Get some help with Song Thrush and Mistle Thrush id

With the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch just around the corner, now is a great time to brush up on your identification skills. If you want to refine your Song Thrush/Mistle Thrush skills then two new things may be of particular interest. The first is a new factsheet, produced by the BTO Garden BirdWatch Team. Download a PDF (low resolution) or request a hard copy from us (gbw@bto.org).

The second is the latest in a line of identification videos to be produced by BTO experts. We've embedded the video here but you can also view it on the BTO's YouTube page.

Marsh Tit or Willow Tit?

If you have struggled to get to grips with separating Marsh and Willow Tits then you will be pleased to learn that you are not alone. The similarity between the two species isone reason why they were not recognised as being different species until relatively recently, the Willow Tit thus earning the distinction of being the last regularly breeding British songbird to be identified and named.

Help is at hand, however, in the form of a new identification video, one of a series to be produced by the BTO. BTO Training Officer Su Gough talks you through the key features that you need to look (and listen) out for.