Big Garden Birdwatch 2023

 Another year, another Big Birdwatch on Hilly Fields. The Friends of Hilly Fields annual bird watching event will take place this year on Sunday 29 January from 10.30 – 12.30. We will be based outside the cafe, everyone is welcome and it's child-friendly.

There'll be a guided walk starting at 11.00 am. Alternatively you can grab a Bird ID sheet from the stall and go around by yourself/selves. Bring binoculars if you can. On the practical side, there'll be stuff for kids to make bird feeders and fatballs with. These can be hung on trees in the park or taken home to your own garden/balcony/window box. And it's all free...

If you do the Birdwatch by yourselves, please remember the basic rules: (i) only count the maximum number of each species that you see at any one time (to avoid duplication); (ii) don't count birds that fly over without stopping - only birds within the park. We will collate the results at the end on our Big Blackboard and submit the results to the RSPB.

It's all about helping people to learn a little bit more about birds and how our parks and green spaces are such important habitats for them. It's also about supporting the RSPB as the whole weekend is part of their National Big Garden Birdwatch. And we still have a few copies left of our celebrated Birds of Hilly Fields booklet which will be on sale at the stall – £3.50 all proceeds to the Friends of HF.

So come along. You might see a great spotted woodpecker. You might see a jay. You might see a nuthatch. You'll almost certainly see "the UK's only naturalised parrot"! 

Photo: David Chapman

"What wild creature is more accessible to our eyes and ears, as close to us and everyone in the world, as universal as a bird?" Sir David Attenborough.