Cage & Aviary Birds

THE NATIONAL TRUST has installed cameras on Dancing Ledge in Purbeck, Dorset, in a bid to better understand why puffins have failed to breed successfully at the site. High-ropes experts from SSHConservation were brought in by the National Trust and D

A NEW FAMILY tree of birds has reframed our understanding of bird evolution. A team of researchers from the Bird 10,000 Genomes (B10K) consortium – including researchers from Zhejiang University, the University of Copenhagen and the University of Syd

A MALE BLACKBIRD confused officers at Thames Valley Police's station in Bicester when it started mimicking a police car siren. Inspector Simon Hills told BBC News: “I could hear the faint sound of what sounded like a police siren and, because we repa

THE LATEST SURVEY on bittern (Botaurus stellaris) breeding in England and Wales revealed that 234 males were counted in 2023 – up 24 per cent on the numbers counted five years ago. Bitterns became extinct as a breeding species in the UK in the 1870s

OWING TO AN unexpected change in circumstances, I found myself made redundant from my current job. Fortunately, I was able to find another and even scheduled a couple of weeks’ break while jobless, which coincided with the Easter holidays. So I appro

“I haven't read the books and neither have the birds.” – ‘Just do it’ has proved a great mindset for Jed Savage and his aviary collection. See page 14.

INTERESTING NEWS IN the canary world this week: the YCC have decided to expand their 2025 Winter Show next January by including classes for old & rare variety canaries. We'll have the full details next week, but I must say it sounds like a first-clas

THANKS TO TROPICAN, we have three 2kg bags of Tropican Hand-Feeding Formula up for grabs. Tropican says its Hand-Feeding Formula provides proper daily nutrition for baby parrots up to fledgling, which is a critical age of a parrot's life. This high-c

Editor: Rob Innes. Tel: 01959 543 544 Email: birds.ed@kelsey.co.uk Deputy Editor: Laura Welch. Tel: 01959 543 544 News Editor: Georgina Probert. Email: birds.news@kelsey.co.uk Email (Club News): birds.general@kelsey.co.uk Design: Focused On Design Lt

THE Budgerigar Society had a pet section some years ago and it never really took off because the main focus of the Society was exhibition budgerigars. The new concept of a separate club came about prior to the covid pandemic, but was delayed because

THE RESULTS FROM the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch results 2024 are in and the house sparrow has once again taken the top spot as the UK's most recorded bird. This year, more than 600,000 people from across the country took part, counting more than 9.5 m

ALL breeders should bear in mind that not every pairing we make will go to nest and produce chicks. If the birds are fit and ready to breed and they then don't go to nest, something has gone wrong. I don't want to be laughed out of town, but let's st

EXPERIENCED breeders Chris and Neville Jones report that – with the exception of the two-bar, which is a little more challenging – the crossbill species are free and easy breeders. Crossbills often come into breeding condition early in the year, arou

MY RECENT articles on judging Fife canaries have triggered some very positive responses – surprisingly perhaps – from fellow judges of Border canaries as well as Fifes. They, too, have experienced over-dominant judges. One even had to endure the so-c

AT LORO Parque Fundación, spring is, for our parrots, an important time. Now there are changes in the environment that modify their behaviour. For birds as sensitive as these, the reproductive stage involves unexpected reactions, for which we must be

SEND us your birdkeeping pictures and we'll publish them on this page. Each month the Cage & Aviary Birds team will pick their favourite picture(s)! Simply email your picture to: birds.general@kelsey.co.uk with “Readers’ Gallery” in the subject line

THE club was pleased to be back on the show calendar after an absence of four years due to a combination of lockdown and bird flu! [See News, April 3 issue.] This year, due to the unavailability of Nantwich Civic Hall, the club were forced to relocat

CITY OF BATH BIRD BREEDERS SOCIETY – May 7, Claverton Down Community Hall, Claverton Down, Bath BA2 6DT, 7.45pm. Rob Jefferys will give a talk on the British wildlife. Members are reminded to bring raffle prizes, please. Enquiries: 07504 993 583 or e

JOIN Cage & Aviary Birds and their families at a special event at Birdworld in Surrey on June 22. The readers’ visit includes EXCLUSIVE reader benefits such as discounted entry (adults £8.95 SAVE £11, kids 3-15 £7.95 SAVE £8) and a readers-only guide

SOUTH WEST LANCS BS will hold its 2024 open show on July 7 at Padgate Academy, Warrington. If you would like to request a show schedule, please contact show secretary Eric Gibbons on 07879 678 178. New members are welcome to join the society. If you