Press Releases - Nov/Dec 2005 - Item 17

No. 2005/12/51
December 2005

Have you seen this bird?

If you have, then you are one of the lucky few this winter and the British Trust for Ornithology wants to hear from you. Waxwings are stunning winter visitors from Scandinavia and Russia. Arriving here in late autumn in search of berries they may appear in gardens and supermarket car parks. The BTO/CJ Garden BirdWatch Survey needs your help to find out which gardens they are visiting and where.

Each winter, varying numbers of Waxwings descend on our shores looking for berries. In some years they appear in their thousands, adding a touch of colour to dull winter days. This year seems to be relatively poor for them but the BTO/CJ Garden BirdWatch Survey really needs garden owners around the country to become ‘Waxwing Watchers’ and report their sightings so we can find out where they have been visiting and in what numbers.

Martin Fowlie, of the BTO/CJ Garden BirdWatch Team, said “We want garden owners around the country to tell us whether they have any visiting Waxwings this winter. Hearing from people who don’t have Waxwings is just as important as hearing from those that do, so we can build up an accurate picture of where these birds are. Waxwings are very distinctive birds, about the size of a Starling, with a brown crest and bright red, wax-like, tips to some of their wing feathers, hence their name.”

To be part of the ‘Waxwing Watch’ and to receive a free information pack, phone on 01842 750050 or write to Waxwing Watch, GBW, British Trust for Ornithology, The Nunnery, Thetford, Norfolk IP24 2PU.

Notes for Editors

1) 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 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) The beautiful Waxwing photograph used in this press release is available for use alongside articles about this story. The image should be credited ‘Jill Pakenham / BTO’. The image can be downloaded from : http://www.bto.org/gbw/NEWS/PRESS/2005/2005-12-51.htm

4) More information on Waxwings is available on the BTO Website under our Bird Facts section. Visit http://blx1.bto.org/birdfacts/results/bob10480.htm to find out more.

5) The BTO has an ISDN line available for radio interviews.

For further information please contact:

Martin Fowlie or Graham Appleton on 01842 750050
or email (during office hours)

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