BeccySpeight

It's great that you're seeing so many birds of prey. It means that hopefully, wherever you are, there's plenty of food for them. A resident kestrel sounds brilliant too. We have had particularly great success reintroducing species like red kite and white-tailed sea eagles back into the UK.

Unfortunately, our gamebird review that we released last year determined that there has been a spike in raptor persecution and we’re working tirelessly to tackle this issue. However I would hesitate to point the finger directly at farmers, many of whom are doing incredible things for wildlife and sustainable farming. You can find out more about our gamebird review here: https://www.rspb.org.uk/our-work/policy-insight/gamebird-review/

My favourite bird is a kingfisher. They look so exotic - like a bright blue dart. And its whistle sounds like it's piping you on board ship

Thanks everyone for your questions. Apologies if I haven't been able to get to them all. Just a quick reminder that the Big Garden Birdwatch starts tomorrow. Simply count the number of birds you see in an hour and send your results back to us. This data is vital in helping us understand how our garden birds are faring: https://www.rspb.org.uk/birdwatch

Hi Alancake. We've definitely seen a huge increase in the number of people who have engaged with nature during the pandemic. It's been a much needed comfort for so many of us. A million people across the UK took part in last year's Big Garden Birdwatch, which is just incredible. If we help nature, nature helps us!

It's a long story. I'm not a scientist or an ecologist as you may expect. I even once worked as a management consultant! But I went to see the National Parks in the US and had a revelation that I wanted to do something that felt more meaningful to me. I worked for the National Trust and the Woodland Trust and then came to the RSPB as it felt like somewhere I could make a difference to the climate and nature crisis, which I believe is the challenge of our generation.