As we approach the nest, we have to watch our every step for chicks that may have gone on an exploratory shuffle through the knee-deep heather. The adrenalin is pumping as I anticipate what we’re about to find. It’s quickly followed by a wave of relief and happiness as I stand there holding a beautiful, healthy hen harrier chick in my hands.
I’d been on the morning protection shift the previous day and had seen at least one of the chicks airborne. Volunteers had been spotting little wings flapping around the nest site when the female came in with food over the weekend, but early on in my shift one managed to get just enough lift under its wings to allow its body and distinctively gangly harrier legs, to clear the top of the long heather. It was just for a fraction of a second, but all the same, it was the sign I had been waiting for that these chicks were ready for their satellite tags!
The satellite tags need to be fitted when the birds are at the point of fledging to ensure they are big enough and healthy enough to carry one. The tags weigh just a fraction of the bird’s body weight and are solar powered, allowing us to track their movements for at least three years. The data these tags send back to us will provide a fantastic insight into where these birds go to hunt, roost, and with a bit of luck, breed. Two females fitted with satellite tags last year at Langholm are in the process of raising broods of their own back there this year.
Here you can see Stephen Murphy of Natural England carefully fitting a tag to one of the Bowland chicks.
© Jude Lane RSPB
This fabulous picture shows two of the five chicks sporting their new satellite tags; both of these birds are females. As both male and female hen harrier chicks have the same colour plumage they can be tricky to tell apart so the colour of their eyes is one of the best ways to distinguish between them. You can see these both have deep brown eyes; a male would have smoky grey/brown eyes.
© RSPB
In the next few days, pupils at Brennand’s Endowed Primary School in Slaidburn will be naming these two sisters to make it more fun and interesting to follow their progress on this blog over the coming weeks, months and hopefully years. Come back soon to find out who’s who!
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