The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds' "Big Garden Birdwatch 2024", concluded that the house sparrow (Passer domesticus) was the most common bird to be seen in the gardens of the UK, a position it has held for the past twenty one years in a row. In second place was the starling and the blue tit came third. The house sparrow held the top spot in the survey despite the species' sixty per cent decline since 1979. Interestingly, the house sparrow is one of the most widely distributed and most numerous birds in the world, a situation that came about with the help of mankind. The bird in today's photograph is a male of the species that was broadcasting its tuneless chirps from a buddleia bush.
photo © T. Boughen Camera: Nikon P900
