Wildlife

It has definitely given me lots of new inspiration for wildlife spectacles I want to see.

I think the programme made one thing very clear – the colder months do not mean that everything is on standstill until next spring – there’s actually lots action all around us.

Within the realm of birds, there is a lot going on, with huge flocks of birds arriving in these days to take advantage of our mild winter climate.

Those that come over from Siberia and Scandinavia are very dependent on the right weather conditions; especially clear weather and strong easterly winds.

I can almost imagine the sight of thousands of thrushes, geese and ducks in a line on the west coast of Sweden, waiting for just the right wind to take them across the North Sea.

According to our friends at BirdTrack (a joint project between the British Trust for Ornithology, the RSPB and Birdwatch Ireland), we might be in for a real treat this winter – a so-called ‘waxwing’ winter.

The waxwing is a stunning bird with a prominent crest, pinkish plumage, a small black mask round its eye and a yellow-tipped tail.

They are so called because the tips of their wings look like they have been dipped in red wax.

Waxwings are roughly the size of a small starling, a bird they can be mistaken for when they are in flight.

They breed in Scandinavia and Siberia, where they feed on insects during the summer.

In winter, they switch to feeding on berries, especially the soft juicy berries of rowan trees.

Waxwings are annual winter visitors to Britain in small numbers.

However, during some winters when the population in Scandinavia gets too big for the food available, they arrive in the UK in large numbers, called irruptions.

The bird experts at BirdTrack predict that this may be one of those winters.

During irruption years, they arrive on the east coast and will gradually work their way westwards as the food supplies dries up.

If you have berry bushes or trees in your garden, such as rowan and hawthorn, there is a chance that a flock of hungry waxwings will drop in and help themselves to the berry smörgåsbord in your garden.

Log onto rspb.org.uk to learn more about waxwings and all the other exciting winter visitors.

● Sharon Boardman is the people engagement officer for the RSPB.

It has definitely given me lots of new inspiration for wildlife spectacles I want to see.

I think the programme made one thing very clear – the colder months do not mean that everything is on standstill until next spring – there’s actually lots action all around us.

Within the realm of birds, there is a lot going on, with huge flocks of birds arriving in these days to take advantage of our mild winter climate.

Those that come over from Siberia and Scandinavia are very dependent on the right weather conditions; especially clear weather and strong easterly winds.

I can almost imagine the sight of thousands of thrushes, geese and ducks in a line on the west coast of Sweden, waiting for just the right wind to take them across the North Sea.

According to our friends at BirdTrack (a joint project between the British Trust for Ornithology, the RSPB and Birdwatch Ireland), we might be in for a real treat this winter – a so-called ‘waxwing’ winter.

The waxwing is a stunning bird with a prominent crest, pinkish plumage, a small black mask round its eye and a yellow-tipped tail.

They are so called because the tips of their wings look like they have been dipped in red wax.

Waxwings are roughly the size of a small starling, a bird they can be mistaken for when they are in flight.

They breed in Scandinavia and Siberia, where they feed on insects during the summer.

In winter, they switch to feeding on berries, especially the soft juicy berries of rowan trees.

Waxwings are annual winter visitors to Britain in small numbers.

However, during some winters when the population in Scandinavia gets too big for the food available, they arrive in the UK in large numbers, called irruptions.

The bird experts at BirdTrack predict that this may be one of those winters.

During irruption years, they arrive on the east coast and will gradually work their way westwards as the food supplies dries up.

If you have berry bushes or trees in your garden, such as rowan and hawthorn, there is a chance that a flock of hungry waxwings will drop in and help themselves to the berry smörgåsbord in your garden.

Log onto rspb.org.uk to learn more about waxwings and all the other exciting winter visitors.

● Sharon Boardman is the people engagement officer for the RSPB.