Fife hikers to play ‘birdsong bingo’

Hikers at the Falkland Estate in Fife will be playing ‘birdsong bingo’ on April 3rd, as part of the Scottish Natural Heritage Bird Song Bingo Walk.

The event combines bingo with education, allowing bird-lovers to learn the distinctive calls of several of the species that nest on the estate.

Once everybody knows what to listen out for, the group will walk through the estate, and tick species off of their own unique bingo cards as and when they hear them.

Whoever completes their card first has a reward waiting for them, in the form of a cuddly soft-toy singing bird.

Dave Shepherd, Fife area officer for SNH and leader of the walk, says: “From early spring to summer, songbirds live up to their names and fill the air with music. It’s the males who sing the longest and loudest, for two reasons: to defend their territory, and attract a mate.

“We’ll have a stroll, listen for bird songs, learn some fascinating bird facts, and play bird bingo. So sharpen your hearing, and join us to track down the feathered songsters.”

Birds are just one of the species that are central to the activities of the Falkland Centre for Stewardship, which carries out surveys of the site’s animal populations with the assistance of volunteers.

Every Monday, this band of volunteers meet to walk the land and count everything from birds and moths to plants and squirrels.

In return, they receive specialist training on wildlife and conservation issues, along with the satisfaction of contributing towards the upkeep of the estate.

Alternatively, visitors who can’t make the Bird Song Bingo Walk might prefer to celebrate the Snowdrop Festival instead, which marks the transition from winter into spring.

Visitors to the estate until the end of March may be in time to catch the end of this year’s Festival, which invites them to wander at will through the estate’s acres, and enjoy the snowdrops that line many of the trails.

And with such diversity of plants and animals, there’s no reason why families might not want to make some bingo cards of their own to tick off the species they spot.

Our guide to how to make your own bingo cards has ideas for families setting out on all kinds of journeys – not just to country estates – as well as how you can incorporate educational value into your choice of what you ask your children to look out for, and make sure that a clear winner is chosen by the end of your trip.