15/10/2017
The British Trust for
Ornithology’s (BTO) Garden Bird Feeding Survey (GBFS)
has revealed that a cold spell in late winter 2016-17 caused an influx of birds
to feeders, including Goldcrests in particular.
Winter 2016-17 was generally mild
and garden feeders consequently quiet, but results from the GBFS found that
more birds were making use of the supplementary food we put out during a cold
snap in late January and early February.
One of the species coming to
British feeders in the colder weather was Goldcrest. In fact, Garden
BirdWatchers have recorded high numbers of the species in gardens over the last
two winters, with counts in February 2017 being 35 per cent higher than the
average for the previous five years.
So far this year, it looks
promising for another Goldcrest garden invasion, with high preliminary counts
for September. Numbers of the species are severely affected by low winter
temperatures, but the predominately mild winter weather of recent years might
have helped to boost numbers.
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