Gardeners are being told to stop leaving bird food on their tables in the coming week in order to help them out in the hot summer conditions currently being forecast.
Instead, garden experts are urging people to leave fresh water out to help thirsty birds during the ongoing drought and looming return of thot weather.
Charity Songbird Survival, which focuses on trying to help ailing bird populations fight against decline caused by habitat loss, climate change and other factors, is urging gardeners to swap food for water in the coming days as hot weather and a lack of rainfall make conditions tough for wildlife. It said: “Give water, and stop giving bird food, to help birds this summer.
“With recent high temperatures across the country leading to heatwave warnings and parts of the country experiencing drought, charity SongBird Survival has called on gardeners to remember to provide fresh water daily to help at risk songbirds.
Leave bowl of water for birds in garden, experts urge
“The charity says that providing water in the summer months, rather than bird food such as seeds, fat balls or peanuts, is the best way to help songbirds.
“More than half of our UK songbirds are threatened or already in decline. Songbirds, including those that are on the UK Conservation status red list like greenfinches and house martins, lose more water than other birds so need to drink more often.”
Susan Morgan, CEO of SongBird Survival, said: “Although we recognise many people still enjoy feeding birds during the summer, we’ve made the difficult decision to ask bird lovers to stop. In the summer months, there are plenty of insects, berries and seeds available, so there’s no need for us to put out extra food. Research has also shown that feeding birds in summer may upset the delicate natural balance of different types of birds in your local area and may also increase the risk of disease spreading.”
Dr Alexander Lees, Reader in Biodiversity at Manchester Metropolitan University, added: “Feeding garden birds is a national pastime for the British and the most common opportunity for many of us to connect with nature.
“However, there is an increasing body of scientific evidence which links garden feeding to detrimental impacts including enhanced disease transmission and competition between species, which is contributing to steep declines in several once common species, like willow tits and greenfinches.
“There is an urgent need to re-evaluate guidelines on what, when, where and how much food we provide to avoid these unintended negative impacts.”
SongBird Survival’s recommendations for feeding birds:
If you have fed birds routinely in the past, start by reducing the summer feeding slowly
Plant flowers and shrubs that attract insects and offer seeds and fruit to birds, to give them natural food sources