 |
 |
 |
|
|
999 for garden birds After three nights of frost and with many areas covered by snow, garden birds will be feeling the pinch, with food in short supply and difficult to find. Here are nine simple things you can do to help them survive this difficult time. 1. Make sure that food is available first thing in the morning. Birds lose up to 15% of their body weight overnight and they will be desperate to find food as early as possible. 2. Fill up your bird feeders - especially if you have peanuts and sunflower seeds available. This will provide vital food for tits and finches. 3. Raisins, sultanas and currants - soaked in water beforehand and sprinkled on the ground - are great for Blackbirds and Song Thrushes. 4. Turkey scraps or even the carcass will make a great meal for Starlings. (see Note 3). 6. Excess or rotting apples will make a great gift for Mistle Thrushes. Cut them up and leave them on the ground or on the bird table. 7. Sprinkle some oats or stale cake under a bush for Dunnocks. 8. Make sure that birds have access to fresh water for drinking and bathing. With freezing temperatures this will become especially important. 9. Send off for the free BTO garden bird feeding leaflet. Please send your name and address details to GBW Feeding Leaflet, BTO, The Nunnery, Thetford, Norfolk, IP24 2PU, telephone 01842-750050 or e-mail Notes for editors 1) The BTO/CJ Garden BirdWatch. The BTO/CJ Garden BirdWatch is the only nationwide survey of garden birds to run weekly throughout the year, providing important information on how birds use gardens, and how this use changes over time. Currently, some 16,500 people take part in the project across the British isles. The BTO/CJ Garden BirdWatch is funded by participants’ contributions and supported by CJ WildBird Foods Ltd and is the largest year round survey of garden birds anywhere in the world. For more information see www.bto.org/gbw 2) CJ WildBird Foods. CJ WildBird Foods is Europe’s leading supplier of bird food and bird feeding products. CJ WildBird Foods has been responsible for a number of significant developments within the bird food and feeding industry, including the introduction of black sunflower seeds to the UK as a major new bird food and the development of specialist seed mixes for use in tubular feeders. The company has also been supporting research into the changing fortunes of garden bird populations, most notably through the BTO/CJ Garden BirdWatch. 3) Don’t leave turkey carcasses out overnight – otherwise you may attract unwanted visitors, such as mice and rats. 4) Images of garden birds are available for use alongside this article from 5) The BTO has an ISDN line available for radio interviews. 6) To download a copy of this press release as a PDF click here (34kb) Contacts. Martin Fowlie (BTO
Press Officer) Graham Appleton (Head
of Publicity) BTO Digital Image Library |
|
|
|
Garden
BirdWatch | BTO
Home | CJ
WildBird Foods Home |