| House sparrow tops RSPB 2004 survey | |
|  | Top bird: House sparrow
Photos: RSPB |
| | For the second year running, the house sparrow has come out top in a survey of garden birds in Devon. The 25th annual RSPB survey had good and bad news for our feathered friends. |
| | | A record 11,168 people in Devon went out in their gardens in January to take part in the RSPB's 2004 Big Garden Birdwatch.
The count, on 24th-25th January, found that - for the second year running - the house sparrow was the most common bird in Devon's gardens.
There was an average of 5.1 house sparrows per garden. They also topped the national table, taking over from last year's UK winner, the starling.
The blue tit came second in Devon (3.2) and the chaffinch third (3), making it exactly the same top three as last year.
 | Collared dove
Photo: Chris Knights |
The RSPB is delighted that nationally, numbers of woodpigeon and collared doves are up - they come 10th and 12th respectively in Devon.
Both are now five times more common than they were a quarter of a century ago.
However, the bad news is that the figures for most species are massively down, compared to the RSPB's first big birdwatch 25 years ago, in 1979.
For example, the starling - which came fourth in Devon - has seen its numbers drop in the past 25 years by 71%.
The house sparrow has declined by 52%; song thrushes are down by 34%; and blackbirds, although still common, have been reduced by 31%.
 | | The blue tit came second |
This year's big birdwatch was the most successful yet. In Devon, around 3,000 more people took part in 2004 compared to last year.
Nationally, a record breaking 409,000 participated this year. Between them, they spotted 8.6 million birds in 247,000 gardens.
Tony Whitehead of the RSPB said: "It's an incredible achievement for a survey to reach its 25th anniversary.
"We're amazed at how the popularity of the Big Garden Birdwatch has grown over the years."
| Top Twelve birds in Devon 2004 | | 1 | House sparrow | 7 | Great tit | | 2 | Blue tit | 8 | Robin | | 3 | Chaffinch | 9 | Dunnock | | 4 | Starling | 10 | Woodpigeon | | 5 | Blackbird | 11 | Coal tit | | 6 | Greenfinch | 12 | Collared dove |
Article first published: 25th March 2004
| | | |
|
| | Weather |  | | Monthly statistics, features and information. |
| E-cards |  | | Send an e-postcard of glorious Devon to a friend. |
| In Pictures |  | | Browse through our vast selection of photo galleries. |
BBC Devon
Broadcasting House
Seymour Road
Plymouth
PL3 5BD
(+44) 01752 229201
devon.online@bbc.co.uk
|
|
