FILL-UP your bird feeders and dust off your binoculars for this year’s Big Garden Birdwatch, from January 29 to 31.

The idea is that you spend just an hour recording how many birds you can spot in your garden, even from a window or balcony, and then let the RSPB know what you’ve seen.

Martin Fowlie, for the charity, said: “I hope that because of lockdown, taking part will be something that people feel they have time to do.

“People have really reconnected with wildlife and what’s in their gardens and their green spaces in the past year, and as lockdown progresses it will become more important.”

As well as the more common sparrows, robins, goldfinches, starlings and tits, Martin says you might also see some less-well-known species, including:

* Hawfinch

“This is the one every birdwatcher wants to see in their garden,” he says. “It’s our biggest finch, almost the size of a starling, with a huge, powerful bill that can crack cherry seeds. It has a black mask around the eyes and the chin, and a peachy-orange marking around the rest of its head. Males have amazing deep purple feathers on their wing tips.”

* Fieldfare

“These are thrushes – from the same family as blackbirds and song thrushes – and arrive in their thousands in the autumn from Scandinavia, to feed on all the berries in our hedgerows, parks and gardens through winter,” says Martin.

* Brambling

“A close relative of the chaffinch, brambling can turn-up anywhere at this time of year on feeders in gardens. They are very distinctive, with a flush of peachy-orange winter plumage across their chest and shoulders, and black and white markings on the wing and back,” says Martin.

* Waxwing

“These are beautiful and are more likely to turn-up in urban and suburban areas than rural areas, partly because they like winter berries and particularly cotoneaster,” he says. “They have this crest, little mask and tips to their wings. They look amazing.”

* Blackcap

“These shy birds have increased in numbers over the years and you may well find them in urban gardens,” says Martin. “They are a type of warbler. The males are gold-browny-grey birds with a dapper little black top to their head, while females have a red cap.”

* Redpoll

“These small finches have been appearing in reasonable numbers,” he says. “They have tiny bills, a pale front with brown streaking and a little red forehead. Some have a pink-red marking on their chin.”

* Chiffchaff

These have a very distinctive, onomatopoeic call, which is how they get their name.

For further information about the Big Garden Birdwatch, visit rspb.org.uk.