With the weather forecast looking wet, wet, WET for the foreseeable future, it's worth taking a look at our bird feeding practices to ensure we give our feathered friends a fighting chance as the season changes, the temperature drops and natural food sources diminish.

As the days get shorter and the temperature drops, there’s no escaping it: winter has arrived.

Now is the perfect time to get thinking about how you will feed your feathery garden visitors over the coming months. It can be hard for garden birds to keep warm and source food in the winter, so it is this time of year where they need our help the most! Give your colourful companions a helping hand by providing them with a well-stocked winter bird feeder that will see them through the winter season.

What presents can you give your loved ones to show you care? Knowing what to get your friends and family for Christmas and birthdays can be real head-scratcher. There's always chocolate, of course, perhaps with a colourful pair of novelty socks - but if there's a bird lover in your life, why not get them something they really want this year?

Our gift buying guide can help you find the perfect gift for the birder in your life. Our selection of gift ideas is perfect for bird lovers and can be used to celebrate any occasion – birthday or Christmas, Hanukkah or graduation, we're sure to have the perfect present!

Here are some gift ideas for bird lovers to get you started...

What is moulting?

Moulting is the name given to the process that takes place when birds shed their old feathers to make space for new plumage.

How long a bird will take to moult, and the length of time their moult takes is dependent on the species, age and time of year. 

Some birds moult all of their feathers in one go over the course of a few weeks, while others shed their old feathers gradually over the course of an entire year! 

It was a harvest of two halves. A dry spell, followed by three weeks of rain and then the sun came out again. Those three weeks of continuous rain were not happy weeks for farmers and our nerves were shredded as we waited to see what impact the bad weather would have on our crops.

However, we were not as badly affected as other areas of the UK, especially Yorkshire, where one poor farmer had his whole farmyard washed away by torrents of water.

The UK Farmland Bird Indicator is made up of 19 different species of birds that are dependent on British farmland. This means that these birds they are predominantly reliant on farmland environments, unable to thrive outside of this habitat.

Of these 19 different species, a number of them are in stark decline. While the woodpigeon and the jackdaw have seen a widespread increase over the years, there are several species of farmland birds that have seen a dramatic decrease.

Whether you've owned birds before or you're a completely new bird owner, it's important that you familiarise yourself with your pet's dietary needs. If you want your feathered companion to have a long life, a happy disposition and gorgeous, glossy feathers, then try and take these pet bird diet tips on board!

The best diet for your pet bird is not made up of only pellets and birdseed, to provide your bird with all the nutrients it needs, you need to make sure you're offering a mixture of seeds, pellets, fresh fruits and vegetables.

British gardens are a veritable playground for UK wildlife, providing the perfect landscape for natural beauty.

Wild birds are a big part of that beauty and add an inimitable element of organic charm to the scenery.

That being said, gardens aren’t a universal aviary of birds of each species and there are a few familiar faces that crop up with regularity in gardens across the country.