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    Pocket Guide To Garden Birds
    Pocket Guide To Garden Birds
    Pocket Guide To Garden Birds
    Ebook285 pages1 hour

    Pocket Guide To Garden Birds

    By Nigel Blake

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    About this ebook

    This compact title is an essential guide to every aspect of the subject, from when and what to feed the birds to building bird tables and nest boxes and planting a garden that will provide nesting, feeding and roosting places. There is also an ID guide to 80 of the most common garden bird species, including the familiar Chaffinch and Blue Tit and more unusual visitors such as Brambling, Redstart and Tawny Owl.

    This book is as visually impressive as it is easy to use, with many stunning full-page and double-page images to support the authoritative text.

    Printed on quality paper, the paperback format with flaps adds to the book's durability in the field and provides built-in page-markers for quick reference.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBloomsbury Publishing
    Release dateSep 25, 2014
    ISBN9781472915535
    Pocket Guide To Garden Birds

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      Book preview

      Pocket Guide To Garden Birds - Nigel Blake

      CONTENTS

      Introduction

      Mallard

      Common Pheasant

      Grey Partridge

      Red-legged Partridge

      Grey Heron

      Red Kite

      Sparrowhawk

      Common Buzzard

      Peregrine Falcon

      Common Kestrel

      Moorhen

      Coot

      Lapwing

      Feral Pigeon

      Stock Dove

      Woodpigeon

      Collared Dove

      Ring-necked Parakeet

      Cuckoo

      Barn Owl

      Little Owl

      Tawny Owl

      Long-eared Owl

      Short-eared Owl

      Common Swift

      Kingfisher

      Hoopoe

      Green Woodpecker

      Great Spotted Woodpecker

      Magpie

      Jay

      Jackdaw

      Carrion Crow

      Goldcrest

      Long-tailed Tit

      Blue Tit

      Great Tit

      Crested Tit

      Coal Tit

      Willow Tit

      Marsh Tit

      Skylark

      House Martin

      Sand Martin

      Barn Swallow

      Common Chiffchaff

      Willow Warbler

      Blackcap

      Common Whitethroat

      Lesser Whitethroat

      Waxwing

      Nuthatch

      Treecreeper

      Wren

      Starling

      Blackbird

      Redwing

      Fieldfare

      Song Thrush

      Mistle Thrush

      Spotted Flycatcher

      Pied Flycatcher

      Robin

      Nightingale

      Black Redstart

      Common Redstart

      Stonechat

      Wheatear

      Dunnock

      House Sparrow

      Tree Sparrow

      Yellow Wagtail

      Grey Wagtail

      Pied Wagtail

      Meadow Pipit

      Chaffinch

      Brambling

      Greenfinch

      Goldfinch

      Siskin

      Linnet

      Lesser Redpoll

      Common Crossbill

      Bullfinch

      Hawfinch

      Yellowhammer

      Reed Bunting

      Glossary

      Resources

      INTRODUCTION

      This handy guide describes the birds that are most likely to come to gardens. The species accounts include details about how the birds live their lives, the foods that can be provided for them, and what feeders and nest boxes to use, whilst pictures of the birds ensure correct identification.

      HOW GARDENS CAN BENEFIT BIRDS

      However big or small your garden is it can be a haven for wildlife. Furthermore, as part of the combined wealth of habitat provided by all gardens together it can be important to the survival of many bird species, as well as other animals. It is estimated that the total area of gardens in the UK is over a million acres and increasing. This is about 3 per cent of the UK’s total landmass, which might not sound like much, but is about three times more than the total area of nature reserves.

      Birds as well as other creatures can benefit from how well the small patches of land that surround our homes are maintained, but the payoff for us is great too. Being able to look out of the window and see Song Thrushes and Blackbirds collecting worms for their young from the lawn, or seeing Great Tits and Blue Tits squabbling over feeders, is a joy. Seeing Spotted Flycatchers unobtrusively catching flies and using a nest box you have put up makes you feel that you are making a difference when so many species are under threat.

      PROVIDING WATER

      Birds need to wash and drink regularly, and in dry weather they may have to fly some distance to do so. The provision of a pool or pond in a garden soon results in birds coming to visit regularly. A small waterfall can be added to a bigger pond, since birds seem to be attracted to moving water. If you do not have the space for a pond, a birdbath can be equally useful to birds – ideally it should have a sloping bottom so that the water depth varies to suit the needs of different species.

      A few rocks and twigs, or branches for small birds to perch on while they drink or bathe, make it less easy for cats to gain access to a pool, especially if the perches are well away from the edges. Tall, twiggy plants near a pool serve as places for birds to perch on as lookout posts before going to the pool, and as somewhere to dry off and preen after bathing. Planting some dense and perhaps thorny vegetation nearby as a safe place for birds to quickly escape to is also helpful – make sure, however, that it is vegetation which predators cannot hide in.

      Most importantly, the water in small birdbaths and pools should be kept clean by being replaced regularly. In winter birdbaths and pools should be kept free from ice, as this is the time when birds depend on them most.

      Swallows, House Martins, thrushes and other birds need mud for nesting, so a shallow area of mud, with some clay in it so that it will set hard, is a must for them from March to the end of May at least. Swallows and martins mix mud with bits of hay and dried grass to hold their nest structures together, so adding short, chopped dry vegetation to the mud makes it even more attractive to these birds. In a garden that is too small for a pond, the mud can be placed in a tray.

      FEEDING THE BIRDS

      Feeding garden birds is getting to be a popular activity, and it has turned into a profitable business that increases year on year, with high sales in winter weather. This is not just good for the companies and charities such as the RSPB that sell bird food – birds in general benefit in several ways other than just being fed.

      The bird-food and feeder industry has invested in solid science and research to ensure that bird seed, dried and live insect food, and fat-cake recipes are nutritious and healthy. Food dispensers are safer for birds to use than they used to be, saving small birds from being trapped by their feet in feeders that are badly designed, or from being caught by predators while feeding. Products are also designed to suit specific species and sizes of bird, so that the food is not taken by squirrels and other rodents. Modern food containers benefit from modern materials, and are easy to dismantle for washing to keep them clean and hygienic.

      Feeding sites need to be kept away from any disturbance, and should preferably be located in a place where good views of the birds can be obtained from inside the home. Instead of placing feeders close together, space them apart so that birds of various sizes and species can feed without too many conflicts. Larger garden birds such as pigeons and doves will otherwise hog the food and keep smaller birds away.

      Several food mixtures designed for different types of bird are available. They are formulated to be suitable for hanging feeders, bird tables or scattering on the ground. Most include sunflower seeds, granulated peanuts and flaked maize; they can also contain wheat, barley and split peas, plus smaller seeds like millet and pinhead oatmeal, as well as dried and chopped berries. Other mixes include some of the above with fat and suet pellets, as well as dried mealworms.

      Food mixes containing wheat, barley and dried peas are only suitable for birds such as pigeons and pheasants. Foods that are bulked up with lentils, dried rice and bits of biscuit should be avoided, as they are too hard for small birds to eat (biscuits are only digestible if soaked). Peanuts are best supplied in feeders with a wire mesh, so that birds cannot take whole peanuts away – these can choke young chicks. Avoid salted peanuts.

      BIRD-TABLE HYGIENE

      We feed birds to help them survive, and the last thing we want to do is to subject them to disease. Keeping bird tables and feeders as clean as possible is as important as choosing healthy foods. Most bird diseases are spread in their droppings, so it is essential that these are cleaned away from food areas. Points to bear in mind include:

      ¤Keeping a check on the supply and demand. If food is left over reduce the amount you put out each day.

      ¤Using suitable feeders and keeping them clean. Empty and remove stale or rotting food and thoroughly and regularly wash feeders, rinsing them with boiling water. Allow them to dry properly before refilling.

      ¤Washing a bird table and the area around it. Use some disinfectant (4–5 per cent solution), then rinse the bird table thoroughly. If space allows regularly move the feeding site around the garden; if not dig the area around it and turn over the soil with a garden fork from time to time.

      ¤Wearing gloves while you are cleaning bird-table feeders. Do this outside rather than indoors and wash your hands afterwards.

      TYPES OF FEEDER

      Birdfeeders are now well designed, but buying from a reputable stockist is always sensible. The RSPB has a wide range of quality products, but most garden centres are cashing in on the trend and they also have good products from several manufacturers.

      Hanging feeders are available in different sizes and with a variety of perches and feeding ports. Some consist of a clear polypropylene tube with access suited to either mixed grain and seeds, or niger seeds. Others are made from plastic-coated wire, which many birds can cling to while feeding. Depending on the food that is put in them, they will attract tits, finches, Nuthatches, Treecreepers, woodpeckers and Robins.

      A plastic tube feeder should have a wide-rimmed lid to stop water getting in; water combined with changes

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