I have been making detailed diaries of my garden bird observations since 1999 and have noticed that the amount, and timing, of bird activity is directly related to the weather conditions.
In the winter our birds tend to be most active on really sunny cold days when they need to eat as much as possible in order to survive the bitterly cold nights. However they generally seem to prefer sunny days to cloudy days in the winter, spring and autumn. Most bird species seem to dislike wind and rain but blackbirds may often be seen foraging for worms on rainy days – however, even they seek cover during a downpour! Birds do not mind a light breeze – on a summer’s day it may be very refreshing.
Summer seems to be birds’ least favourite season. At least in the winter they can fluff themselves up to keep warm, but in the summer they are at risk of overheating. All our birds dislike the heat and I see blackbirds panting if the temperature exceeds about 70 degrees. The birds spend most of the hottest part of the day, roughly from mid-day to 4.00 p.m., under cover. When the temperature is cooler, during the early morning and in the late afternoon and evening, they emerge to have a good feed and of course drink a great deal of water. During the long, exceptionally hot and dry summers which we had from 2003 to 2006, the birds really suffered and we kept up the water supply as much as we could.
Bird activity in our garden is very high during the spring and early summer, when birds are busy finding food for their chicks. During the late summer and early autumn activity tends to decrease. But it’s during the months of December, January and February that we see the most entertaining action, as visitors from overseas such as redwings and blackcaps join our resident blackbirds, robins, tits and wrens to eat as much as possible in order to survive each bitterly cold night.
Interestingly, there are some days which are sunny and very cold, but we hardly see any birds. Then there are other days, with apparently exactly the same weather conditions, when there seem to be birds everywhere. We call these action-packed days "bird days". Since 18th December every day has been a "bird day" in our garden! On an average "bird day" we see about 8-10 species of birds but on a good "bird day" we may see as many as 14 or 15 different species – the record, a few years ago, was 16!
In the winter our birds tend to be most active on really sunny cold days when they need to eat as much as possible in order to survive the bitterly cold nights. However they generally seem to prefer sunny days to cloudy days in the winter, spring and autumn. Most bird species seem to dislike wind and rain but blackbirds may often be seen foraging for worms on rainy days – however, even they seek cover during a downpour! Birds do not mind a light breeze – on a summer’s day it may be very refreshing.
Summer seems to be birds’ least favourite season. At least in the winter they can fluff themselves up to keep warm, but in the summer they are at risk of overheating. All our birds dislike the heat and I see blackbirds panting if the temperature exceeds about 70 degrees. The birds spend most of the hottest part of the day, roughly from mid-day to 4.00 p.m., under cover. When the temperature is cooler, during the early morning and in the late afternoon and evening, they emerge to have a good feed and of course drink a great deal of water. During the long, exceptionally hot and dry summers which we had from 2003 to 2006, the birds really suffered and we kept up the water supply as much as we could.
Bird activity in our garden is very high during the spring and early summer, when birds are busy finding food for their chicks. During the late summer and early autumn activity tends to decrease. But it’s during the months of December, January and February that we see the most entertaining action, as visitors from overseas such as redwings and blackcaps join our resident blackbirds, robins, tits and wrens to eat as much as possible in order to survive each bitterly cold night.
Interestingly, there are some days which are sunny and very cold, but we hardly see any birds. Then there are other days, with apparently exactly the same weather conditions, when there seem to be birds everywhere. We call these action-packed days "bird days". Since 18th December every day has been a "bird day" in our garden! On an average "bird day" we see about 8-10 species of birds but on a good "bird day" we may see as many as 14 or 15 different species – the record, a few years ago, was 16!
