Press Releases - May/June 2008
Item 3

No. 2008/06/17
June 2008

Father’s Day gift helps Britain’s birds!

Does your father have an eye for the birds! Then give him the Garden BirdWatch Gift Pack this Father’s Day and not only will he receive a great gift, he could be helping to conserve Britain’s birds too!

For £15.00 you could turn your father into a citizen scientist this Father’s day and also help keep an eye on some of our closest feathered friends. By giving him the gift pack he will join a dedicated group of Garden BirdWatchers across the country. He will receive a free copy of the Garden BirdWatch Book on the day, which is crammed full of information on garden birds, and once a quarter he will receive Bird Table, the magazine of the survey, keeping him up to date with the latest in the garden bird world. He will also receive everything he needs to get him going as a recording citizen scientist. It doesn’t stop there; Garden BirdWatch lasts the whole year through, constantly adding to the information gathered. All this and he will be helping the birds too, and what’s more, without even leaving the house.

The British Trust for Ornithology has been monitoring our garden birds throughout the year since 1995 through the BTO/CJ Garden BirdWatch survey. They couldn’t do this without the people who take part and record the birds in their gardens on a weekly basis. These are the survey’s citizen scientists. What we learn now will help conserve our garden birds in the future. It was Garden BirdWatchers that were the first to highlight the decline in the House Sparrow, and it is Garden BirdWatchers that will be keeping an eye on them. So go on, turn your father into a scientist this Father’s Day. What more could a bird-loving father want?

Gift packs can be purchased by calling the Garden BirdWatch team on, 01842-750050, or on-line at www.bto.org, or write to, Room 17, GBW, The Nunnery, Thetford, Norfolk, IP24 2PU. To guarantee delivery for Father’s Day please place your order by Wednesday 11 June.

MORE>

Notes for Editors

1. The BTO/CJ Garden BirdWatch is the only nationwide survey of garden birds to run weekly throughout the year, providing important information on how birds use gardens, and how this use changes over time. Currently, some 16,500 people take part in the project. The BTO/CJ Garden BirdWatch is funded by participants’ contributions and supported by CJ WildBird Foods Ltd and is the largest year round survey of garden birds anywhere in the world. For more information see www.bto.org/gbw
2. CJ WildBird Foods is Europe’s leading supplier of bird food and bird feeding products. CJ WildBird Foods has been responsible for a number of significant developments within the bird food and feeding industry, including the introduction of black sunflower seeds to the UK as a major new bird food and the development of specialist seed mixes for use in tubular feeders. The company has also been supporting research into the changing fortunes of garden bird populations, most notably through the BTO/CJ Garden BirdWatch.
3. Bird Table Magazine is published quarterly and sent free to all BTO/CJ Garden BirdWatchers. An annual subscription to the project costs just £15 and all new joiners will receive a free copy of the BTO/CJ Garden BirdWatch Book (which normally retails for £9.99).
4. I mages of garden birds are freely available for use in association with this press release. Please contact to request an electronic version. Please quote reference number 2008/06/17

For further information please contact:

Paul Stancliffe on 01842 750050 or e-mail: (during office hours)
or mobile 07845 900559 (anytime)

Mike Toms on 01842 750050 or e-mail: (during office hours)