Big Garden Birdwatch: A Plethora of Coal Tits

This year's Big Garden Birdwatch saw far more birds than last year, probably because the weather has been cold and wintry where last year it had been unseasonally mild for many weeks. Today though it was mild, +7C, overcast and drizzly.

Coal tits were the dominant birds with so many flying in and out that it was hard to count them. I definitely saw eleven at one time though I reckon there were far more than this. These hyperactive tiny birds rarely stay on the feeders for long. Chaffinches, the commonest bird the last two years, were down to just four.

In total nine species appeared, two more than last year. Eight are ones I've seen every day for many weeks now so not a surprise. There was a siskin though - I haven't seen one of these for many months.

It's always a pleasure taking part in the Birdwatch and actually recording what I see. I always look forward to the results too. Bird watching was one of my first outdoor activities and I've never tired of it. Birds are such an essential part of nature. We need to look after them and recording numbers is part of doing that.