Ignatius
Texpat
According to the latest information from BirdLife Austria the warmer winters brought by climate change have driven the usual winter birds away from gardens. However, they have not disappeared completely, they have just moved elsewehere, namely into the forests.
Spruces, for example, produce more seeds as a reaction to stress. Almost as if they were panicking and afraid of not surviving and thus trying to assure the continued existence of their kind. Stresses such as prolonged periods of drought can bring this on. Therefore there is a more plentiful supply of food in the wild and birds, which eat seeds, hang out in the forests instead of going to the 'soup kitchens' provided by people at the feeders in their gardens.
The website (in German only) provides the figures to back this up, listing counts and changes in numbers compared to previous years. There are also maps to show changing distribution in the different states (Bundesländer).
Spruces, for example, produce more seeds as a reaction to stress. Almost as if they were panicking and afraid of not surviving and thus trying to assure the continued existence of their kind. Stresses such as prolonged periods of drought can bring this on. Therefore there is a more plentiful supply of food in the wild and birds, which eat seeds, hang out in the forests instead of going to the 'soup kitchens' provided by people at the feeders in their gardens.
The website (in German only) provides the figures to back this up, listing counts and changes in numbers compared to previous years. There are also maps to show changing distribution in the different states (Bundesländer).
