House sparrow ranked Cumbria's most spotted bird in in RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch

Almost 8,000 people in Cumbria took part in the 2022 RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch.

The world’s largest wildlife survey give RSPB scientists an insight into how birds are doing across the UK.

It give people a chance of all ages to count the number of birds that visit their garden with almost 700 thousand people across the UK taking part, counting more than 11 million birds.

The house sparrow took the top spot in Cumbria which was followed closely by blue tit and starling.

In the UK, jay moved up nine places to number 23 which is an increase of 73% compared to 2021 numbers.

Results also found a small increase in greenfinch compared to 2021 which might be the first signs of a population recovery.

In recent years the greenfinch has suffered a population crash (62% since 1993) caused by a severe outbreak of the disease trichomonosis and as a consequence the species was added to the UK Red List last year.

The RSPB’s Chief Executive, Beccy Speight said: "It’s been brilliant to see so many people taking part again this year, taking time out to watch and reconnect with birds and then generously submit their sightings to help RSPB scientists gain some insights into how our garden birds are faring."