Pure England has printed, in additional element than in earlier years (click on right here), the numbers of Hen Harriers nesting in England – they’re down this 12 months.
Numbers in 2024 are decrease than in 2023 and 2022 and solely barely larger than in 2021.
This 12 months places an finish to a run of years of accelerating Hen Harrier numbers in England which have been trumpeted as successful of the ill-considered brood-meddling scheme by moorland managers and Pure England. For a unique view on brood meddling ask nearly any raptor employee, the RSPB or see this report by Wild Justice, Meddling on the Moors – click on right here.
Nonetheless, this 12 months’s decrease Hen Harrier numbers are considerably larger than in any years of latest a long time besides the previous few years. These numbers, although lowered, would have been thought to be superb till very latest years. There was a big change.
Hen Harrier breeding numbers fluctuate because of a spread of things – and so they fluctuate from 12 months to 12 months greater than these of most raptors. Again within the olden days of the Nineteen Nineties, the Langholm Research produced good proof that Hen Harrier common densities have been decided by the densities of small birds (prey for Hen Harriers), particularly Meadow Pipits, however that the variation round these numbers from 12 months to 12 months have been associated to the biking of vole populations. I haven’t met anybody who has mentioned that this 12 months was a very good vole 12 months and so we’d count on fewer Hen Harriers to aim to nest. I ponder whether Brief-eared Owl numbers are down too, as they’re much more depending on vole numbers.
The climate, the 12 months to 12 months manifestation of the local weather, can also be essential. This spring was an terrible spring in most elements of the UK together with the uplands. Plenty of rain is among the components that has in all probability affected Crimson Grouse numbers, which have been so low that many grouse moors have had one more poor 12 months of capturing, and that climate, and to some extent lack of Crimson Grouse, may have affected Hen Harrier numbers too. I’ve made the purpose each time a periodic nationwide survey of Hen Harriers is carried out that this chicken has good years and dangerous years (vole- and weather-related) because of ‘pure components’ and the nationwide numbers will mirror the vicissitudes of the 12 months in addition to the general high quality of the habitat and likewise, very importantly for this species, the extent of unlawful persecution.
We might be pretty certain that this 12 months’s decrease English breeding numbers of Hen Harriers is because of terrible spring climate. As a consequence of total low numbers there may have been few Hen Harrier nests that may have certified for the brood-meddling scheme the place chicks (or eggs in line with the unique mission plan, however it has all the time been chicks) are faraway from qualifying nests, raised in captivity, after which launched on the moors. This mission is a prize for grouse moor managers, inside whose quantity are to be discovered those that illegally kill this protected chicken, as they get by a licence the influence they’d in any other case search to create by wildlife crime, of fewer energetic Hen Harrier nests of their grouse moors. However to be a qualifying nest, there needs to be one other energetic Hen Harrier nest within the normal neighborhood. Inspection of the NE desk of nesting numbers reveals that there gained’t have been many locations the place there have been qualifying nests. Apparently, the populations held up higher in Bowland (the place nearly all, often all) Hen Harrier nests are off business grouse moors and are on United Utilities land (which regardless of being a water firm (boo! hiss!) has taken a very good line on brood-meddling, ie they don’t do it) and in Northumberland the place a gaggle of organisations together with Forestry England, RSPB and the Northumberland Nationwide Park have protected nests and in at the very least some years have supplied supplementary meals for nesting Hen Harriers. I’m wondering what occurred this 12 months.
After all, no-one believes that grouse moor managers love Hen Harriers and so in a 12 months when Crimson Grouse numbers are very low there is no such thing as a incentive to be ‘good’ to Hen Harriers (by getting them shipped off your grouse moor!).
There was no brood meddling on grouse moors this 12 months, and that have to be as a result of the climate was terrible and there have been few qualifying nests, however it’s also fascinating that English Hen Harrier numbers held up in these areas the place no brood meddling has occurred. NE are interested by whether or not they’ll licence Hen Harrier brood meddling in future – they need to determine to not as Hen Harrier persecution stays rampant on English grouse moors, eg see right here.
The NE weblog on numbers is extra detailed than traditional – that’s to be welcomed and we must always have seen information of this sort for a few years however NE has been secretive about nearly each side of their Hen Harrier work till shamed into being somewhat extra open by the likes of the superb Raptor Persecution UK weblog and this weblog.
Can we count on a press release from the RSPB on these findings – I hope so. I haven’t seen something from the capturing neighborhood but, and we all know they aren’t out capturing Crimson Grouse.
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