Durham Bird Club at 50

The county avifauna, The Birds of Durham (Bowey and Newsome, 2012) records that “A public meeting in late 1974 at Sunderland Museum and Art Gallery to discuss bird watching and recording was well-attended. This was followed on 8 January 1975 by another meeting and enrolment for membership of the Durham Bird Club began shortly afterwards.”

We shall be organising various projects and events during the year to commemorate this special anniversary. These include a "Bird of the Week" feature, appearing below.

Bird of the Week - Week 11

Chiffchaff – The First Song of Spring

(Photo by Mark Harper)

Spring might officially begin in March, but for many birders, it doesn’t truly start until they hear the first Chiffchaff. This little warbler, fresh in from its wintering grounds in the Mediterranean or Africa, wastes no time making its presence known. That rhythmic chiff-chaff, chiff-chaff ringing out from any suitable vantage point in a tree or shrub is a sound full of promise - lighter evenings, warmer days, and the return of migrating birds.

Chiffchaffs are small and unassuming, with olive-brown plumage and a pale eye stripe. They flit restlessly through trees and hedgerows, constantly on the move as they pick off insects. They might not be the most eye-catching of birds, but what they lack in looks, they make up for in character. Even on chilly early spring mornings, when most trees are still bare, a Chiffchaff’s song is enough to lift the spirits.

Unlike many of our summer migrants, a few Chiffchaffs now stay in the UK year-round, braving the winter in milder areas. But it’s the arrival of returning birds that really marks the turning of the seasons. One day the woods are quiet, the next - there it is, that unmistakeable call, as if spring itself has just landed!

Have you heard your first Chiffchaff of the year yet? Let us know in the comments!

More information on Chiffchaffs

E-mail: durhambirdclub@gmail.com

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