Conservation & Ecology
We can all do our bit to help provide information that could form future conservation policies
” Green Woodpecker (Picus viridis)
or birds that may appear nondescript, such as the starling which is, in fact, rather pretty. Another good way for greenkeepers and groundsmen to help the birds on their site is to provide homes in the form of nestboxes. These boxes provide an easy way of keeping track of populations of certain species.
The nestbox scheme at John O’Gaunt started in 1996 when I contacted the Hawk & Owl Trust about putting a barn owl box up; two years later, we put up a kestrel box. After several more years, I decided to try some small boxes for blue and great tits and robins. In 2000, I put a few up around the car park and these were quite successful. What I wasn’t aware of at the time was just how many boxes we could get up around the site. I took advice from an expert - Peter Wilkinson (a licensed ringer) - who suggested, after a look round both courses, that we could get around seventy to eighty boxes. I laughed and said, don’t be daft, we won’t get that many. We now have 125 boxes covering two courses!
Treecreeper (Certhia familiaris)
the world to the other. Such is the case with the Arctic Tern which breeds in the Arctic and then flies south to spend the southern summer in the Antarctic.
On a more local scale, ringing can help keep track of populations of birds. It also helps to identify individual birds and thus keep a record of age. A blue tit we caught at a ringing demo at John O’Gaunt in November 2013 was previously ringed as a chick from a nestbox in 2010, making it approximately three and a half years old (our oldest blue tit to date). The record age for a blue tit is twenty-one. As a greenkeeper you can get involved with ringing. Contact the BTO to find out your local ringing group and perhaps organise a ringing demo, or train to become a ringer yourself. If you come across a dead bird, check to see if it has a ring on, look at the ring carefully and you will see a unique number, make a note of it. Check the website below where you will find a link to report a ringed bird.
http://www.bto.org/volunteer- surveys/ringing/about-ringing/faqs One good advantage of being able to ring birds is to see them close up. This is particularly good for species that are often difficult to see
The boxes come in many sizes; small with either 25mm or 32mm hole for blue, coal and great tits, robins, nuthatches and spotted flycatchers. A blackbird once nested in an open fronted box. Medium size boxes are perfect for woodpeckers, whilst larger boxes suit barn owls, kestrels, tawny owls and stock doves, although they are often also used by jackdaws or grey squirrels.
During our best year, in 2009, we had 478 chicks from the nestboxes, compared to 2012 (our worst) with 226. This low number was probably due to the very wet weather around the nesting period. Most years we get 3-400 chicks and an occupancy rate of around 70- 80%.
Since 2007, we have successfully recorded 2,253 blue tits, 911 great tits, 20 kestrels, 21 jackdaws and 10 stock doves, so we are making a significant contribution to local bird numbers. Not all birds, however, utilised the inside of a box. A treecreeper built its nest on a Sequoia tree between the box and the knobbly bark. Nestboxes are easy to make and various designs can be found online, or you can buy them from RSPB shops, garden centres or online retailers such as CJ Wildbird Foods. Another survey that fits in nicely with the nestboxes is the nest record survey run by the BTO. All you need to do is record what birds you see nesting and, if you can, how many
Young Barn Owl (Tyto alba) Great Tits close to fledging (Parus major)
chicks. To minimise disturbance, there is a code of conduct to follow and more information can be found at the following link -
http://www.bto.org/volunteer-surveys/nrs. This survey keeps a track of the breeding success of birds and rise and fall in populations. After you have read this article, and when you are back at work:
STOP - When you can spare a minute or two, just stop what you’re doing
LOOK - Have a look in the immediate area; what birds can you see?
LISTEN - You might well be surprised by how many different birds you can hear
We can all do our bit to help provide information that could form future conservation policies.
PC JUNE/JULY 2016 I 117
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