Chance to spot variety of birds on Dartmoor in Big Garden Birdwatch

The RSPB is calling on communities to get involved in the annual Big Garden Birdwatch event this January, helping to create a vital snapshot of how garden birds are faring across the UK.

Returning later this month, the Big Garden Birdwatch is the world’s largest garden wildlife survey. 

In 2024, over 600,000 people participated, counting more than nine million birds. 

As birds face increasing challenges due to the climate and nature emergency, every count is crucial in tracking their wellbeing.

Tony Whitehead, a member of the RSPB who lives on Dartmoor, shared his personal experience with birdwatching in his garden. 

“Being lucky enough to live on Dartmoor is very special.  We have a smallish garden, and three feeders; one for sunflower seed, one with peanuts and one with fat balls,” he said.

The most popular feeder, he revealed, is the one filled with sunflower seeds.

“The House Sparrows from their nearby colony flock to the feeder daily, always chatty and nosiy. When the feeder is free of Sparrows, we then have a bit of a Dartmoor speciality – Siskins.  These small greenish finches with golden wing bars nest locally up in the big conifer plantations and visit our garden in good numbers in the cold months.”

Tony also mentioned other visitors, such as Redpolls, another upland speciality, and a bullfinch that has recently been spotted in the garden. 

On the peanut feeder, great tits and blue tits are regular visitors, while the fat balls are a favourite of two local Jackdaws, known for their distinctive silvery manes and eyes.

Tony's garden also plays host to blackbirds enjoying windfall apples, and the ever-present robin and wren, which are often seen hopping around the window box in search of dried mealworms.

“We are really looking forward to this years Big Garden Birdwatch,” he added.

“Maybe if we are very lucky a Firecrest will put in an appearance.  This tiny, tiny bird we’ve only sighted once in our garden, and still relatively rare – but a real treat!”

This year marks the 45th anniversary of the Big Garden Birdwatch, which began in 1979. Over the years, it has become a annual event, allowing the RSPB to gather data on the health of garden birds in the UK. 

In that time, nearly 195 million birds have been counted, and participants have spent a combined total of over 12.1 million hours observing and counting garden birds.