Will you be taking part in the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch this month?
It’s the world’s largest garden wildlife survey and every year, hundreds of thousands of nature lovers take part, helping to build a picture of how garden birds are faring. It’s an easy and fun activity you can do as a family at home – simply choose an hour between 26th and 28th January and count the birds you see in your garden, from your balcony, or in your local park (only the birds that actually land).
With a good mixture of habitats on our farm we are lucky to have a lovely variety of wildlife at Bosinver, but the most evident all year round are the birds – from buzzards mewing as they soar above the fields, to swallows nesting in the barn and Canada geese on the lake.
Most easily spotted are the multitude of ‘garden’ (or more accurately woodland) birds such as great tits, blue tits, sparrows, chaffinches, goldfinches and robins which enjoy our 30 acres of woodland and mature gardens. It is wonderful to stop and take a moment to listen to them all singing first thing in the morning at Bosinver….
Do you know we also have our own Big Bosinver Birdwatch – an initiative to encourage guests, particularly children, to start taking an interest in the multitude of bird species which can be found around the farm.
Every Sunday after animal feeding Farmer Dave offers young guests the opportunity to borrow a bird feeder so they can watch them from the comfort of their cottage and have a go at identifying the birds seen. We have provided each cottage with its own copy of the RSPB’s Birdwatching for Beginners – a great little book which contains lots of tips to make identification easy. We give out prizes every week for Champion Spotter and best photo or drawing and if you need any help identifying the birds just ask Paul or Elaine – both keen nature watchers.
The response from our guests has been great – and as Pat says “It’s wonderful to know that we might be igniting the spark of a love for nature – something we know can last a lifetime. We hope that by learning about birds during their stay our young guests and their families will be inspired to feed and take care of the birds in their own gardens and maybe even explore their local nature reserves.”
Good luck with your birdwatching this month – do let us know if you see anything exciting at home or during your stay at Bosinver!
Useful Information:
The RSPB have lots of bird information on their website for learning all about birds and places to see them.
They even have some great suggestions for ways in which you can help nature too.
If you’d like to learn more about wildlife then take a look at the Wildlife Trusts website – they have lots of great reserves to visit and local events for you to join in with.
