IT wasn’t just humans who suffered during the coldest winter in decades – birds were hit hard too.

And twitchers in Oxfordshire have helped the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) identify which species suffered most in the cold spell at the start of the year.

Seventy-three species were recorded in 280,000 gardens across the UK on January 30-31. In Oxfordshire 9,078 people took part in the Big Garden Birdwatch survey.

RSPB staff compared figures from this year’s survey with last year’s, to show that the cold weather was a particular threat to the coal tit, the long-tailed tit and the goldcrest.

They have urged householders to put more food and water out for birds, particularly during the winter months.

Louise Pedersen, of the RSPB’s Oxfordshire office, said: “The winter we have experienced has been particularly hard for the smaller- bodied birds.

“Their numbers are significantly down compared to the results from last year’s survey.

“Because they have to feed constantly to keep their temperature up, they are the most vulnerable to cold temperatures and a less abundant natural source of food.We were particularly concerned for small birds over the winter, asking people to make sure they kept feeders topped up and supplied fresh water to help them.

“These results highlight the importance of feeding and gardening for wildlife, especially during prolonged cold periods.”

The RSPB claimed the study was the biggest wildlife survey in the world, and provided the charity with a “fantastic snapshot” of garden birds’ welfare.

The wildlife organisation added that the weather was also responsible for more sightings in gardens of countryside birds like redwings, bullfinches and yellowhammers.These birds are more usually found in fields and farmland trees and hedgerows, but visit gardens for food when they cannot find enough in their usual haunts.

In Oxfordshire, sightings of the long-tailed tit fell from 1.37 per garden to 1.02, average sightings of the coal tit fell from 0.52 to 0.43, and average sightings of the goldcrest fell from 0.05 to 0.01.

Nationwide, the house sparrow retained its top spot for the seventh year running, with an average of 3.8 seen per garden.

The blackbird rose from third to second place with an average of 3.3 per garden.

The starling dropped to third with 3.1 per garden, the first time it has been out of the top two in more than 10 years.

Some of the UK’s most familiar species continue to suffer huge declines.

In the past five years, house sparrows have declined by 17 per cent and starlings by 13 per cent, according to the Big Garden Birdwatch survey.

Ms Pedersen added: “The sparrow and starling chicks rely on live food like worms and insects, so people need to transform their gardens into wildlife havens so that food for the birds become more easily accessible.

“People can also create more nesting places for birds in their gardens and that helps them to survive.”

For further information about creating homes for birds, visit rspb.org.uk