THE ‘Big Farmland Bird Count’ is back for its sixth successive year and farmers, landowners and game keepers across the country are being urged to take part.

Organised by the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust, contributors are being asked to spend 30 minutes spotting species on their patch of land between February 8 and 17. The results will establish which farmland birds are thriving due to good conservation efforts, whilst also identifying those in most need of help.

Dave Parish, GWCT Scotland’s Head of Lowland Research commented: “Many farmers do a lot on their farms to encourage birds and other wildlife, but the wider public doesn’t really seem to appreciate that yet.

“We are hoping that as many farmers as possible will spend just half an hour counting birds on a part of their farm so that we can tell everyone about the good work that is going on,” he urged.

Last-year saw a record-breaking 1,000 responses to the UK count, recording 121 species across 950,000 acres. A total of 25 red-listed species were recorded, with five appearing in the 25 most commonly seen species list.

To take part:-

* Download a count sheet from the newly-launched BFBC website - www.bfbc.org.uk

* Count your birds! On a day between February 8 and 17, spend about 30 minutes recording the species and number of birds seen on one particular area of the farm. Submit your results to www.bfbc.org.uk