Since 2008, we’ve been providing nest boxes for Tawny Owls, Barn Owls, Little Owls and Kestrels across southern England as part of our Raptor Nest Box Project. Through your support, what started with a project of just 38 boxes has now dramatically expanded to over 1300!

This important project aims to provide homes for these key species to help boost their population. These nest boxes are also monitored regularly to better understand the behaviour and ecology of these birds so we can improve how we conserve them. Let’s take a look at our four species involved in the project!

Barn Owl

Voted the UK’s second-favourite bird (coming in close behind the Robin), the Barn Owl is one of the most widespread birds of prey around the world. They are a fantastic bird to spot in the wild, actively hunting at dusk or dawn so often spotted on people’s commutes! They have a distinctive style of flight known as ‘quartering’, flying very low and slowly over open grassland in search of prey. If you’ve ever been to see our Woodland Owls flying display, you’ll have seen this beautifully demonstrated by Delta and Elder!

The name Barn Owl derives from their tendency to nest in barns and old buildings, a habitat which is sadly becoming less and less available in our developing landscapes.

Luckily this species also appears happy to settle down in nest boxes – so much so they’ve had designs specially created to suit them! The features unique to this species’ include a deep cavity nest where the entrance hole is placed quite high up. This means the growing owlets cannot fall out of the box before they’re ready to take to the wing. The owlets are also provided with a platform ledge outside the entrance hole, meaning when they do begin to grow they can take their first peek at the outside world without falling out and being at risk of other predators. A canopy above the box also ensures the growing family can stay dry in the face of the inclement British weather.

We currently have 780 Barn Owl next boxes installed across Southern England as part of this project. Our UK Conservation Biologist, Dr Matt Stevens, works hard to maintain and monitor these nest boxes, and while he cannot check each box every year it is estimated that a minimum of 198 chicks fledged from 150 boxes checked during 2023.

While these boxes may be designed for Barn Owls in particular, this does not seem to stop other birds from pinching their boxes! During Matt’s work monitoring these boxes, he’s recorded opportunistic Tawny Owls, Little Owls and Kestrels utilising Barn Owl boxes!

Tawny Owl

This much loved and charismatic bird is one of the most common owls heard in our countryside, preferring woodland habitat to nest and hunt. You may be surprised to hear that this is the only owl in the world to make the classic “twit-twoo” call often associated with owls. If you are lucky enough to be wandering through a local woodland and hear this distinctive call, you are in fact listening to two owls calling to each other, with one calling “twit” with the other replying “twoo”.

Tawny Owls are also referred to as the Ivy Owl as they prefer to nest in hollow cavities within ivy-covered trees. Unfortunately, these sheltered nesting spots are becoming harder to come by. Since the start of the Raptor Nest Box Project, we have installed 181 specially designed boxes, which mimic the hollow trees they prefer.

Tawny Owl chicks are highly adventurous and tend to leave the nest well before they are able to fly. The young owlets hop inquisitively from branch to branch, exploring their surroundings, a behaviour known as “branching”. Therefore, boxes for Tawny Owls need a large high entrance hole, with a deep, narrow chamber inside to delay these adventurous chicks emerging before they are ready to fly.

Due to this branching behaviour, chicks will often fall to the ground, with thick fluffy feathers to soften their landing. With strong beaks and feet, even at a young age they are usually able to climb back up the tree to the nest, and their parents will continue feeding the youngster even while they are on the ground.

It is this adventurous behaviour that make young Tawny Owls the most frequent admission to our National Bird of Prey Hospital^TM, making up approximately a third of admissions annually.

If you do come across a young Tawny Owl on the ground, the best thing to do is leave it where it is, unless it is in immediate danger. If you are concerned, please call our National Bird of Prey Hospital^TM for advice.

Little Owl

If you keen eye, you may have spotted the UK’s smallest owl species, the aptly named Little Owl, perching on the top of fence post around farmland areas. This species of owl was first introduced to the British Isles back in the 19^th Century, possibly as a form of pest control on farmland. Like Barn Owls, Little Owls are crepuscular, meaning they prefer to hunt at dawn and dusk, feeding mainly on a tasty diet of insects, as well as small mammals, reptiles and amphibians. Their scientific name Athene noctua alludes to the close association of this species with the Greek goddess Athena, as well as the Roman goddess Minerva, and is therefore believed to represent wisdom and knowledge.

The Little Owl is also one of the species for which we provide nest boxes, with 69 nest boxes installed to date. As with all of the species we support within our Raptor Nest Box Project, the Little Owl has specific requirements when it comes to nest box design.

Due to its small stature, the size of the entrance hole is only a maximum of 70mm in diameter! Once inside the nest box there is a narrow tunnel with a corner that turns on a right angle and drops into the main nesting chamber. This is to deter predators from being able to enter the nest and gain access to the young owlets.

Kestrel

This iconic bird, famous for its unrivalled hovering capabilities, can hang above grassland habitats, detecting movements from even the smallest of its prey.

Despite their small size, these birds can be very territorial. Around their nest sites, the parents will use aggressive flight displays and alarm calls to deter any intruders. Unfortunately, these beautiful birds have been in decline since the late 20^th century, and as a result this species as been ‘Amber-listed’ as a species of conservation concern within the UK. The exact cause of the decline in Kestrel numbers is unknown, although contributing factors are thought to include loss of habitat, decline in food sources, chemicals used in agriculture, and a dwindling supply of nest sites.

Kestrels prefer to nest in tree hollows and artificial cavities within old buildings, both of which are now harder to come by. By providing artificial nest sites we can attempt to provide alternative spots for this species to nest in.

Artificial nest boxes have a large open front, and only a comparatively small lip to deter the chicks from walking off the nest. A perch is installed on the outside of the box opening, allowing the parents to perch next to the nest and keep an eye on their youngsters. While these boxes are designed for Kestrels, Dr Matt Stevens has also recorded Barn Owls and Tawny Owls setting up home in these nest boxes.

A total of 332 Kestrel nest boxes have been installed as part of our Raptor Nest Box Project, with a minimum of 170 chicks fledging in 2023. These boxes are also monitored as part of the Kestrel Conservation Monitoring Project, which aims to assess whether the installing these nest boxes across the landscape affects Kestrel populations.

Dr Campbell Murn, Head of Conservation, Research and Education at the Hawk Conservancy Trust, together with an international team of researchers has revealed how Africa’s savanna raptors are facing an extinction crisis.

The research, published in the journal Nature Ecology & Evolution on 4 January 2024, describes declines in nearly 90% of 42 species assessed, and suggests that more than two-thirds may now qualify as globally threatened.

The study led by Dr Phil Shaw from the University of St Andrews and Dr Darcy Ogada of The Peregrine Fund,  and co-authored by Dr Campbell Murn as part of an international team, combines counts from road surveys in four African regions over 20–40 year timeframe and yields unprecedented insights into rates of change in the abundance of Africa’s savanna raptors.

Large raptor species in particular have experienced much steeper declines than smaller species, particularly on unprotected land, where they are more vulnerable to persecution and other human pressures. Overall, raptors have declined more than twice as rapidly outside of National Parks, Reserves and other protected areas than they had within. Worryingly, many species experiencing the steepest declines had suffered a double jeopardy, having also become much more dependent on protected areas over the course of the study.

The conclusion is that unless many of the threats currently facing African raptors are addressed effectively, large, charismatic eagle and vulture species are unlikely to persist over much of Africa’s unprotected land by the latter half of this century.

The study also highlights steep declines among raptors that are currently classified as being of ‘least concern’ in the global Red List of threatened species. They include African endemics such as Wahlberg’s Eagle, African Hawk-eagle, Long-crested Eagle, African Harrier-hawk and Brown Snake-eagle, as well as Dark Chanting-goshawk. All of these species have declined at rates indicating that they may now be globally threatened.

Several other familiar, widespread raptor species are now scarce or absent from unprotected land. They include one of Africa’s most powerful raptors – the Martial Eagle – as well as the highly distinctive Bateleur.

Dr Campbell Murn commented “Africa’s savanna raptors are an incredibly important part of the ecosystems where they live, and their disappearance will likely have major ecological consequences that we do not yet fully appreciate. Ecosystem functioning, cascade effects on other species and consequences for disease ecology are just some of the things we need to be concerned about with the ongoing disappearance of these birds. Conservation solutions for raptors are often distinct, or in addition to, efforts directed at other species like large carnivores and herbivores; we need to underpin these efforts with quality research and implement them quickly.”

Dr Phil Shaw commented: “Since the 1970s, extensive areas of forest and savanna have been converted into farmland, while other pressures affecting African raptors have likewise intensified. With the human population projected to double in the next 35 years, the need to extend Africa’s protected area network – and mitigate pressures in unprotected areas – is now greater than ever”.

Dr Darcy Ogada added: “Africa is at a crossroads in terms of saving its magnificent birds of prey. In many areas we have watched these species nearly disappear. One of Africa’s most iconic raptors, the Secretary bird, is on the brink of extinction. There’s no single threat imperiling these birds, it’s a combination of many human-caused ones, in other words we are seeing deaths from a thousand cuts”.

Professor Ian Newton OBE FRS, FRSE, a world-leading ornithologist who was not involved in the study, commented: “This is an important paper which draws attention to the massive declines in predatory birds which have occurred across much of Africa during recent decades. This was the continent over which, only 50 years ago, pristine populations of spectacular raptors were evident almost everywhere, bringing excitement and wonder to visitors from many parts of the world. The causes of the declines are many – from rampant habitat destruction to growing use of poisons by farmers and poachers and expanding powerline networks – all ultimately due to expansions in human numbers, livestock grazing and other activities. Let us hope that more research can be done and, more importantly, that these birds can be protected over ever more areas, measures largely dependent on the education and goodwill of local people.”

Raptors of all sizes lead an increasingly perilous existence on Africa’s unprotected land, where suitable habitat, food supplies and breeding sites have been drastically reduced, and persecution from pastoralists, ivory poachers and farmers is now widespread. Other significant threats include unintentional poisoning, electrocution on power poles and collision with powerlines and wind turbines, as well as killing for food and belief-based uses.

The late Dr Jean Marc Thiollay laid the foundation for this study in the 1970s, by initiating a remarkable long-term monitoring effort in West Africa, where the average decline rate was more than twice that of other regions. The Peregrine Fund’s Dr Ralph Buij, who has re-surveyed some of the original areas, noted that: “the human footprint is particularly high throughout West Africa’s savannas, and the near complete disappearance of many raptors outside that region’s relatively small and fragmented protected area network reflects an ecological collapse that is increasingly affecting other parts of the continent. Some raptors that occur mostly in West Africa, such as the little-known Beaudouin’s Snake-eagle, are vanishing into oblivion.”

The study’s findings highlight the importance of strengthening the protection of Africa’s natural habitats and aligns with the Convention on Biological Diversity’s COP15 goal of expanding conservation areas to cover 30% of land by 2030. They also demonstrate the need to restore natural habitats within unprotected areas, reduce the impact of energy infrastructure, improve legislation for species protection, and establish long-term monitoring and evaluation of the conservation status of African raptors. Crucially, there is a pressing need to try to increase public involvement in raptor conservation efforts.

To this end, the study’s authors have developed the African Raptor Leadership Grant to address the immediate need for more research and conservation programmes. It supports educational and mentoring opportunities for emerging African scientists, boosting local conservation initiatives and knowledge of raptors across the continent. This initiative, which was launched in 2023, awarded its first grant to Joan Banda, a raptor research student at AP Leventis Ornithological Research Institute in Nigeria, who will be studying threats to African owls.

The article can be found here.

If you would like to support in funding for the grant please donate to our JustGiving page.

We’re excited to announce a new publication co-authored by Dr Campbell Murn, our Head of Conservation, Research and Education. The paper looks at differences in the visual field of African Harrier-hawks (AKA Gymnogenes) and other birds of prey and how this relates to their distinctive hunting style.

The paper was co-written Dr Campbell Murn alongside a team of evolutionary and comparative ecophysiologists and biologist (researchers who study the physical features of birds and how they may have evolved). We have worked with Dr Steve Portugal from Royal Holloway University of London, Prof. Graham Martin from the University of Birmingham and Dr Simon Potier from Lund University in Sweden over the years to investigate the unique physiological features of birds of prey held at the Trust.

Through these collaborations, we have  discovered just how powerful the kicks of Secretary Birds are when they dispatch prey, and how the distinctive visual field of White-headed Vultures resembles a predatory eagle. Other research has highlighted how visual fields and foraging behaviour affects collision vulnerability in Gyps vultures. We had Simon visiting the Trust again in December, investigating the flexible leg joints in African Harrier-hawks and look forward to seeing the results of his work soon!

Many of the species we study are listed as threatened on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Sometimes we work with species like the African Harrier-hawk that are classified at Least Concern and this can provide opportunities to extrapolate our findings to other, more threatened species and hopefully inform conservation practices. Birds of prey, especially vultures, are threatened in many parts of the world; the more we can understand them, the better we are able to plan and conserve them.

Overall, this process of researching and publishing can take years, from analysing and writing up the data, to internal checks between authors and the lengthy peer review process where scientists and professionals in the scientific community comment and feedback on the draft. It can take several rounds of edits and feedback and several months, sometimes over a year before a paper is finally published in a journal for the rest of the scientific community to share. We are therefore always excited to share our work once it is published. You can read the published literature from our Conservation and Research team on our website here.

We have recently rounded up our fieldwork in Kruger National Park investigating the elusive lives of Hooded Vultures.

The project began in 2016 in collaboration with the Birds of Prey Programme of South Africa’s Endangered Wildlife Trust, the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa and Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in Pennsylvania in the USA. It was started because Hooded Vultures are listed as Critically Endangered due to recent declines across much of their African range. We began this project to find out more about the ecology of these birds, from nesting sites to behaviour and interactions with other species so we can plan for their conservation.

What does a typical day in the field researching Hooded Vultures look like?

Our Head of Conservation, Research and Education Dr Campbell Murn has carried out much of the fieldwork for this project and describes what a day working on Hooded Vulture ecology research looks like. Hooded Vultures nest inside the canopies of large trees along rivers, making their nesting sites difficult to survey from the air or the ground. Hooded Vultures are not well studied in southern Africa probably due to their nest locations in secluded areas.

‘On an ordinary day, I’ll get up really early. I’ll pick up whoever I’m working with that day, usually game guards, at about 6.30AM. And then off you go! There’s lots of driving and lots of walking.

When our Hooded Vulture project started, it took ages to find nests. Ages and ages and ages. We’d spend all day trudging through the river, walking through soft sand looking up at these really tall trees so you get a really stiff neck. And working along rivers is dangerous; there’s always the risk of a buffalo, hippo or elephant around the corner. And then not finding any nests at the same time is just really hard. But we got there in the end!”

After years of data collection, we have so far published two research papers on Hooded Vulture ecology and their behaviour. One paper details three recorded instances of in-flight interactions between Hooded Vultures that involved talon-grappling and cartwheeling, which had not been described previously. You can read this paper here.

The second paper published so far from this project investigated Hooded Vulture nests and whether other species took over nest sites, or if predation events reduced breeding success. Across 12 Hooded Vulture nests, 33 different species were recorded visiting by camera traps over 93 nest-months. Adult Hooded Vultures used their nests year-round and not just during the breeding season. Egyptian Geese were visitors to nests, but did not apparently lead to the nest being abandoned the vultures, nor did the geese seem to affect breeding success. Two cases of breeding failure were linked to two species: one case of egg predation by a Chacma Baboon, and one case of a Martial Eagle predating a nestling. These findings have implications for conserving Hooded Vultures. You can also read this paper on our website here.

So, what’s next?

We will analyse and publish the remaining data collected from the years of Hooded Vulture fieldwork. Vulture fieldwork will continue in Kruger, although now the focus is on our new Lappet-faced Vulture Project, which aims to conserve their nesting sites. You can find out more about this new project here

What is our previous Conservation and Research Intern Mel up to now?

Our Conservation and Research Internships are designed to train early career conservationists with many of the skills they will need for a career in conservation, including data analysis, conservation communication and data collection. We are grateful to Investec for financially supporting our interns and their investment helps these budding conservationists contribute to the conservation of birds of prey in the UK and their habitats alongside our Conservation and Research team at the Hawk Conservancy Trust.

We are delighted that Investec have also been able to support one of our previous Conservation and Research Interns during their master’s degree in Global Wildlife health and Conservation at the University of Bristol. Our intern Mel Gelderd completed a three-month internship with the Trust last year and then returned to university for postgraduate studies.

Mel first carried out two weeks of work experience with the bird team at the Trust, learning about the husbandry of birds of prey before she decided to carry on volunteering. She then jumped at the chance to apply for an internship in the Conservation and Research department. During her busy three months as an intern, Mel carried out on-site wildlife surveys, was involved in assisting with nest checks for our Raptor Nest Box Project, releasing several rehabilitated birds from the National Bird of Prey Hospital^TM back into the wild as well as analysing data involving birds with trichomoniasis admitted to the Hospital.

For her research project, earlier this year, Mel spent time accompanying Dr Matt Stevens, our UK Conservation Biologist during his visits to Barn Owl and Kestrel nest boxes. The data collection aimed to investigate the relationship between the microclimate (the environmental conditions within a nest box) of artificial nest boxes and the presence of parasites such as ticks and flat flies. Together, they took samples of the substrate (nesting material within the nest boxes) and visually inspected chicks growing in the nest. Matt and Mel visited sites that are part of our Raptor Nest Box Project, which has been running since 2010, and where Matt monitors and records the presence, survival and dispersal of chicks from nest boxes across eight counties in the south of England.

Mel believes the experiences and skills she gained at the Trust were invaluable in setting her up to study her master’s degree, and we are thrilled that she continues to be an ambassador for the Trust as she takes the next steps in her career. We wish Mel the best of luck in writing up her thesis, which contributes to our knowledge of birds of prey, nest boxes and chick health.

We are very excited to introduce our latest recipient of the Marion Paviour Award for 2022, Sopani Sichinga. Sopani is a BSc Forestry graduate from Mzuzu University in Malawi, and has been working with the Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW) mainly in the Vwaza Marsh Wildlife Reserve in northern Malawi.

His research project for the award focuses on assessing the Martial Eagle (Polemaetus bellicosus) in and around Vwaza Marsh Wildlife Reserve. Currently, Martial Eagles here are reported as being resident although a comprehensive assessment of the population has not been carried out despite concerns about recent declines in population numbers.

The Marion Paviour Award is aimed at furthering research into the conservation of birds of prey and is intended to support early-career researchers. The award will help cover food, accommodation, field expenses and fuel costs for Sopani’s fieldwork.

“My current research study on assessing the Endangered Martial Eagle sparks from my enthusiasm to study raptors and other birds in Vwaza. The Martial Eagle is of particular interest because the species occurs there, but its conservation status remains unknown despite its reported continued declines which have contributed to the species being up-listed to Endangered by the IUCN in 2020.

“As a way to help in conserving this iconic species in Vwaza, I applied for the Marion Paviour Award with the Hawk Conservancy Trust. I feel very privileged and happy to have won the award which will significantly help to raise awareness regarding the status of the Martial Eagle in Vwaza Marsh Wildlife Reserve, and lead to conservation action from the relevant organisations. My passion for conservation in general has continued to grow from when I was working in the field of conservation research and helping with a range of conservation projects in Malawi.

“The support of the Hawk Conservancy Trust is, therefore, highly appreciated as it will help with field resource mobilisation which remains a challenge when planning any research fieldwork.”

Sopani submitted a compelling application for the award, which highlighted the lack of detailed knowledge about Martial Eagles in his study area and how his project will fill an important gap by creating a vital baseline about a potentially important population of this Endangered species. Sopani began fieldwork in April and we look forward to sharing updates and pictures throughout the year on the project.

We’ve recently welcomed two passionate interns onto our Conservation and Research team – meet Melanie Gelderd and Fern Brown! We caught up with Melanie and Fern to find out more about them, and the work they’ve been diving into on their first month at the Hawk Conservancy Trust:

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We are extremely proud of the work we do in the National Bird of Prey Hospital™. Hospital Manager Cedric Robert, along with other dedicated staff members and volunteers, work tirelessly to ensure all the birds get the highest level of care possible, and the best chance at survival when they are released back into the wild.

So far, 2022 has been no exception, and Cedric and the team are very busy as always. May and June are particularly busy months as it is the height of the breeding season for Tawny Owls, when many chicks are hatching. Tawny Owl chicks are often brought into our hospital because they venture out of the nest when they are still very young, and may appear like they are not quite ready! This behaviour is called ‘branching’ and is a completely natural behaviour for this species, and the parents will still feed the chick. If you find a Tawny Owl chick out of the nest, it will usually be perfectly OK. However, if you are worried for any reason, or the owl looks like it might be injured or in danger, for example if it is on a busy footpath or bridleway, near a road, or where cats or dogs might be able to find it, then you can always give us a call for advice. Find out what to do if you find an injured, sick or orphaned bird of prey.

At of the time of writing (29 June 2022) we currently have 14 Tawny Owl chicks in our care. We are happy to report that they are all doing well, and many are nearly ready for release back into the wild! Two of these Tawny Owl chicks were only recently moved from the inside aviaries to the outdoor rehabilitation aviaries, where they can gain fitness and hone their flying skills before they are released. We caught up with Cedric, who gave us an insight into how this exciting step in the owl’s recovery goes ahead:

We have also admitted six Little Owl chicks in the past month. So far, Cedric has cared for a clutch of four Little Owl chicks together, and two individual chicks bought in separately. This is an increase on last year for Little Owl admissions. It is not unusual for admissions to vary between years and probably just a coincidence and stroke of luck that the people who admitted these chicks were in the right place at the right time!

The two individual chicks were both found separately, on the ground with no sign of their parents. After some time being monitored for any health conditions, Cedric made the decision to bring the two chicks together. As they are still very young, this helps to imitate the natural nest environment, where chicks would have clutch mates to share the nest with. Here Cedric is checking their condition and weight and they are making great progress. In a few weeks they will be ready to move into one of our outside aviaries to practice flying before they are released back into the wild.

It is not just owls that Cedric and the team have been caring for so far! This year so far we’ve seen seven different species come through our hospital doors. We have also had a few fleeting visits from Peregrine Falcons from around the local area, including this handsome juvenile. Brought in to us disorientated, it was checked over by our vet and found to be in good health. After a rest, it was alert and ready to be returned to its family within 24 hours. This is a fantastic result, as unlike some birds of prey, Peregrine Falcons need that time with their parents when fledging to learn from them how to hunt effectively.

However busy it gets in the hospital, the work feels wonderfully worthwhile. The National Bird of Prey Hospital™ can treat up to 200 sick, injured or orphaned wild birds of prey a year. You can find out more about the fantastic work that goes on in the hospital here.