October 2026 Ramsbury Bird Notes by Paul Swan
Sadly, one of our favourite garden birds is under threat. Many of us have seen dead and dying blackbirds around the village recently. They are being decimated by Usutu, a deadly disease carried by mosquitoes, This was first noticed in the London area in 2020 and has now spread throughout southern England. The spread of this disease seems to be another result of global warming. We can help by cleaning out bird baths and bird feeders every week.
We will expect our autumn visitors to arrive in October, but at the time of writing there are still some swallows and house martins feeding up before they head south. The fieldfares, redwings and golden plover are all on the way to spend winter with us.
Autumn is of course the season of berries. Blackbirds and thrushes will eat almost any berry, but other species are much more selective. The redwings and fieldfare love holly berries, mistle thrushes go for sloes and mistletoe berries, starlings like blackberries, robins go for ivy, a taste that they share with pigeons, while tits and finches can be seen chewing away at rose hips.
All being well, our evenings should soon be enhanced by the haunting calls of our local tawny owls. Best heard on a misty autumn evening.
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