The annual Big Farmland Bird Count will be extended until Sunday 23 February due to the recent extreme weather.
The farm wildlife event will be extended for a further week because of Storms Ciara and Dennis, the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust announced.
The count will now run until 23 February to allow those who want to take part more time to get out and count.
The national initiative, which sees farmers count the birds they see on their farm, was originally going to end on 16 February.
Last year more than 1,400 farmers took part in the count. Over 30 red-listed species, those with the highest level of conservation concern, were among the 140 different birds spotted.
These included fieldfares, starlings, house sparrows and yellowhammers – all of which were seen by over 30% of farms taking part.
GWCT head of advisory services, Roger Draycott, explained this unprecedented decision, saying: “Storm Ciara and Storm Dennis have wreaked havoc and frustrated farmers, gamekeepers and land managers who have been keen to get out and undertake the Big Farmland Bird Count.
“With the storms behind us and the weather improving this week we have decided to extend the count to give everyone the opportunity to do their count.”
