Window Watching

Birding or birdwatching can take many forms. Some people chase rarities found by other people,(twitching), some regularly watch an area that has potential (local patch working) and others are content to watch what birds are attracted to their garden.

Garden watching will be most rewarding if you supply food and water. Water is important even now after all the rain, because birds need to keep their feathers in good condition, and to do this they need to bathe.

Any container will do, an up turned dustbin lid or similar will do as a bird bath. We've got a couple of ponds with running water that forms a pool for the birds to use.

Through the year it's quite interesting to see how many different species use the water.

At this time of year, we get lots of Greenfinches and Chaffinches coming to feed on the seed that we supply and they take advantage of the water to drink and bathe.

House Sparrows are around all year and spend a lot of time splashing about.