Weatherwatch: 'War winter' took it's toll on Britain's birds

Until the big freezes of 1946-47 and 1962-63, the coldest winter of the 20th century was the "war winter" of 1939-40. Unlike those other cold winters, though, the freeze relatively brief - a bitterly cold January was followed by a milder February and March. But the cold was still severe and widespread enough to have a devastating effect on Britain's birds. As in other cold winters, many birds migrated west and south to escape the effects of the ice and snow. So farmland birds such as lapwings and skylarks, along with other small birds such as thrushes and finches, fled to the milder areas of the south-west, with many continuing across the sea to France. But for some species, staying put was the only option. Waterbirds such as the kingfisher suffered very high mortality rates when rivers and streams froze over, while small insect-eating species such as the treecreeper, goldcrest, wren and long-tailed tit died because of widespread "glazed frosts", a layer of ice over the branches of trees which covered up their food supply. Garden birds suffered: the onset of food shortages and rationing meant that very few people were putting out scraps for the birds. Larger birds suffered too. A flock of seven wood pigeons froze to death in Worcestershire, their feet stuck fast to the branch where they had been roosting for the night. In Dumfries, a flock of starlings took cover underneath a car during a snowstorm, but were eventually entombed in deep snow.