Ask an RSPB expert: your February questions answered
Our expert, India James, answers some of this month's most commonly asked questions.
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I’d love to see a heronry. Do you have any tips?
Grey Herons start breeding relatively early in the year, from around February, with chicks hatching between March and April. These birds typically nest in colonies called heronries, although some pairs nest on their own. Large nests are often built at the tops of tall deciduous or coniferous trees, around 25-40m from the ground, with multiple nests in the same tree. They have also been known to nest on the ground in reedbeds.
Grey Herons often return to the same nests each year, and heronries can be active at the same site for many decades. Sometimes, Little Egrets will also be seen within these heronries, nesting alongside Grey Herons.
Keep an eye out at dawn and dusk, as Grey Herons fly to and from their heronries. If you see a Grey Heron carrying nesting material such as sticks, look out for where the bird is flying to, as this is good sign of nesting behaviour.
Another thing to listen out for is their distinctive ‘kaark’ call, often made in flight, and the croaking calls that can be heard from their heronries.
Some of the best RSPB nature reserves to spot Grey Herons include:
If you do come across a heronry, it’s important not to disturb these birds, so give them lots of space and watch from a distance (consider bringing some binoculars with you if you have them). Getting to watch a heronry is a real pleasure and a lovely way to connect to nature, but the birds’ wellbeing should always come first.
How can I help the birds get ready for nesting season?
Many of our garden birds will already be starting to choose their nesting sites and even building their nests. Although it can be helpful to put up nestboxes in the autumn and winter so that birds have plenty of time to find them before the nesting season starts, it’s not too late to put them up now if you haven’t already. We have lots of guidance on siting nestboxes.
Whilst we do recommend cleaning out nestboxes each year in the autumn, if you didn’t get around to cleaning your nestbox out, please don’t worry (after all, natural nest holes aren’t cleaned in the wild). As we’re approaching the main nesting season for most species, it’s better to leave nestboxes as they are than to risk disturbing any birds that could be nesting.
Please note, any unhatched eggs can only be removed legally in England and Wales between 1 September to 31 January and in Scotland between 1 August and 31 January, and must be disposed of.
You could also put out some nesting materials for the birds to use. No need to put nesting material directly in the nestbox, as the birds will prefer to do this themselves. Instead, place the material somewhere easy for them to get to, such as in a hanging plant basket or nearby bush.
We recommend putting out natural plant materials, such as moss raked from the lawn or grasses, or nesting wool. However, we advise against people putting out pet hair as nesting material for birds, due to the risk of it being contaminated with chemicals that could be used to treat fleas (or worms and other medical conditions).
For some garden birds such as Song Thrushes and Blackbirds that use mud in their nests, a small, wet, muddy patch in your garden may also make it easier for them to build their nests, particularly when it’s been dry.
Where can I report sightings to, now that Big Garden Birdwatch has finished?
After enjoying taking part in the Big Garden Birdwatch, people often get in touch with us wanting to know how else they can record their wildlife sightings.
There are lots of wildlife citizen science studies available to take part in throughout the year.
If you are interested in doing more regular birdwatching surveys, the BritishTrust for Ornithology’s (BTO) Garden BirdWatch survey looks for volunteers to do a minimum of 20 minutes of birdwatching each week.
Another place we recommend reporting bird sightings to is BirdTrack. This is a partnership project with the BTO that uses sightings recorded to track the distribution and migration of birds in the UK.
Later in the year when Swifts return to the UK, we encourage people to take part in recording low-flying Swifts on Swift Mapper.
As well bird sightings, you may want to share information about other visitors to your gardens and local green spaces. For recording non-avian sightings, here’s a few that may interest you:
- Big Hedgehog Map – Hedgehog Street
- Living with Mammals – The People's Trust for Endangered Species
- Big Butterfly Count – Butterfly Conservation
- Bumblebee surveying & monitoring – Bumblebee Conservation Trust
- Nature's Calendar which monitors the effects of climate and weather on wildlife timings – Woodland Trust
Hopefully this gives you some ideas of the many different wildlife surveys available to take part in – and there are plenty more out there! You don’t have to record everything, but however much you’re able to share is always useful to helping us discover more about the UK’s wildlife and contributing to our understanding of how best to protect nature. Our page on how to record wildlife has further guidance.
Meet the expert: India James
I have had the pleasure of working in the Wildlife Enquiries Team for over five years. I’m happiest when I’m out exploring and talking about nature. In my free time, I love going for long walks and trying to identify the wildlife I come across, visiting nature reserves or reading a good book in the garden.
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