Naturalists have claimed that listening to five minutes of birdsong can help us feel happier and can lifts our moods.

A study of the mood altering effect of sounds by Goldsmiths College of London, have found that even a short burst of birdsong or other sounds such as crashing waves and crackling fires affects perceptions.

Birdsong is one of the most distinctive sounds from the natural world and gives us a warm glow inside when we hear it.

We all know we should eat five a day so why not take five, thats five minutes to listen to birdsong and it could be beneficial to our well being.

Take time on your Canal Boat Holiday and just stop and listen to the wonderful birdsong along the canal banks.

Listen for an owl hooting or for a nightingale singing at dusk or at first light listen for blackbirds, robins and wrens as the dawn chorus sounds the start of morning.

You may be in a privileged to hear the cry of the buzzards or kestrals as the swoop over farmland hunting for food.

The canals are easily accessible and free to explore and they are the ideal destination for nature lovers.

As you gentle cruise along the canals on your Canal Boat Holiday you will get back to nature and have a chance to see the bird life close up.

Ducks and swans feed on the weeds that float in the canal and the reeds growing at the edge provides shelter for the kingfishers.

As you are cruising along on your Canal Boat Holiday feed the moorhens and swans as they follow you hoping for a tasty treat.