Red Kites in Hampshire (follow up)
Its funny how one very small post I made on this blog earlier this year has sparked off quite a few comments about Red Kite sightings in Hampshire. Thing is this is quite significant and as a member of the RSPB, it is very exciting to see that these splendid birds are living what seems to be a very comfortable existence.
My interest in this particular species goes back many years. I saw my first Kite in the Dordogne region of France whilst on holiday. My Dad and I were watching a bird of prey circling at a great height, it was almost impossible to make out what it was until it started to gradually descend. My Dad was able to identify it for me, as he got a better view of it and confirmed it as being a Red Kite. We caught sight of it a number of times after that close to the farmhouse we were staying in at the time. One day I shall tell you about some of the other creatures we saw there, Marmosets for example, yes, In France, no idea how they got there but a local guy was convinced that’s what they were and believe you me they had the whole village perplexed as much as they did us…
I digress….
Fast forward quite a few years (!!!), I hear about Red Kites being repatriated in our own country, many centuries after they were wiped out by persecution. I thought nothing of it until about 2 or 3 years ago when we were driving through Oxfordshire, I spotted one flying overhead, that was nothing though as a little further down the road we saw a group of 20! It was an incredible sight and we had to stop, just to take it all in. We were witnessing with our own eyes, something quite extraordinary, a bird that had been extinct in this country for so long, was back and in big numbers.
Since that day I have been gradually exploring various areas around Buckinghamshire/Berkshire and have seen Red Kites in Slough of all places. However the best place to see them in the South of England, has got to be Stokenchurch, Bucks. You cannot fail to spot one there, in fact you can see large flocks of them circling high above the village and further out into the Chilterns.
My research indicated that this was very much the case, that Red Kites were breeding very well in Buckinghamshire, Northern England and all over Wales. No mention anywhere of them being sighted in Hampshire (my home county) or anywhere else. So when I saw one for the first time in my own county, I was very pleased indeed. Since that first sighting, I have seen plenty more, probably about a dozen now and most of them around the Basingstoke area.
This brings me back to the comments I have received for the original post - Many people out there have also spotted them and I did a search on Google for “red kite Hampshire” and my site is listed in second place and I have outranked a page on the BBC site too! I only wrote a few words too which I find quite amusing! Its a clear indication of how powerful the blog medium is…
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rashbre
on June 8th, 2008Spotted what I believe to be a kite (I’m no expert) today around the A30 between Hartley Witney and Hook. I’ve seen a biggish bird of prey in that area around the Winchfield railway cutting also and suspect it may be the same type. Rusty reddy brown with a v tail.
Alexandra
on June 25th, 2008Another sighting in Hampshire - out for a run around the Wallops about half an hour ago; I’m fairly close to the Hawk Conservancy Trust who have had a release programme so it’s possible that it was one of theirs.
Jenny
on July 13th, 2008We’ve been seeing Red Kite on a fairly regular basis in our usual walking spot in Hampshire this year We are hopeful that a pair may be breeding/have bred in the area. Have been on holiday but hoping they will be visible today
Mark Taylor
on July 20th, 2008Spotted a Red Kite yesterday afternoon just outside Basingstoke town centre close to Morrisons.
Keith Betton
on November 24th, 2008Hello
I just noticed your discussions about Red Kites. I am licenced by DEFRA to study them at close quarters in Hampshire, and so I thought I’d share my findings.
2008 has seen a continuation in the expansion of Red Kites breeding in the county with nine nests identified with five of these known to have hatched a total of ten young (two at each nest). Results from three sites are not known, while disturbance at another prevented breeding. The likely breeding population of Red Kites in Hampshire is undoubtedly larger than these records suggest.
At two of the nests a total of four chicks were fitted with radio transmitters, and all are still alive in early October. They are ranging around E Berkshire, S Buckinghamshire, E Wiltshire and NW Hampshire.
This is major milestone for the county, where breeding ceased in 1864. Very few sightings were made until the mid-1990s. For example only 11 sightings were reported in 1992, but there were around 200 reports in 1999.
Despite the relatively few sightings at the time, single pairs nested in Hampshire in 1995 and 1996. Then there was a big gap until 2003 when a pair established a regular nest which has been used every year since. However no other nests were discovered until 2007 when an additional two pairs bred – although we suspect one of these also nested in 2006.
The Hawk Conservancy Trust released 12 birds in Hampshire between 2003 and 2005. At least two of these have remained in the county and are known to have bred in 2008.
A winter roost of Red Kites in N Hampshire was discovered in early 2006. Numbers here peak at around 60 and the majority of those present are immature birds. There are at least two other roosts in NE/N Hampshire with 40 and 20 birds respectively.
I hope that helps. I am particularly keen that we keep an eye on any nests, so I’d welcome any information, but because Red Kites are still of interest to egg collectors, please send me this directly and not in the public arena.
Keith Betton
Assistant Recorder
Hampshire Ornithological Society
keithbetton@hotmail.com
NickL
on November 24th, 2008Keith - Thankyou very much for this fascinating information. I would never reveal nest sites here on the site, only flight sightings.
NickL
on November 24th, 2008I would like to add that I believe I may have seen one over Farnborough this weekend near where I live, I cannot confirm this 100% because I only caught a glimpse of a reddish large bird that swooped into a tree near Farnborough Abbey.
Keith Betton
on November 25th, 2008Nick
Your Farnborough bird does not sound right - and they generally don’t swoop into trees. I am about 3 miles S of you and I have never seen one in the Farnborough area.
Keith
Alan Springett
on December 6th, 2008I was putting up my Christmas lights today (6 December) and saw a kite soaring very high over the extreme south western part of West End, Southampton (bordering on Townhill Park). It occasionally flapped its wings. I wondered what it was doing. No prey up there? It was definitely a kite - forked tail. It went of southwards. Is it unusual to see a kite here this time of year?
NickL
on December 6th, 2008It isn’t all that unusual for Kites to venture into towns and other built up areas. Kites used to be a common sight in London 100s of years ago. I have heard they are making a return there although I doubt they’ll ever be as prolific there as they once were - So in a nutshell, I don’t believe it to be odd that you saw one where you did and at this time of year they are very active.
Keith Betton
on December 22nd, 2008The bird flying high over Southampton is typical of an individual bird on the move from A to B. They fly high in those situations. However they are not generally in the Southampton area. 90% of the Red Kites in Hampshire are W, NW and N of Basingstoke, and at the moment there are at least 100 in that general area, with many more further N in the Chilterns.
There are 5-6 sightings over Southampton every year, but that is a statistical probability issue - there are nearly 250,000 people in Southampton, so a bird flying over is really likely to be seen. I have never seen one from my house in Farnham, but if I sat on the roof every day I’d probably see one within a year.
Keith Betton