Stephen Temperley returns to Skydancer this month, reprising his role coordinating the North Tynedale hen harrier nest protection project. As the breeding season gets underway in earnest, he has some positive early news...
Greetings from the RSPB Species Protection Coordinator for Northumberland! I'm back in post and happy to inform you that covert monitoring for signs of site interest, territoriality and pairing has already begun. A small number of expert volunteers and myself are once again watching over the sites from the margins, taking care to minimise disturbance by keeping at least 1 km away from key nest locations favoured in the past.
It's exciting to be out and searching again but that wind cuts right through you! The North Tynedale site is an elevated plateau (290-320 m) scored by steep ridges and flowing valleys. Open to the strong easterlies arriving unhindered from the North Sea, it can be difficult to find suitably panoramic viewpoints out of the bitter wind. However, I'm pleased to say that our discomfort has already been well rewarded with hen harrier sightings!
Female hen harrier (c) James Leonard
An adult male almost certainly roosted on site as early as the 1st of March, in the same expanse of leggy heather that the last breeding male (2008) liked to roost in while his partner was on the nest. The same individual, perhaps, drawn back to old haunts? If not it would be quite some coincidence. But very encouraging either way, particularly when a further sighting was reported of (probably) the same grey male appearing briefly out of thick mist a week or so later. This week has yielded two sightings (Tuesday and Thursday) of a very pale adult female, seen both foraging and resting up on site.
Winter numbers across Northumberland have been very much more buoyant than in recent years, which bodes well for the upcoming breeding season. At least we can't do worse than in the last four years, when not a single pair was known to have bred in the county.
So, an auspicious beginning, especially considering the weather over the last few weeks. Like sprinters in the blocks, we are ready and waiting.
If you think you've seen a hen harrier anywhere in the North of England, please let us know by calling the hen harrier hotline on 0845 4600121 (calls charged at local rates) or email henharriers@rspb.org.uk. Information on when and where it was (grid reference is helpful), what it was doing, and what it looked like, will help us to keep track of these birds and identify where they might be nesting.
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