife have an annual Common Plants Survey monitoring the changes to countryside flora and there are local plant recording groups all over the country. Or perhaps you’d like to help the Woodland Trust with their hunt for Ancient Trees (they even offer a knitting pattern for a special tree-measuring scarf!).

Gardeners are being encouraged to report sightings of both our native ladybirds and the invading International Biodiversity Year and there are more ways to get involved with that via their website.

If you’re involved in another recording project (or even a more hands-on wildlife project) then you can add your links in the comments.

Posted 30 January 2010, 09:35.   Posted in .

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