Guest blog by Mark Thomas, RSPB Principal Specialist - Investigations
Last week (Thursday 4 May), I set off for a secret location in Norfolk in search of two rare Montagu’s harriers newly arrived from West Africa. These birds are one of just five pairs of Montagu’s harriers which return to the UK to breed each spring, making them our rarest breeding birds of prey. Accompanying me was Anna Hill from BBC Farming Today, keen to find out more about these magnificent birds and how farmers and the RSPB are working together to protect them in our countryside.
Mark Thomas talks to Anna Hill. Image: Jenny Shelton
Miraculously, as soon as we arrived, we saw the birds overhead: first the female, mottled brown with a white rump, then her mate, slim and silvery-grey with black wingtips and distinctive brown bars under the wings.
Because of their scarcity, Montagu’s harriers are protected under Schedule 1 licensing by the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. They nest in lowland arable land, on the ground, within grass and cereal crops such as wheat and barley, putting them at risk from farm machinery and predation. Our specialist team has been working closely with farmers for 30 years to protect these birds, while ensuring farming practices can continue.
So what does this involve? Once a nest is suspected, the key is working out likely harvest dates. In most cases the harvest takes place after the juveniles have fledged the nest. But if the field needs to be cut while the nest is still in use, a small fence is placed around the nest so that predators can’t access the now-exposed young. The fence is removed after the birds leave and this has virtually no impact on farming operations.
Our Norfolk birds hatched two young in 2016, and we’re hopeful they’ll nest successfully again this year. A small number of other nests are being monitoring in the South West of England. Without the willing cooperation of farmers we could have lost this bird in the UK and we are most grateful and proud of our partnership.
Juvenile Montagu's harriers. Image: Mark Thomas
If you think you’ve seen a Montagu’s harrier, please let us know either by calling us on 01767 693690 or emailing montys@rspb.org.uk
All reports are dealt with in the strictest of confidence and will certainly not be publicised in any way.
Listen to the interview on Farming Today here (6.24)