Good news – we're getting regular sightings of the male hen harrier over last year's nesting site. The female has also been spotted, though she's a little way away. Fingers crossed they lock eyes on each other (over a smoky sky) soon when he begins displaying.The North Tynedale site is an area of heather moorland with crags and bogs and fringed by conifer forest. From the top of some of the crags, I can see the Cheviots (still with a few patches of snow). One of the fantastic things about this project is that because the site is so well protected, many other species are benefitting in addition to the harriers. The local peregrines successfully nested in 2008 (the first time in a number of years I believe) and there are no fewer than 4 species of owls in the area. Add to that ravens, nightjars, buzzards, kestrels and goshawks… the list goes on.Apart from keeping an eye on the birds, we've been busy recruiting volunteers to help with the Nest Watch and getting all the monitoring equipment in tip-top shape so we're ready as soon as the birds begin settling down. How many people does it take to run a harrier nest watch? A lot! In all, there are probably around 50+ staff and volunteers from the RSPB, the Northumberland & Tyneside Bird Club and the Forestry Commission with some level of involvement. Volunteers are key to this project and we are always on the look out for more to join the team... I saw my first curlew of the season last week. It's always a great moment of every year and a sure sign that spring is rolling in. It shouldn't be long before we see some skydancing. More from the moors soon…