A huge influx of birds into Ireland is making survival for them more difficult than ever this winter, it was warned today.
Birdwatch Ireland urged people to put food out in their gardens for the winged visitors feeling the strain of the cold weather.
Simple servings like easily available seeds as well as some scraps can help them keep warm and alive into the spring.
"Unfortunately, it is still too early for there to be many insects around, and most of the berries on garden trees and bushes have already been eaten," said a Birdwatch spokesman.
The conservation charity said wintry conditions have brought large numbers of more uncommon bird species, such as Siskins and Redpolls, into Irish gardens.
They were competing with more regularly seen garden species, such as Blue Tits, Dunnocks, Chaffinches and Robins, for food. "This winter has also seen a particularly large influx of winter visitors from Scandinavia and elsewhere in northern Europe," said the spokesman.
"This means that this year the pressure on the remaining food resources is even greater than usual." Birdwatch said wild bird seed, peanuts and sunflower seed - found in supermarkets and garden shops - are easily available and will help birds survive.
Apples, kitchen scraps, such as bacon rinds, cheese, suet, raisins, moistened bread, melon seeds, fruit, stale cake, cooked potato, oatmeal, fresh coconut and uncooked pastry, also make welcome meals. All can be cut up and speared on trees or hung in nets or special feeders.
But Birdwatch warned that dried coconut, uncooked rice or dry bread, which may swell up in a bird's stomach, should not be left out.
"It is equally as important to ensure that your garden birds have a constant supply of fresh drinking water, something that can be very hard for them to find when ponds and puddles are frozen over," the spokesman said. "As well as needing to drink it, they also need it for bathing, to ensure that their feathers are kept clean so that they will insulate them effectively against the cold weather.
"A simple bird-bath can be made from an inverted dustbin lid sunk into the ground; remember to keep the surface ice free." He added: "Once you begin to feed the birds they quickly become dependent on you, so please be sure to continue feeding right through to mid-spring."