A mosquito-borne disease known as the Usutu virus has now been widely detected across the South of England. The virus, first discovered more than fifty years ago around Africa’s Usutu River, has been present in mainland Europe since the 1990’s and finally made its way to the UK after a hot and humid summer in 2020. So, what does this mean for our beloved garden birds? Keep reading this blog to find out!
National Nestbox Week is coming up next week (February 14th to February 21st) and bird nesting season is right around the corner, so it is more important than ever to help your local birds out with safe and cosy nesting opportunities.
If you’re not sure where to start, this blog will take you through where to put nesting boxes for different species of garden birds, so that no bird is left without shelter this nesting season.
If you’ve been searching for a high-quality bird feed that you can put out for your feathered friends, you may have come across Peckish Bird Food, a very popular UK brand. But how do their products compare to ours?
In this blog post, we’ll outline some key differences between the home-grown seed mixes we sell here Really Wild Bird Food and the products available from Peckish to help you pick the best value, most sustainable and highest quality bird food for your garden birds!
While Peckish advertise most of their seed mixes and straight seeds as ‘sustainably sourced’, they are not particularly transparent about where they actually get their ingredients from. For their Natural Balance range, they highlight that the ingredients are 100% UK and Irish sourced – the fact they have only highlighted this here suggests that their other products contain at least some ingredients from elsewhere.
At Really Wild Bird Food, we grow the vast majority of our ingredients right here on our farm in Hampshire. Some of our seed mixes (notably EnviroMix) even have 100% of their ingredients grown by us, meaning that by the time the seed is ready to be sent to your door, it has travelled a grand total of zero miles!
For the bird seed ingredients that we can’t grow ourselves, we do sometimes source from overseas. However, we keep our carbon footprint low by sourcing our ingredients from European locations like Bulgaria and the South of France. We also try hard to be transparent about where our products come from so that each customer can make an informed purchasing decision.
Peckish Bird Food’s standard mixes tend to contain bulking agents like wheat, which may fill up larger birds like pigeons but will probably just be ignored by smaller garden birds. This can lead to unsanitary feeding areas with excess food waste, spoiled seed and pests! At Really Wild Bird Food, we use fewer fillers in our seed mixes which can help to attract a broader range of small birds and reduce mess.
In addition to this, while Peckish feeds aim for balanced nutrition, they don’t necessarily match the calorie density of other premium options offered by Really Wild Bird Food. So, if you’re looking for bird food options that will keep your feathered friends warm, healthy and full of energy, premium seed mixes from Really Wild Bird Food are probably your best bet!
Furthermore, if you’re wondering whether Really Wild Bird Food or Peckish give you the best value for money, we will have to side with ourselves due to the ability to buy in bulk, our high-quality ingredients, minimal filler and free delivery offer with ANY orders that include bird seed.
If you have any questions about our bird food ingredients, quality or anything else you may have seen in this blog, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us and a member of our team will be happy to help!
You may have been told before to brush your hair outside, it saves you time on cleaning up the fallen strands and gives your local birds something to build their nests with. However, this is a misconception, leaving human hair out for birds is actually not safe and should be discouraged – we’ll explain why in this blog!
Trichomoniasis is a contagious disease caused by the protozoan parasite Trichomas gallinae. The disease affects the gullet and throat, making it difficult for birds to swallow and breathe, often leading to death from starvation and dehydration. Birds that are commonly affected by trichomoniasis include pigeons, doves, house sparrows and finches – in fact, the breeding greenfinch population in the UK declined from 4.3 million to 2.8 million since the emergence of trichomoniasis in 2005.
So, how is trichomoniasis treated in wild birds and are there any ways to prevent it from spreading? This blog will unpack everything you need to know about trichomoniasis in wild birds.
You have probably seen your local pigeons pecking away at all sorts of human food on the streets, from chips to pizza to bread – but what do pigeons actually eat when they’re not scavenging in our urban environments? This blog will explore what pigeons like to eat and what we as humans can feed pigeons to give them a little healthy helping hand.
If you're looking for the perfect, protein-rich treat for your garden birds, look no further than live mealworms!
Mealworms are the larvae of the flour beetle, a native British insect that eats flour, meal, grain and other similar crops. They are made up of approximately 50% protein and 50% water, making them an excellent source of nutrition and hydration for wild birds.
As summer draws to a close and autumnal weather starts to take over, you may be wondering what this means for your garden birds.
Autumn is actually a critical time for many wild birds as they either prepare for migration or gear up for a long and cold winter at home. By offering the right foods in your feeders, you can support your feathered friends during this tricky transitional season – and enjoy some great birdwatching in the process!
