Milvus milvus
Here in Oxfordshire there are Red Kites over the garden. They come particularly low in the early morning, looking for food to scavenge. They eat roadkill and will hunt small mammals and birds, but their favourite food amongst householders who love them is chicken.
It’s been a thrill to watch them so close, especially since they were almost extinct in Britain when I was a child. I went to Wales on a Biology Field trip and we ventured to a forest to watch one of the few individuals left. We saw its distinctive forked tail high above.
Persecution by landowners, often by poisoning of carrion bait, and woodland clearance have all had an effect on their population. A concerted effort to reintroduce them, including individuals from mainland Europe has been a great success and they’re now a frequent sight above the M4 and M40. And my friend’s garden.
This one is missing one of its long tail feathers which make such a distinctive ‘v’ shape in flight.
Their spectacular recovery from just a handful of birds, and the affection in which they are now held, is an encouraging sign for other species we are about to lose.
I look forward to them being common all over the UK.
More Red Kites
Red Kite surveillance This Red Kite clearly knows I'm here. Its threat-awareness and predator-avoidance systems are working overtime. I suspect I'm a distraction… read more
Red Kite flying The Red Kites over the garden here in Oxfordshire are a constant delight. The light hit this one and illuminated… read more
Bright light – harsh light Bright light for bird photography is a wonderful thing. Harsh light is terrible. Deep shadows, blown highlights, and excessive contrast… read more
Red Kite clutching The Red Kites over my friends' garden here in Oxfordshire all appear to be clutching something. There's usually a feather… read more
Red Kite, mobbed I'm in the garden in Oxfordshire while on chicken-sitting duties for my friends My local Red Kite here has half… read more
Chicken-sitting I'm currently back chicken-sitting for my friends in Oxfordshire. Last time I was here there were eleven chickens. This time… read more
Red Kite hunting We're having a walk around Farmoor Reservoir in Oxfordshire. It's Oxfordshire's largest body of open water. We have Anna the… read more
More Red Kites Each morning here in Oxfordshire, over breakfast, after we've let the eleven chickens out of their bedtime quarters into their… read more
Red Kite in the morning As a teenager, I went on a biology field trip to Borth on the west Wales coast. We had a… read more