Count your garden birds and take part in a garden bird survey in Belgium.
In Belgium during the weekends of January 24-25, 2026 (in Flanders) and January 31-February 1, 2026 (in Wallonia), thousands of people across the country will be taking part in the annual census of garden birds. It’s organised by the Belgian nature conservation societies Natuurpunt (Flemish) and Natagora (French). The statistics gathered give a useful picture of the current status of garden birds in Belgium. For example, the information can help ecologists spot a declining species, and take the first steps to aid recovery.
Get the children involved
If you want to take part, it’s simple; and it’s particularly fun for children. Simply record the highest number of each bird species seen during one of the weekends. It can be in your garden or on your balcony, and either on the Saturday or Sunday, or both. You don’t have to spend all weekend staring out of your window; half an hour is sufficient. The morning is the best time to look, when the birds are out and about, feeding after a cold winter’s night.
But remember – you should note the maximum number you see at any one time. So if for example you see 5 blue tits at nine o’clock on Saturday and 7 at ten o’clock, you don’t write down 12 blue tits, but 7.
But I don’t know the names of my garden birds!
If you are not sure how to tell a blue tit from a great tit, or a house sparrow from a tree sparrow (or what they are called in Dutch or French), don’t worry, just use the forms that I mention below which have colour photographs of the birds you are most likely to see.
Use this Dutch garden bird ID chart below to help you identify the birds in Dutch: and fill in your observations.
Learn garden birds’ names in Dutch
You then submit your observations online here.
Use this French garden bird ID chart to learn what the birds are called in French:
Learn garden birds’ names in French
You can then submit your sightings here.
In bilingual Brussels, just choose the language that suits you best. And no, I do not understand why Flanders and Wallonia have different weekends for these bird counts!
If you want some advice on how to attract birds to your garden, check out my post on feeding garden birds.
Many countries throughout the world organise their own bird counts on specific weekends. If your country does not seem to do so, don’t worry. You can still count your garden birds, wherever you live, in any country of the world, and submit them to a great global initiative called eBird.
Nature projects for children
Did you know that there’s a whole range of nature projects on this website? Some are ideal for children and grandchildren. Here are a few examples:
- How to make a wildlife garden
- How to identify garden butterflies
- How to make a hedgehog feeding station
- How to identify berries on an autumn country walk
- How to identify farm crops on a country walk
- How to make a bee hotel
- How to make a country walk fun for children
I created Discovering Belgium in 2011 to share the country’s hidden stories, fascinating places, and remarkable people. Through articles, photography, and audio walks, I share discoveries that reveal Belgium beyond the obvious. Hope you enjoy this site.
Ha. No it’s the famous Count Avi Anne 😅
Thanks for the heads up, Denzil. We just happen to be in San Diego that weekend and should see a lot of birds. Since my husband is for the birds (literally and figuratively), it would be a great assignment for him. 🙂
Hopefully that darn squirrel hasn’t followed you there.
Hope he won’t San Diego has ground squirrels, larger and less attractive, not tree rats.
Thank you Denzil. I checked out the Irish link and will definitely take part.
Great, look forward to hearing what Irish birds you have in your garden.
This is such a fun and useful event to participate in. I wish I could do this (Southern California) but we live in an artificially fabricated eucalyptus woods and the birds hate it. The only feathered friends for decades were crows – noisy and messy. Now we do get peregrine falcons but I’m lucky to spot the pair a couple of times over the season. Sometimes a hummingbird flits by but for the most part, this faux bois doesn’t provide an avian enriching environment – all the more reason for those who live in areas that do to enjoy the count.
As for the competing counting corporations – their system is for the birds. They ought to get their act together.
Never heard of a eucalyptus wood Sharon. Shame it’s pretty dead.
A lot of things are double here, due to the language division. So there will be a French and Dutch version of pretty much identical organisations or services. I guess it keeps more people in work.
Amen, Sharon – Denzil, I’ve got birds in my back yard, not a huge diversity, but last week for a few mornings there was a lot of early morning clamoring by a flock of parrots 🙂
Thanks for bringing this to our attention, Denzil. I was unaware of such a census and I’m pleased to see that the USA also participates. We have three hummingbirds and about six small brown-feathered birds. I’ll have to find out their name.
I’ve never seen a hummingbird. I think they are so beautifully fragile
Denzil, many thanks for mentioning this as I usually read about the event afterwards. I used to think you had to spend the whole weekend bird-watching but from your book realise it’s just an hour and as the RSB website says ‘Make sure it’s comfy and you have the essentials within easy reach – a nice, hot drink and your favourite biscuits – and somewhere to jot down what you see.’ Fun and easy … I hope.
Look forward to taking part … reckon I’ll get stressed when there are many birds around the feeders!
Even 30 minutes is fine. Or two sessions. Hope you enjoy it!
Great, and again a wonderful activity for children! I will bookmark February 15-18 and do my part here in Colombia which reportedly has the largest number of bird species of any country on the planet.
That sounds like a birdwatcher’s paradise. Let me know how you get on
A friend of mine always does the Australian one and usually announces the date beforehand. I’ll have to join in this year.
Try and see more than your friend does!
She lives on a large block of land with many trees and has a big bird feeder right outside the back door. She loves to sit just inside and watch all the native birds come to the feeder. I already know she would win hands down! 🙂
The US/Canada has their count in mid-Feb. Bird counts are on the rise worldwide, so good for science!
Absolutely Eliza, and I was so encouraged to see a global one that takes your data from anywhere.
Hi Denzil. I have scheduled a post on your book for Friday. Just in case you do not catch it.
Thanks so much Brigid. Yes I caught it and commented on it. Really appreciate this Brigid.
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I took part in the Flemish count today for the third time. It’s fun and even less of a time commitment – only 15 minutes. You can do it multiple times if you want, submitting a separate form for each 15 minute slot, but I think it’s a good idea to keep the time short. Hopefully that encourages more people to join in, and the avid bird watchers can do it as many times as they like. I’d noticed that since the snow we had recently melted, that there were fewer birds coming to my feeders. And it was a ‘quiet’ day, but I still managed to see 10 different types of birds so I’m happy with that. I’d encourage everyone to take part – it’s great fun and the time flies by (no bird pun intended.)
That’s great to hear Bren. Glad you saw 10 species. Were there any unusual birds that you didn’t expect to see?