This project started in July/August of 1995 when the first batch of eleven Red Kites were released from their aviary. Ten of these birds were collected from the provinces of Segovia and Salamanca in central Spain and they all have a grey plastic tag on each wing with a white letter. The eleventh bird was a one-year old male from southern England that had been shot and subsequently rehabilitated at London Zoo.
The majority of these kites remained in the Midlands after release. Two individuals, however, decided to explore further afield and were tracked down to Wales, one on the edge of Snowdonia in the north and the other to the Brecon Beacons in the south where they were often seen socialising with the local Welsh kites.
In 1996 a total of eighteen more birds were released in late summer in the same area. Again the majority were imported as chicks from central Spain but, in addition, a chick and an adult bird came from Wales and the final bird was another individual with shotgun wounds from southern England that was brought to the Midlands following rehabilitation at London Zoo.
As in 1995, some of the released birds have wandered away from the Midlands, including one that has joined up with the Red Kites in the south of England and two that have gone as far as the valleys of mid-Wales and another that was located by aerial survey in Essex.
Extracts from Red Kite Newsletter Issue One, January 1997. English Midlands reintroduction project. English Nature 1997
This was a landmark year in the Midlands with the first successful breeding in the region for well over a century. Four pairs, made up mainly of birds released in 1995, laid eggs and three pairs were successful in raising a total of eight young. The fourth pair were made up of one year old birds released in 1996 and, although unsuccessful, will have hopefully gained experience from the attempt and have more chance of success in 1998.
A further 20 birds were released in the Midlands in 1997, ten from the southern England population and ten from Segovia in central Spain. They were released in July and, as in previous years, while most remained in the Midlands, some dispersed within a few weeks of release. Records of dispersing birds were received from as far afield as Beachy Head, the Yorkshire Dales and at least two birds moved west to Wales. Sadly one of these was found dead under powerlines in north Wales and the post-mortem showed that it had been electrocuted. As in southern England the project has been adversely affected by illegal poisoning and a bird released in 1996 was killed by mevinphos (Phosdrin) in the Midlands in the spring of 1997.
At the time of writing a communal roost in the Midlands attracts about 20 birds (identifiable from wing-tags) each evening, comprising a mixture of birds released in 1997 and previous years as well as young fledged this year. Monitoring work will continue to follow the released kites over the winter and any sightings of wing-tagged birds would be of considerable help in tracking their progress. Birds seen in Wales with black or red tags possibly relate to English released or fledged birds and we would be most grateful for any sightings. Please report details of any sightings to the at the Welsh Kite Trust or directly to Ian Carter at English Nature Northminster House, Peterborough, PE1 1UA (01733 455281).
A further 21 young kites, taken from nests in the Chilterns, were released in the Midlands in late summer 1998, in what was probably the final year of releases at this site. A high proportion (17 out of 21) remained in the Midlands over the winter and all were still present in mid-March 1999. The main communal roost held 45 to 50 birds for much of the winter and was quite an impressive spectacle, particularly in windy weather, when large groups of kites could be watched circling over the roost wood, sometimes chasing each other and indulging in dramatic play-fights.
Based on the number of adult kites seen at the roost in late winter it is estimated that there will be about 10 to 12 breeding pairs in the Midlands this year. We are hoping that the productivity of these pairs will be much higher than in 1998 when four breeding pairs managed to rear only three young to fledging. Monitoring of the breeding pairs will be particularly intensive this year so that if the breeding season is as disappointing as in 1998 we should have a good idea as to what is causing the problems.
There have been three kites of midlands origin found dead since the last update in September 1998. Red 20, a bird released in 1997, and not seen since the day of release, was found long dead in south Dorset in November 1998. Another 1997 released bird, red 8, spent its first winter near Romsey in south Hampshire before returning, briefly, to the Midlands in the summer of 1998, only to be found dead in the Chilterns in January 1999. Investigations are ongoing into the cause of death and it may be possible to say more in the next update.The final casualty was a 1998 released bird that spent much of the winter near Horsey in east Norfolk and was found dead in late March near Newbury, Berkshire. The post-mortem will hopefully identify the cause of death.
There was a welcome improvement in the fortunes of the Midlands populations in 1999 following the poor 1998 breeding season when only three young were reared. This year there were ten territorial pairs, seven breeding (egg-laying) pairs and six successful pairs reared 16 young to fledging.
All but one of the 16 young were wing-tagged using white tags on the left wing and black on the right wing. Long-life back-back radio harnesses were fitted to 12 of the chicks while still in the nest. These last for about three years and should allow the progress of these birds to be followed right through to their first breeding attempt and beyond.
No further birds were released in the Midlands this year and it is believed that the 70 birds released between 1995 and 1998, together with wild-fledged young, should be sufficient to establish a population able to increase naturally. The total Midlands population as of October 1999 is estimated at 60 birds.
