Yesterday saw the release of the latest advice on feeding birds by the RSPB which you can explore here. The accompanying slogan is 'Feed seasonally. Feed safely.' The RSPB advocate feeding only in the months November - April, leaving a gap in summer when natural food is more abundant to help break the cycle of disease reinfection. They also advise against the use of any flat-surface feeders (such as bird tables), as these are the worst for spreading disease. The RSPB highlights the effect that trichomonosis has had, particularly on Chaffinch and Greenfinch populations.
I am in no way disagreeing with their findings or their advice, but it's interesting that in the last couple of years my gut feeling was that I was catching, and seeing more of these two species, so I crunched our numbers.
As ever, I'm not a scientist, data reviewer or bird disease expert, and this small amount of data from a small area in South Nottinghamshire shouldn’t be viewed as anything other than interesting. It cannot be compared to the extensive research carried out by the RSPB and their partners. But looking at our data from 2010 to 2025 it can be seen from the graphs that my gut feeling was correct, and both species have shown a alight increase recently.
However, the actual reasons for this is anyone’s guess. Perhaps it's due to a reduction in the effects of trichomonosis, but I can't rule out many other factors such as changes in our ringing efforts or ringing sites.
One thing the data has highlighted though is the alarming lack of subsequent encounters of these 2 species, particularly Greenfinch! It will be interesting to keep re-examining the data in the coming years and let's hope that the RSPB's strategy does help reverse the fortunes of the effected species.
Mick P
blue = new birds, orange = subsequent encounters
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