Wild Redwing Winter Welfare Fieldfare

Fieldfares and redwings are winter thrush migrants from Scandinavia whose welfare in the UK depends on the availability of berry crops and mild enough weather to maintain foraging access.

Key Facts

Redwings and fieldfares arrive in the UK from October onwards, with populations sometimes numbering in the millions during peak migration years.
Both species rely heavily on hawthorn, holly, and other berried shrubs in early winter, switching to earthworms and other invertebrates when berries are depleted.
Severe frost events that freeze the ground prevent earthworm access, creating starvation risk for birds that have exhausted berry supplies.
Garden feeding during cold snaps - particularly apples on the ground - can provide critical emergency food for winter thrushes.
Fieldfares and redwings rarely stay longer than their food supply lasts - depleted berry crops drive southward movements later in winter.

Welfare Considerations

Winter thrush welfare is tightly coupled to food availability, which is in turn determined by berry crop abundance and weather conditions. Mild, wet winters allow earthworm access throughout the season, supporting good body condition. Cold, frozen winters create acute starvation risk when invertebrate access is blocked and berry supplies are exhausted. Garden provision of windfall apples and other fruits during cold snaps provides emergency food that can be welfare-significant for individual birds. Landscape management that maintains hedgerows with diverse berry-producing shrubs provides the multi-species food resource that thrushes require for sustained winter welfare.

What You Can Do

Leave fallen apples on the ground during winter - redwings and fieldfares readily use them.
Plant berry-producing native shrubs including hawthorn, holly, and rowan in gardens and hedgerows.
Participate in winter thrush surveys through the BTO to support population monitoring.
Support hedgerow conservation and restoration funding that maintains diverse berry crops.