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  • Hen harrier

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Hen harrier

Hen harrier (male)
Hen harrier (male)
Hen harrier (female/juvenile)
Hen harrier (female/juvenile)
  • Scientific name: Circus cyaneus
  • Bird family: Kites, hawks and eagles
  • UK conservation status: Red
  • Protected by The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981

Key information

Of the UK's birds of prey, this is the most intensively persecuted. Once predating free-range fowl, earning its present name, its effect on the number of grouse available to shoot is the cause of modern conflict and threatens its survival in some parts of the UK, particularly on the driven grouse moors of England and Scotland.

While males are a pale grey colour, females and immatures are brown with a white rump and a long, barred tail which give them the name 'ringtail'. They fly with wings held in a shallow 'V', gliding low in search of food, which mainly consists of meadow pipits and voles. The Orkney population is famous for being polygynous, with males sometimes mating with multiple females on the island.

They are listed as a Schedule 1 species under The Wildlife and Countryside Act.

What they eat:

Mainly small birds and mammals.

Measurements:

Length:
44-52cm
Wingspan:
100-120cm
Weight:
300-400g (male) 400-600g (female)

Population:

UK breeding is the number of pairs breeding annually. UK wintering is the number of individuals present from October to March. UK passage is the number of individuals passing through on migration in spring and/or autumn.
UK breeding:
617 pairs (and 29 on the Isle of Man) in 2010

Identifying features:

This bird species has different identifying features depending on sex/age/season.

Hen harrier (male)

Hen harrier male
Feather colour: Black Grey White
Leg colour: Yellow
Beak: Black Short Hooked Chunky
Natural habitats: Farmland Grassland Marine and intertidal Upland Wetland

Hen harrier (female/juvenile)

Hen harrier female juvenile
Feather colour: Black Brown Cream/buff White
Leg colour: Yellow
Beak: Black Short Hooked Chunky
Natural habitats: Farmland Grassland Marine and intertidal Upland Wetland

Similar birds:

Montagu's Harrier male in flight
Montagu's harrier
Marsh Harrier male in flight
Marsh harrier

Where and when to see them

The hen harrier lives in open areas with low vegetation. In the breeding season UK birds are to be found on the upland heather moorlands of Wales, Northern England, Northern Ireland and Scotland (as well as the Isle of Man). In winter they move to lowland farmland, heathland, coastal marshes, fenland and river valleys. Those found in eastern and south-east England are probably mostly visitors from mainland Europe.

* This map is intended as a guide. It shows general distribution rather than detailed, localised populations.
  • Resident
  • Passage
  • Summer
  • Winter
Hen harrier distribution map

Hen harriers arrive back on upland breeding areas from late March and stay there until August and September. Away from breeding areas birds can be seen from October to March and continental birds will join residents in October and November.

  • jan
  • feb
  • mar
  • apr
  • may
  • jun
  • jul
  • aug
  • sep
  • oct
  • nov
  • dec

RSPB reserves

  • RSPB Blacktoft Sands
  • RSPB Trumland
  • RSPB Frampton Marsh
  • RSPB Hobbister
  • RSPB Aghatirourke
  • RSPB Birsay Moors
  • RSPB Cottascarth and Rendall Moss
  • RSPB Dee Estuary - Parkgate
  • RSPB Forsinard Flows
  • RSPB Freiston Shore
  • RSPB Hoy
  • RSPB Loch Gruinart
  • RSPB The Oa

Video

Watch footage from a hen harrier nest in Bowland during 2011.

The hen harrier is a Schedule 1 species. Disturbance of these species may only by undertaken by licensed individuals. This footage was obtained under a licence provided by Natural England.

Hen harrier video screenshot
Hen harrier Circus cyaneus, adult female perched on heather at Loch Gruinart RSPB reserve, Islay

Hen harrier appeal

Harried to the edge of extinction in England, hen harriers need your help, before it's too late.

Donate

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Hen harrier Circus cyaneus, female in flight against blue sky, Geltsdale, Cumbria

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Skydancer was an exciting four-year project aimed at raising awareness and promoting the conservation of hen harriers.
Hen harrier Circus cyaneus, adult female perched on heather at Loch Gruinart RSPB reserve, Islay

Hen harrier

The hen harrier, relative to its population, is considered the most persecuted bird of prey in the UK.

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