THE RSPB has provided some timely advice on how householders can create the optimum conditions for this weekend's Big Garden Birdwatch.
The conservation charity's three-point plan helps birdwatchers create the most attractive places possible for feathered visitors.
Over tomorrow and Sunday hundreds of households across the north are expected to join their counterparts in Britain as they take part in the largest survey of its kind, which for the past four decades has been highlighting the winners and losers in the garden bird world.
Last year’s results showed that for the fourth year in a row, house sparrows were the most common bird in Northern Ireland's gardens, with starlings and blackbirds in second and third place, respectively.
The tips for the Big Garden Birdwatch are:
:: Put out some clean, fresh water for the birds to drink and bathe in
:: Clean your bird table and feeders weekly
:: Put a variety of food out to increase the number of species visiting your garden or balcony
Claire Barnett of the RSPB said garden birds provided many people with an important connection to the natural world, while bringing "enormous joy".
"Over the last year, there has been a much-needed realisation that nature is an important and necessary part of our lives especially for our mental health and wellbeing – but nature needs us too," she said.
To take part in the Big Garden Birdwatch 2022, count the birds that land in your garden, not those flying over, then tell the RSPB at rspb.org.uk/birdwatch.
