Don't disturb nesting birds in the garden. (From Worcester News)

Don't disturb nesting birds in the garden.

11:02am Tuesday 17th March 2009 in

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A BIRD charity is urging gardeners in Worcestershire to get their hedge trimming and garden tidyup done soon to avoid disturbing nesting birds.

The majority of birds will nest between April and September, but some have already started and gardeners are being treated to all manner of singing, displaying and frantic nest building.

Birds such as wrens, robins, magpies and blackbirds are all likely to be nesting now, as many of them have more than one set of young each year.

Signs that nesting birds are considering your garden to raise their young include singing, squabbling, chasing, window and nest box tapping and the frantic gathering of twigs and other suitable nest-making material.

If birds are singing particularly enthusiastically they are likely to be near their chosen nest site, even if it isn’t built yet. Birds sing to attract a mate and establish a breeding territory. It is often the males that sing to defend a territory as the females build a nest.

Birds tapping at windows is a sure sign they are defending their territory and nesting nearby. They see their own reflection in the glass, think it’s a rival and attack it.

Louise Pedersen, from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) West Midlands team, said: “We are getting loads of calls from the public reporting that all sorts of birds that are already nesting, such as blackbirds, mistle thrushes and robins. People have even seen tawny owl chicks already.

“It’s a sure sign that the nesting period is approaching and we hope that it will spur people on to do what they need to do in their gardens quickly.

All birds, their nests and eggs are protected by law and the penalties for deliberately destroying active nests are quite severe.

Serious pruning and hedge removal are best left until autumn but the RSPB is appealing to those who need to do urgent tidying to up to do it as soon as possible before the breeding season gets into full swing.

If you want more information about wildlife gardening and nesting birds go to the website rspb.org.uk/ wildlifegardening.