A NEW report, based on camera evidence compiled over the last five years, has provided a rare insight into the lives of one of Scotland’s rarest birds of prey, Hen Harriers.
The NatureScot report, published today, found that Hen Harriers’ success is closely linked to the age of the father, prey availability, and land use.
The Heads Up for Harriers partnership project, which used cameras on 28 Scots estates to monitor the birds, found the age of the adult male bird is a key factor in breeding.
There was a 91% success rate when males were older than one year, irrespective of the age of the adult female bird.
READ MORE: IN PICTURES: 'Fantastic spectacle' as birds near record numbers on Scots reserve
The report also found that nesting attempts and fledging success were higher during warm, dry spring weather, with wetter weather having a negative impact on both the harriers and availability of prey.
The research also provided an insight into what Hen Harriers eat.
It found they predated on other birds 89% of the time, with mammals making up the final 11%.
At 77% of birds, Meadow Pipits were by far the most abundant prey for the harriers. Red Grouse accounted for only 5.6% of prey.
Over 2 million images of the harriers’ nests were studied to reveal harrier behaviour and factors impacting their survival.
While the majority of estates have some game shooting interest, analysis indicated that harriers fare best on those estates without any. More breeding attempts, nesting success, and higher productivity were recorded on the majority of non-sporting estates.
Hen harriers have a low survival rate for young birds, and the project showed that, where the reasons for failure could be determined, all the nest failures were due to natural factors or predation by foxes and other birds.
READ MORE: Why the SNP should back an end to grouse shooting on Scottish moors
Professor Des Thompson of NatureScot, who is also chair of the Heads Up for Harriers Group, said: “Hen Harriers continue to struggle in Scotland and they remain a rare species, although Scotland holds by far the majority of the UK population with 505 territorial pairs.
“This report shows that almost half of breeding adult female birds are four years or older and 87% of male birds are older than one year, despite the females being capable of breeding much earlier.
“This indicates a high turnover of young birds, and while the report does not speculate as to the reasons, this is a worrying statistic.”
Report author Brian Etheridge said: “Some fascinating patterns in Hen Harrier breeding habits have been identified, such as a tendency for nesting on westerly facing slopes, with an increasing preference for nests in higher areas, and the low occurrence of grouse within the sampled 500 prey items. “This information should help land managers better cater for nesting harriers, while providing reassurance of the limited impact on game birds.”
Information in the report was gleaned by analysing images from 52 hen harrier nests (37 of which had cameras installed), between them fledging 120 young birds. For the full report, see https://www.nature.scot/naturescot-research-report-1209-heads-harriers-image-analysis-2015-2019
Heads Up for Harriers is a Partnership for Action Against Wildlife Crime Scotland (PAW) Scotland project, led by NatureScot. From the project start in 2015, 52 hen harrier nests were located. 35 of these were successful in fledging a total of 120 young. Trail cameras were installed at 37 nests and over two million images recorded.
The Heads Up for Harriers Group are considering a shift in focus to concentrate on areas which can benefit most from intervention. The group will be discussing how best to achieve this with the PAW Scotland Raptor Group in the future.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel