With the breeding season over and very few birds now singing the local woodlands can appear almost birdless at times. Most of the small woodland birds, passerines, are now in mixed feeding flocks so unless you come across one of these groups you're not likely to see many birds.
The benefits of mixed feeding flocks are thought to be two fold, there is better protection against predators with so many birds on the lookout and listening, and each bird can afford to be less vigilant and focus more on feeding. Secondly their feeding is more efficient as the flock is more likely to encounter a good feeding area but because they are in mixed flocks the competition for the same food type is reduced compared with a single species flock.
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| Spotted Flycatcher |
Over the past few weeks I've encountered some large mixed flocks, some numbering several hundred birds with a mix of finches, mainly Siskin and Chaffinch, and warblers, predominantly Chiffchaff and Willow Warblers but also Blackcap, and tits, with Blue, Great and Coal plus a few Long-tailed. Other species mixed with the flocks include Nuthatch, Treecreeper, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Spotted Flycatcher, Goldcrest and even Tree Pipit.
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| Tree Pipit - juvenile |
So if you come across a mixed feeding flock its worth stopping for a while to see what species are in it. Each winter several rarities are found that have become attached to one of these mixed feeding flocks.
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