The RSPB Big Garden Bird Watch

[IanS]

I did this for the first time this year and spotted:

3 x blackbird
2 x blue tits
3 x chaffinch
1 x coal tit
1 x collard dove
1 x dunnock
4 x great tit
2 x green finch
1 x long tit
1 x robin
1 x song thrush
1 wood pigeon
5 x fieldfare
3 x jay

Not bad!

[monkeyrepublic]

Interesting to see others' results. Also interesting to get hints of your approaches: one counts a bird on a neighbour's roof, one sticks strictly to their own garden. The RSPB themselves just say flying over doesn't count. Landing in a tree has to, of course... but what if the tree overhangs my neighbour's garden? Or vice versa?

I'm not sure that all 3 of the woodpigeons were strictly in my garden. Same with the dunnocks. I also counted four redwings in the tree in the field behind my garden, though only because I'm sure it was them I couldn't identify through the fog, sitting in the tree at the back of my garden half an hour earlier. I don't think that's dishonest or devaluing results.

This was my best year yet (done the last four, I think). Another rule-bender, perhaps, but I announced my intention to start at 10am, but when I was sat on the sofa and saw the garden jammed with birds, I couldn't wait!

So 8.45 to 9.45am. My list:

3 dunnock
4 greenfinch (two more than ever before and watching their squabbling is awesome!)
1 chaffinch
2 blue tit
1 blackbird
1 robin
3 woodpigeon
2 starling
1 coal tit (my great tits have vanished)
2 magpies
1 greater spotted woodpecker
4 redwings

I was hoping to see my new visitors, five long-tailed tits (cutest birds in the UK?), but as my woodpecker turned up within the time, and I got dunnocks and redwings, neither of which have been regular visitors, I can't complain!

[jaelen]

We did two counts, because the BF wanted to have his own... ah, bless- I've got him hooked now!

I did our garden on Saturday, and we went to Cold Fall woods near our house for his count on Sunday.

Since we thought we ought to abide by the rules, I wasn't able to include the two jays that visited first thing in the morning before I'd started, nor the parakeet that came too late- poo! so I just had the usual starlings, sparrows, blue tit and coal tit visitors.

But for his count in the woods we saw a thrush... the first we'd seen in years! So pleased about that. And nine parakeets... jealous about that.

Originally Posted by eeyore

As if anyone would do that

My list

1 great auk
2 kakapos
1 greater spoted wood pecker
and a dodo

(politely snipped to focus on the... ah, more intriguing visitors to Eeyore's garden.)

Oh, goody- can I include that herd of pink dancing flamingos from "Earthflight", then?

[Tringa]

My list for the BGB, which I did on Saturday, was also down compared to last year.

I was initially a bit disappointed, but a couple of hours after I had completed it there were 12 goldfinches in the garden at once, though during the count I never saw more than three.

Same yesterday - every time I looked out there were at least six goldfinches.

No corvids this time, though I saw Carrion crow, magpie and jay flying over.

Dave

[Southcoasters]

On Sunday did the required hour from 11.15 am. - Some Pigeons 3 Goldfinches, I Chiffchaff, 2 Song Thrushes, 1 Blackbird, 1 female Blackcap.
On window-ledge table had - 2 Robins, 2 Nuthatches, 1 Dunnock, 1 Wren, 1 female G.S.Woodpecker and a mix of Tits.
Cheated a bit with these last ones though as two or three times a day drop a few live mealworms on the table through the slightly opened window, and they appear from nowhere or everywhere.

On the form, said it was a male GSW instead of this female so I hope they don’t find out.

[Kayleigh]

Originally Posted by monkeyrepublic

Interesting to see others' results. Also interesting to get hints of your approaches: one counts a bird on a neighbour's roof, one sticks strictly to their own garden. The RSPB themselves just say flying over doesn't count. Landing in a tree has to, of course... but what if the tree overhangs my neighbour's garden? Or vice versa?

I'm not sure that all 3 of the woodpigeons were strictly in my garden. Same with the dunnocks. I also counted four redwings in the tree in the field behind my garden, though only because I'm sure it was them I couldn't identify through the fog, sitting in the tree at the back of my garden half an hour earlier. I don't think that's dishonest or devaluing results.

This was my best year yet (done the last four, I think). Another rule-bender, perhaps, but I announced my intention to start at 10am, but when I was sat on the sofa and saw the garden jammed with birds, I couldn't wait!

So 8.45 to 9.45am. My list:

3 dunnock
4 greenfinch (two more than ever before and watching their squabbling is awesome!)
1 chaffinch
2 blue tit
1 blackbird
1 robin
3 woodpigeon
2 starling
1 coal tit (my great tits have vanished)
2 magpies
1 greater spotted woodpecker
4 redwings

I was hoping to see my new visitors, five long-tailed tits (cutest birds in the UK?), but as my woodpecker turned up within the time, and I got dunnocks and redwings, neither of which have been regular visitors, I can't complain!

If a tree is in your garden then you count it if the tree is in your neighbors garden but over hangs yours then you don't count it if the bird is on a neighbors roof then you don't count it.
It has to land in your garden not the neighbors or fly over.
Your neighbor might count the same bird.

[htcdude]

Originally Posted by Kayleigh

If a tree is in your garden then you count it if the tree is in your neighbors garden but over hangs yours then you don't count it if the bird is on a neighbors roof then you don't count it.
It has to land in your garden not the neighbors or fly over.
Your neighbor might count the same bird.

What about if it sits on the fence? Then who counts it? Or is it half each... 3 Robins, 2 Great Tits and a Dunnock's butt (or head, depending on which way it was facing)

[monkeyrepublic]

My neighbours aren't the bird-counting type, but if they were, they'd be counting the same birds regardless.

[RoyW]

Originally Posted by Kayleigh

If a tree is in your garden then you count it if the tree is in your neighbors garden but over hangs yours then you don't count it if the bird is on a neighbors roof then you don't count it.
It has to land in your garden not the neighbors or fly over.
Your neighbor might count the same bird.

If you are sticking precisely to the boundaries of your garden then it doesn't matter where the tree is actually growing - branches from a tree in your garden which overhang a boundary fence are in your neighbours garden, and branches from a neighbours tree which overhang your garden are in your garden. I have no idea if there is an "official" ruling on this, but in reality it wouldn't make any real difference to the validity of the results if people do count things slightly differently.

[monkeyrepublic]

Can I claim the bird in my neighbour's garden if it's perching on windfall apples from MY tree?

Rules aside, we'd still be counting the same birds. To build on htcdude's dunnock's butt: it's chiff for me, chaff for my neighbours.