Records since 1995 show the decline of once familiar songbirds in Scotland. The gregarious greenfinch with its beautiful, twittering trill for example, has declined by 71 per cent, whilst the whinchat, once a familiar sight perched on fence posts or bushes, with its low clicking call, has dropped in number by 64 per cent. The rambling song of the wheatear, with its distinctive black ‘bandit mask’ eye stripe, is rarer with its numbers having fallen by a third and it's not good news for pied wagtails either, who, with their endearing wagging tails serving as a Gaelic premonition of rain, have decreased by 31 per cent in Scotland.
Winter is an especially tough time for songbirds, with limited food supplies, scarce water sources, and freezing temperatures. Thankfully, the charity SongBird Survival is working to support every gardener, regardless of the size of their garden, to take small actions to help protect the dawn chorus for the next generation.
Using high quality bird feed, made for small birds or high in protein, will attract the largest variety of birds into your garden. Fat balls, suet balls and blocks are also a great energy source. Refreshing food twice a day is a good rule of thumb. Once first thing in the morning to help the birds replenish fat supplies lost overnight, and once late afternoon to get them through the cold night ahead.
In addition to shop bought food you can also try putting out in your garden:
SongBird Survival advises avoiding the following food choices for birds:
Providing water for birds is often forgotten about, but is vital for their survival. Songbirds need to drink water and bathe regularly.
Providing fresh, clean water every day will help attract more birds to your garden. They are more than happy to use a shallow dish or container to drink and wash in, a plant pot saucer is ideal. When it's freezing, place a small ball in the dish to help stop the water icing over.
Think carefully where to place the water so it is away from potential predators like cats. To prevent the spread of disease, it is also important to clean your bird feeders and water baths regularly. SongBird Survival recommends cleaning at least once a week, and more frequently during times of high bird activity.
Like us, birds also look for shelter to keep warm. Leaving things to get a bit wilder in your garden in the winter months, and leaving fallen leaves, can give some shelter.
SongBird Survival also suggests making a windbreak in your garden for birds by placing a pile of branches and foliage on the ground. Adding a sheet of plywood to serve as a wall will drastically reduce the wind too.
Winter is a great time to plan how your garden can help attract more birds and wildlife in the year ahead. Plants and flowers are nature’s own bird feeders – they provide seeds and berries and attract the insects that birds need for nutrition. They also provide shelter in which to nest and hide from predators.
Bushy trees like hazel (Corylus avellana) provide extra nesting sites and escape routes from predators, and the leaves, flowers, and fruits support a range of wildlife. Tall natural hedges made of dog rose (Rosa canina), hornbeam (Carpinus betulus), and field maple (Acer campestre) also create dense structures, perfect for hiding and for safe nesting sites for birds.
You could also think about where you might have space for creating a wildflower meadow come spring. Many wildflower seed mixes have nectar-rich flowers perfect for bees and butterflies.
Dedicating an area of your garden to long grass can provide cover for wildlife to forage and make good nesting material. Ornamentals like pampas (Cortaderia selloana), switch (Panicum virgatum), and feather grass (Nassella tenuissima) also help wildlife.
More information on caring for Songbirds is available on the Songbird Survival website, or you can read more about how you can help songbirds through wildlife friendly gardening on the Scotland Grows website.
