BINOCULARS AT THE READY: Birdwatchers have been getting a sneak preview of what to expect from an annual RSPB bird survey.

Volunteers from the charity's Coombes Valley team have been offering visitors to Tittesworth Reservoir, near Leek, the chance to see the kinds of birds they can expect in their gardens.

Visitor and publicity trainee Jenny Lear, pictured, said: "This is a great day out for all the family. Being outdoors and getting involved with nature is what the Big Garden Birdwatch is all about."

The RSPB's Big Garden Birdwatch, which has run for the past 30 years, asks people to record the different types of birds passing through their gardens.

The event takes place across the country this weekend.

Residents are asked to spend

an hour in their gardens looking at what birds come, before sending

a report of the results to the charity

.

Volunteers kitted out with binoculars and telescopes at the feeding station at Tittesworth got a taste of what was to come last weekend as experts pointed out the birds they would be likely to spot in their gardens.

Picture: Cara Edgington