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Natural England and partners, including the RSPB, recorded 119 hen harrier chicks successfully fledged from nests in the mountains in County Durham, Cumbria, Lancashire, Northumberland and Yorkshire in 2022 – a record number.
It is the first time in over 100 years that more than 100 hen harriers have been added to the English population, showing real progress in efforts to protect and restore their numbers.
Hen harriers were once found in the highlands and lowlands of Britain including many English counties. However after 1830 they became rare birds breeding in England due to persecution, which was made illegal in 1954 but continues in some areas today. The hen harrier is now one of England’s rarest breeding birds of prey.
Hen harriers are one of our most unique birds with their owl-like features and stiff facial feathers that direct sound towards their ears to allow them to hunt more effectively.
Hen Harrier, copyright Dean Eades, from surfbirds gallery
Natural England chairman Tony Juniper said: It is very encouraging to see the progress made this year in the recovery of this majestic species, reaching more than 100 for the first time in over a century. This is testament to the dedication of volunteers, landowners and staff from all our partner organizations who work to protect, support and monitor these vulnerable birds. Despite this year’s success, it is clear that we still have a long way to go to see hen harrier numbers truly recover to where they naturally are without illegal persecution – which many birds are sadly already still missing We are committed to continuing to work with our partners to lower prosecution rates and achieve a permanent long-term recovery.
This is the sixth consecutive year of increases, following a low in 2016 when only eight chicks fledged. There were 49 nests recorded in 2022, of which 34 were successful in producing chicks. Lancashire remains a stronghold, with 18 nests recorded in Bowland, and there is also a cluster of territories in Northumberland (nine nests). There are 10 nests across the Yorkshire Dales and Nidderdale region, seven in the North Pennines, and five in the Peak District. This represents an encouraging increase in numbers in their range compared to the recent past, when only a few pairs nested each year, mostly at Bowland.
The total number of chicks included 13 birds taken from four nests on grouse moors, reared and released as part of the Brood Management Trial. It aims to test whether this strategy can influence attitudes in the moorland community and reduce persecution, as well as contributing healthy adult birds to the population. Brood-managed birds from previous years have also successfully bred, with five birds producing 10 chicks between them in 2022.
Natural England is involved in a number of initiatives to help ensure the recovery of hen harriers including through Hen Harrier Action Plan published by Defra in 2016.
This includes:
- Satellite tracking to improve understanding of bird movements and behavior
- Issuing licenses to allow people to provide additional food to breeding Hen Harriers (‘diversionary feeding’)
- Setting up a project to reintroduce hen harriers to southern England
- Working with the National Wildlife Crime Unit, through the secondment of a senior enforcement officer from NE to the police, to deliver improvements in how Natural England, the police, local communities and other relevant stakeholders work together to prevent, detect, and be effective. enforcement action related to incidents of raptor persecution.
- Brood management, where nestlings are taken from grouse moors, raised safely in captivity, and later released, with the aim of contributing healthy adults to the breeding population, changing attitudes and reducing – prosecuted
The hen harrier is considered vulnerable within Europe and is on the red list of conservation birds in the UK. It is a species of major importance for the conservation of biodiversity in England.
Read more about the recording of hen harriers and the methods used to support their recovery in our Natural England Blog.
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