Raptor Conservation

Birds of Prey (Raptors)

The fortunes of Dorset's Birds of Prey during the last 100 years has been a mixed story. Some species have experienced declines and then recoveries while others have simply declined. Persecution and poisoning affected many species in the early and middle part of the last century, the loss and change to habitat has caused significant declines to other species in the second half of the century.

Continuing the work of the Dorset Owl & Hawk Group the Chalk & Hawks Project is focussing its conservation efforts on barn owls and kestrels. These two species are both in need of conservation attention as their populations and ranges have declined significantly in the last 25–50 years (JNCC, BOCC 2004).

Barn Owl (Tyto alba)

Did you know it takes three full years for a barn owl to replace all of its feathers and experiments have shown that barn owls can locate and catch prey when completely blind folded.... not a lot of people know that!

On a more serious note, the British barn owl population has suffered over the last 100 years. Numbers have dropped by some 5,000 pairs since the mid part of the last century to today's estimate of about 4,000 remaining pairs.

The main reasons for these declines are: habitat loss, the loss of traditional nesting sites, increased road casualties and secondary poisoning.

The Chalk & Hawks Project is helping to address these issues in Dorset by encouraging landowners and farmers to enter agri-environment schemes, (providing habitat for prey items), giving advice on reducing raptor fatalities and providing suitably located nest boxes.

Nest box provisioning

Historically barn owls (and kestrels) have nested in roof spaces of farm buildings and decaying ancient hedgerow trees. Many of these traditional nesting sites have disappeared over the years, therefore providing alternatives (nest boxes) enables barn owls and kestrels to breed in areas where they have become absent.

Together with volunteers and participants of our Nest Box Workshops some 200 nest boxes for barn owls and kestrels have been made and installed across Dorset.

The Dorset Bird Club, through its "Conservation Fund" has also supported the Chalk & Hawks Project by funding an extra 60 nest boxes over 2005 and 2006. Presently (February 2006) 40 of these boxes have been installed and a good number of them were used by breeding birds in 2005. It is hoped these boxes will become secure traditional nest sites.

Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus)

What was once our most common bird of prey is most easily recognised as it hovers at the side of a road. Kestrels use this skill to look for vole's urine! Yes, vole's urine. Kestrels are our only bird of prey which can consistently hover in completely still air and have the amazing ability of being able to see ultra-violet light refelected on vole urine. Where there's vole pee there must be voles, kestrels' preferred prey item.

The story of Britain's kestrels is less well known than that of barn owls. Nationally our kestrel population has declined by about 25% in the last 25 years (British Trust for Ornithology, 2004). Declines have been greater in the north. Although these declines are not well understood the loss of suitable hunting habitat through the intensification of farming practices is thought to be the cause.

It is hoped that the widespread uptake of agri-environment schemes will reverse the decline of this dynamic little falcon.
Argi-environment schemes such as the Countryside Stewardship Scheme (CSS) and the new Environmental Stewradship provide and enhance wildlife habitats for a wide variety of farm biodiversity.