Skydancer - Gallery

Communal Roost

Blánaid Denman — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 16:32:51 GMT

In winter evenings, hen harriers group together in communal roosts of anywhere between 2 and 10 birds, sometimes bedding down with other birds of prey, particularly marsh harriers.

A winter's snack

Blánaid Denman — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 16:28:28 GMT

A female hen harrier carries a tasty vole back to her winter roosting spot on the Dee Estuary.

Wintering hen harrier on the wing

Blánaid Denman — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 16:14:02 GMT

While some birds have very clear winter migration patterns (eg ospreys go to West Africa), hen harriers clearly prefer to be non-conformist! On the whole, many hen harriers migrate from upland to lowland areas in the winter to escape the harsh weather, but in a mild winter, they may be just as likely to stay put. Females generally seem to stay relatively close to their breeding grounds, while males travel much more widely, occasionally turning up in France, Spain or even Scandinavia! But there are exceptions to every rule and as we learned from our Bowland female tagged last year (see April-May 2012 blogs), some hen harriers will travel all over the place!

Wintering hen harriers return to the Dee Estuary

Blánaid Denman — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 16:00:15 GMT

Though they breed in the long heather of our upland moors in the summer, in winter, many hen harriers retreat from the harsh weather of the uplands, favouring instead the milder coastal lowland areas. They group together in the evenings in communal roosts of 2-10 birds, often mixing with marsh harriers and some other birds of prey. The reedbeds around the Dee Estuary are a favoured spot and a great place to see them in the colder months.

West Cumbria Game Fair 2012

Blánaid Denman — Fri, 20 Jul 2012 15:04:05 GMT

Skydancer stall at the West Cumbria Game Fair 2012, Armthwaite Hall, Keswick.

What's hiding in the heather?

Blánaid Denman — Fri, 20 Jul 2012 14:58:30 GMT

Moorland is a wonderfully diverse and complex habitat, made up of so much more than just heather. Pupils from Hornby St Margaret's CE Primary School, Bowland, had the chance to really get to grips with this on a Skydancer moorland visit and explore the variety of plants and mosses hiding between gaps in the heather. Plants uncovered included crowberry, bilberry, grasses, rushes, cottongrass, and mosses of all shapes and sizes.

Moorland mini-beast hunt

Blánaid Denman — Fri, 20 Jul 2012 14:50:49 GMT

Boys from Honrby St Margaret's CE Primary School get close up and personal with some of Bowland's moorland mini-beasts on a Skydancing Schools moorland visit, July 2012.

The magic of moss

Blánaid Denman — Fri, 20 Jul 2012 14:38:02 GMT

Pupil from West Woodburn First School displays an example of the peat-building sphagnum moss, on a moorland visit. Pupils learned all about how important sphagnum is to the moorland ecosystem and how it's so good at soaking up water that historically, people dried it out and used it as an absorbant lining for babies nappies!

I spy - moorland school visits

Blánaid Denman — Fri, 20 Jul 2012 14:33:21 GMT

Pupil from West Woodburn First School, Northumberland, takes a break from investigating moorland plants to scout out some birds flying above the moor.

On the wing

Blánaid Denman — Thu, 03 May 2012 14:43:22 GMT

Great shot of a female hen harrier in flight over the upland landscape. Note the characteristic white rump. Hen harriers are often confused with short-eared owls who are a similar size and also nest on the ground in the heather. The owls don't have this white patch so this is a quick and easy way to tell them apart. - photo by James Leonard

It's my first day

Blánaid Denman — Thu, 03 May 2012 14:37:30 GMT

Newly hatched hen harrier chick, Bowland 2005. Hen harrier chicks will hatch one after the other in the order in which they were laid, rather than all at once. This means that the eldest chick can be up to five or six days older than the youngest and a whole lot bigger! As the first to hatch, this little guy has the best chance of survival because he'll be big enough to ensure he gets the lion's share of the food. - photo by Chris Adams.

Deep in the heather

Blánaid Denman — Thu, 03 May 2012 14:29:38 GMT

Female hen harrier near her nest - photo by James Leonard

If you like it then you'd better put a ring on it

Blánaid Denman — Thu, 03 May 2012 14:25:08 GMT

A newly ringed hen harrier chick, Bowland 2011. Hen harriers are very site-faithful and when they reach maturity, chicks will often return to the same area where they themselves were hatched. Using BTO leg rings like this causes no harm to the birds and allows us to identify individuals, helping to track their progress and gain valuable information about things like survival rates. - photo by Jude Lane

Incoming!

Blánaid Denman — Thu, 03 May 2012 14:18:39 GMT

A male hen harrier takes a dive at the camera - photo by Amy Challis, Bowland 2008

Touch the sky

Blánaid Denman — Thu, 03 May 2012 14:15:41 GMT

Pupils have fun making their home-made hen harriers fly high in the schoolyard of Hallbankgate Village School, Cumbria.