We often get interesting phone calls at work. Some of the conversations I over hear on the phone are wonderful. I suppose it’s the nature of what we do, but it’s also testament to just how much people are moved by the natural world around us. So moved, that they can’t wait to tell someone about it. One such phone call last week was no exception. 

Image by Andy Thompson

The scene was set. It was a delicate sky, with strokes of wispy white cloud. Three specks sitting high against the blue backdrop started their decent downwards to catch a glimpse of the world beneath them. They were of course buzzards, but although seen more and more here in the East, not everyone is familiar with this impressive bird of prey. Its size and often inconsistent colouring can cause much confusion amongst keen birdwatchers and countryside lovers. Although this particular caller was slightly disappointed to find out that her sighting was not three eagles circling her local patch, she could be forgiven for thinking so.  

These three magnificent buzzards swaying over a patch of woodland in north Suffolk were catching the wind like paper planes set off by excited children, making that soft flight upwards unaware of how many people had stopped in their tracks to make admiring noises. It would seem that the beautiful day and the warm sun had brought buzzards out all over the region and we were soon busy picking up the phone to other tales of exciting buzzard sightings.

They’re not rare birds and their presence in our region is gradually becoming more and more talked about. After a period of heavy persecution and the misuse of certain farming pesticides, buzzards are a growing population and a much-loved one at that.

The conversations we have with many of you are really encouraging; how excited your kids get when they see such a huge bird up above them, how you might need help identifying this large, mysterious flying object over your back garden, questions about what our birds of prey might be eating, among many other wonderful observations!

It never ceases to amaze me, even though they are at the forefront of the work I do everyday, how much influence bird life has on us. Birds of prey especially, evoke such feelings in people. Seeing a buzzard or any bird of prey for that matter flying up above your house, instantly connects you with nature. Seeing something so intricately linked to our natural world can be mesmerising and something that we should never take for granted. I for one, however many buzzards we have here in the East, will never ever tire of seeing them soar through the sky.

As featured in Sunday's EDP