After a long period of socialising over the holidays, you can now start relax in the embrace of nature again. You can go on more walks, take trips to the countryside or even the beach (if you can brave the cold). Easier than all that, you can appreciate nature from the comfort of your own garden. Now is the perfect time for it too, as the RSPB‘s annual Big Garden Birdwatch returns January 26th-28th!
What is the Big Garden Birdwatch?
The Big Garden Birdwatch is a fun, free activity and is the world’s largest garden wildlife survey. This activity, which has been around since a 1979 special on Blue Peter, aims to survey the UK’s bird population in a bid to monitor and protect the nations’ wildlife. Furthermore, its accessible to all members of the public. As a result, the yearly birdwatch has been a massive success.
Highlights from Big Garden Birdwatch 2023
- Over 500,000 people took part in the Big Garden Birdwatch
- 9.1 Million Birds were recorded
- The most spotted garden bird was the House Sparrow, with 1,401,338 being recorded
- Despite this, House Sparrow numbers are down 57% since 1979
WHY is the birdwatch important?
At present, the UK Bird population faces unprecedented challenges due to a multitude of environmental factors. As the RSPB states:
“Song Thrush numbers are down 80% Since the survey began in 1979”
“We’ve lost 38 million birds from UK skies in the last 60 years”
By partaking in the Big Garden Birdwatch, the RSPB can better monitor the changing bird populations and take better action to preserve our nation’s avian wildlife.
Why does Tuin like it?
With our abundance of Log Cabins, Gazebos and other garden buildings, Tuin’s vast products help people get closer to their garden. In turn, this brings us closer to nature. As a result, we cannot recommend an event like the Big Garden Birdwatch enough. We highly encourage getting involved, or at least taking time to make your garden better for wildlife.
Taking Part in your own Birdwatch
If you want to get involved with the Big Garden Birdwatch yourself, then we have made a handy Bingo Sheet to get you started. This includes some of the most common bird species spotted last year, so you are sure to find them all in the alloted 1 hour.
Of course, you may find more, rarer species in your hour, so make sure you see the full details on the RSPB website.
We would love to see people get involved! Using #BigGardenBirdWatch, you can post about your findings across social media. On top of this, you can tag us on your posts, especially if your able to get a good snap of some bird species on your log cabin or other garden building!
