Comparison of habitat-specific trends in the abundance of breeding birds in the UK

Consequences of organic and non-organic farming practices for field, farm and landscape complexity

Urbanisation and time of arrival of common birds at garden feeding stations

The arrival patterns of birds at garden feeding stations were investigated through a survey carried out on the Shortest Day 2004. Garden birdwatchers recorded the time of first arrival of each bird species visiting their feeding station after dawn. Examination of the pattern of arrivals revealed that birds appeared at garden feeding stations later in the morning in urban areas and than in rural areas during winter. This supports the hypothesis that heat pollution may reduce overnight energy costs in small birds in urban areas, thereby reducing the urgency for them to 'refuel' first thing in the morning.

Eye size and the time of arrival of birds at garden feeding stations in winter

A nationwide volunteer survey was conducted to investigate the time at which common species of birds arrived at garden feeders in the morning during winter, and over 5,800 participants submitted observations. We examined the relationship between species’ eye size and their time of arrival at feeders, in order to investigate whether the time at which foraging was initiated was constrained by visual capability. There was a negative correlation between eye size and time of arrival at garden feeders across species, and this relationship remained significant when body mass was taken into account. This suggests that the time at which garden birds begin to forage on winter mornings may be limited by their visual capability at low light intensities.

A century of ringing in Britain and Ireland. (Editorial)

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