I'm not sure that many garden bird species in Australia need
supplementary feeding, but the following article may be of interest ...
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-02/uoe-ftb020408.php
Public release date: 5-Feb-2008
Feed the birds: Winter feeding makes for better breeding
Keep feeding the birds over winter: that’s the message from research
by the University of Exeter and Queen’s University Belfast, published
today (6 February 2008) in the Royal Society journal Biology Letters.
The study shows for the first time that the extra food we provide
garden birds in winter makes for a more successful breeding season in
the spring.
By providing some birds with extra food, such as peanuts, and leaving
others to fend for themselves, the team was able to compare
productivity between the two groups. Those that were given extra food
laid eggs earlier and, although they produced the same number of
chicks, an average of one more per clutch successfully fledged.
Although it was well known that garden feeding helps many birds
survive the winter, this is the first time that the benefits to spring
breeding and productivity have been shown.
Dr Stuart Bearhop of the University of Exeter, corresponding author on
the paper, said: “Our study shows that birds that receive extra food
over winter lay their eggs earlier and produce more fledglings. While
this research shows how the extra food we provide in winter helps the
birds that take it, it is still unclear whether this has a knock-on
effect on other species. This is something we are keen to investigate,
but in the meantime I will certainly be putting out food for garden
birds for the rest of the winter.”
US and UK households provide over 500,000 tonnes of food for garden
birds each year. Despite this, there is a debate on whether we should
continue feeding birds in the spring, when natural food sources become
more readily available. This research shows, for the first time, that
birds will continue to benefit from winter feeding well into the
breeding season, which starts in April for most song birds in the UK.
Dr Dan Chamberlain of the British Trust for Ornithology, a
collaborator on the project, adds “These results demonstrate that
feeding birds in gardens over winter can be vital to their breeding
success. It is highly likely that the benefits of extra food continue
year-round, so don’t just stock your bird feeders in winter if you
want to do the best for the birds in your garden”.
Now that the research team has shown the long-lasting benefits of
supplementary food for garden birds, they are keen to investigate
exactly what is happening in terms of nutrition. Dr Stuart Bearhop of
the University of Exeter continued: “The extra food we put out for
birds contains fat, protein and carbohydrates, which may make the
female bird stronger and more able to produce eggs. Foods like peanuts
and bird seed also include vitamins and minerals, which can also
produce healthier eggs and chicks, and we currently have a research
project looking at the role of energy versus vitamins in explaining
these effects.”==============================www.birding-aus.org
birding-aus.blogspot.com
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