A Bumper Year for Blackcaps

Feeding the birds in the garden is one of life’s little pleasures, who doesn’t love the sight of a blue tit busily tucking in to the seed in a feeder? Recently, a study by the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) has found that putting feed out for garden birds actually can have a big influence on the distribution of a species across the country.

The blackcap is a familiar spring and summer visitor to the UK, they are instantly recognisable by their “cap” the male has a jet black cap whilst the top of the female’s head is a chestnut colour. The blackcap has earned the name “northern nightingale” for its beautiful fluting song.

Up until the 1950s there were rare reported sightings of blackcaps in the UK over the winter but the number of blackcaps being in Britain in the winter months has increased considerably over the last 60 years. In their study the BTO looked at Garden Bird Watch results spanning back over twelve years. They found that sightings of blackcaps strongly corresponded with places where people were supplying bird food. Blackcaps particularly seem to favour sunflower hearts and fats.

This led researchers to conclude that the provision of food in British gardens has been one of the driving forces behind the shift in blackcap migration patterns. Yet, it should also be noted that climate change is another huge factor in the change in blackcap migrations. Blackcaps usually spend their winters in Africa and the Mediterranean, the fact that sightings of blackcaps over winter in the UK would suggest a warming climate, driving a northward shift in the species’ distribution.

However, researchers welcome the finding that blackcap numbers in the UK are increasing, and it is certainly good news for those of us who enjoy watching the birds in our gardens!

Source: BBC, RSPB