20 Jan 2003 - 01 Jan 2004
Big Garden Birdwatch comes to The Royal Parks
All Parks

The Royal Parks invites everyone to visit London's Royal Parks next weekend (25th - 26th January 2003) to take part in the RSPB's annual Big Garden Birdwatch.

You don't need to be an expert to have a go, anyone can join in and you don't do you need to have a garden, your local Royal Park has lots of birds to spot. As you enjoy your walk through the Park you can help collect important information about the birds you see. This data will help build up a nation-wide picture of how our common birds are doing.

The use of The Royal Parks for the Big Garden Birdwatch has been organised by Wildlife for All, a joint project between The Royal Parks and the RSPB, funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund.

Mike Fitt, Deputy Chief Executive of The Royal Parks and Director of Parks said:

"The Royal Parks support an extraordinary wealth of wildlife right in the heart of London. Our Parks have some fantastic bird species in them and this Big Garden Birdwatch is an excellent opportunity to get out there and take a look".

This is the first year that the Wildlife for All project has been running but last year a record quarter of a million people took part in the Big Garden Birdwatch. With the help of The Royal Parks the RSPB are hoping to involve even more people this year.

The Wildlife for All team has set up bird feeding areas within all eight Royal Parks. These will provide a valuable food source for the birds and to enable visitors to get a better look at some of the birds that live in The Royal Parks. Wildlife for All staff will be at the feeding stations over the weekend to help visitors identify the birds and tell them about other events that will be coming up later in the year.

For those who want to know more about the wildlife found in The Royal Parks, there are bird walks taking place in the week preceding the Big Garden Birdwatch. The walks are Regent's Park Wednesday 22nd January 10am / Greenwich Park Wednesday 22nd January 10.30am / Richmond Park Monday 20th January 10.30am.

To take part in the Big Garden Birdwatch, you can pick up a form at your local Royal Park office, cafè or bird feeding station, or you can reach Wildlife for All by phone and e-mail. Once you have your form you simply walk around the Park or stay watching at the bird feeding station for an hour, recording the highest number of each bird species seen at any one time. Alternatively, take the form away and enjoy watching the your garden's birds from the comfort of your own home.

Source:
Royal Parks

For more information contact:
Emma Wilson, Wildlife for All T: 020 7486 7905
Theo Moore, The Royal Parks T: 020 7298 2128
Adrian Thomas, The RSPB T: 01273 763 610

Editor's notes:
Wildlife for All is a new three-year partnership project between The Royal Parks and RSPB funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund. Its aims are to bring a wide variety of people and communities across London closer to their local wildlife through the establishment in The Royal Parks of an exciting and innovative activities programme, which include wildlife watch points, an education programme and mobile information unit.

The walks before the Big Garden Birdwatch are:

Regent's Park - Wednesday 22nd January 10am
Greenwich Park - Wednesday 22nd January 10.30am
Richmond Park - Monday 20th January 10.30am

Millions of Londoners and tourists visit the eight Royal Parks for free each year. The 5,000 acres of carefully conserved historic parkland provide unparalleled opportunities for enjoyment, exploration and healthy living in the heart of the capital.

The Royal Parks are: Bushy Park, Green Park, Greenwich Park, Hyde Park, Kensington Gardens, Regent's Park (with Primrose Hill), Richmond Park and St James's Park.