Our garden birds have had a torrid time of it since Christmas and many species that were already on the brink of a crisis could have been tipped over the edge.

Hundreds of thousands of you took part in last month's Big Garden Birdwatch so hopefully we will have a more accurate idea of exactly who suffered the most and know where to focus our efforts when the results come in.

But despite the temperatures actually getting above freezing for a while now we mustn't stop our efforts. Food, water and shelter are all essential for survival and you never know who your hospitality will be used by. The RSPB was inundated with calls about unusual garden visitors in January and redwings and fieldfares were particularly prominent, often in their droves.

People also reported birds like snipe, woodcock and bittern in gardens. I've sat for hours on a nature reserve and not managed to see some of these elusive birds so to have them feeding at a garden pond, bold as brass, is incredible and shows how desperate they are.

You could really be contributing to the conservation of some extremely threatened birds from your own backyards. Hopefully these birds will gradually be venturing back to familiar territory in the countryside now but all we need is a few cold days and they'll likely be back.

Now is a good time to put up any nest boxes you might have in your sheds or garages or perhaps that you got for Christmas.

The nesting season may be a way off but all sorts of birds will use them for shelter. The record so far is over 60 wrens in one nest box – desperate times call for desperate measures.

Kate