As title where are they all. Common buzzards that is. Being an outdoorsy type person I used to see a lot of them in my area. I'm bordered by 3 sets of hills, the lickeys, the Waseleys and clent. In recent years their numbers have increased dramatically. Love to see them soaring overhead. I've seen one pair in the skies this year and that was weeks ago. Weird.
https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/wildlife-guides/bird-a-z/buzzard/population-trends/ When on my way back to the ferry after the Scotland trip I saw a red kite in the borders. Apparently they're on the up.
Could be - but why, though? apparently less than 1% of poults released in pens falls prey to predators?
We went to a red kite feeding station near Castle Douglas on Monday and there were around 70 birds there, a marvellous sight when they come for the food
See a lot around Northamptonshire, and I see Red Kites daily when walking the dog and from my home office window. Sparrow Hawks are pretty common around here also, like this chap that visited my garden a couple of years ago...
Love to see the kites when on the m40. I would dearly like to see them in my overhead skies while I'm still here (alive). They're gradually spreading into the Midlands from the south and Wales. I wondered about game keepers too. But as far as I'm aware buzzards mainly eat carrion and wouldn't pose much, if any, of a threat to a commercial operation. You say "again " Smilinjack, have buzzards been persecuted in the past.
It MAY, perhaps, have something to do with what appears to be a huge increase in corvid numbers? I seem to recall that some recent legislation has stopped - or curtailed - the culling of corvids (that's a bit too alliterative!) but I can say for sure that the numbers of crows and magpies in this area seems to have increased dramatically in the last couple of years. It could certainly create an imbalance in food availability for other carrion eating species. It's a purely emotional reaction but I know which I personally would prefer to see flying around!
You say that, but not a single penny has been spent on independent research as to the safety of 5G... My original post was meant as a flippant comment, and I don't know enough about it. However I fail to see how it can be 100% safe and healthy. Also as I understand it requires line of sight and the 5G radio waves have difficulty with trees, hence why reportedly thare has been an increase in tree removal in some areas. It is certainly worth questioning, and not just blindly accepting what we are told by government who will have ever more surveillance, and the businesses that will make a lot of money out of it.
No shortage of birds of prey in the Borders although the biggest risk to them in NOT, as the rSPB would tell you, gamekeepers but the explosion of b****y windmills. I can’t walk the dog without seeing half a dozen buzzards and I have had sparrowhawks and goshawks in the garden. There are breeding ospreys round the corner and we see the occasional Golden Eagle. The thing that hits buzzards hardest round here is myxomatosis in the rabbit population. The 1% poult losses to raptors however is laughable!
Ospreys are pretty special, I think. I saw a pair which had nested in a Pylon just north of Lochluichart a few years back. The same year I saw a Sea Eagle circling the wee island off Shieldaig. Apparently there's been a nest in there for years. very awe inspiring bird - massive!
I've seen more than normal this year, twice now I've had them fly up off roadkill in front of my bike, I really should get a go pro just for this. I actually saw 3 a couple of months ago from the A1 on 3 posts in the same field.
We used to have loads around us, but as Wee Neil says, there are now loads of Kites. Feeding station is only a few miles from my house. They were reintroduced a few years ago, and definitely affected the numbers of buzzards. Seeing kites is good, but not sure they appreciated the effect on buzzard numbers.
Well it's good to hear buzzards populations are what they should be in most parts of the country. Sadly missing from the Birmingham area though.