RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch results: A fun month for birdwatchers - but with concerning results

It’s a bit of fun at the end of January to watch and count birds in the garden, but the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch is an important indicator of the state of our wild bird population.

The large-scale citizen science survey started in 1979 and provides an annual snapshot of how the UK’s most common garden birds are faring.

The UK-wide results from this year’s birdwatch have revealed that while the house sparrow came in first, the starling has dropped from third to fourth place as the lowest number ever was recorded.

In second place the blue tit remained at number two, with the woodpigeon and blackbird making up the other top five most recorded species in UK gardens.

Nationwide, almost 600,000 people took part in the world’s largest garden wildlife survey, counting more than nine million birds of over 80 species.

The RSPB is concerned about the findings on starlings. They can be found across the UK with their numbers swelling during winter when birds arrive from northern Europe, gathering together to perform spectacular murmurations.

These displays sometimes reaching hundreds of thousands of individuals, however starlings are a red listed species in the UK and considered a high conservation concern due to their declining numbers.

Although there is not enough evidence to confirm what is causing these decreases, the UK breeding population declined by 82 per cent between 1970 and 2022.

Prior to 2000, the starling was regularly the most numerous species recorded in the Big Garden Birdwatch.

RSPB CEO Beccy Speight said: “Starlings are one of our most charismatic garden birds, but this year’s Big Garden Birdwatch results are a reason for concern.

"With one in six species at risk of extinction from Britain, we’ve done more damage to our natural world than we realise.

"However, we can all do our bit to support these threatened birds by taking small actions that can not only benefit starlings, but a wealth of other garden wildlife.”

To aid starlings in gardens, the RSPB advises avoiding the use of pesticides and keeping a natural lawn which allows starlings to forage for invertebrates, especially leatherjackets (cranefly larvae).

Starlings also need short grass to watch out for predators whilst feeding, so mowing the lawn now and again is beneficial.

Putting up nest boxes also helps the birds. A box with a 45mm entrance hole is the ideal size for these birds.

Ms Speight added: “To halt nature’s decline and turn around the fortunes of our native species, we need to help them return to healthy levels, so they become a feature of everyday life once more.

"Our countryside, our farms and our towns all need support to encourage nature, and while our homes and gardens often provide the perfect place for individual people to help, we also urgently need governments and businesses to join us in the wider fight to restore our natural world.”

RSPB TOP GARDEN BIRDS 2025

(Average count per garden)

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1. House sparrow 3.55

2. Blue tit 2.77

3. Wood pigeon 2.52

4. Starling 2.30

5. Blackbird 2.15

6. Robin 1.52

7. Great tit 1.42

8. Goldfinch 1.37

9. Magpie 1.32

10. Long-tailed tit 1.11