As garden birds struggle to find food, many species are also at risk of overheating and dehydration
While warm summer days may seem like good news for Britain’s wildlife – and indeed they can be for some warmth-loving insects, such as dragonflies – for many species of bird, mammal and insect the current drought conditions are far from ideal.
The British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) has warned that some of our best-loved garden birds are already struggling, as they try to raise their second broods of young. Blackbirds, robins and song thrushes need regular summer rainfall, as this creates the damp conditions that bring earthworms and other soil-dwelling invertebrates to the surface of garden lawns.