Tag Archives: red kite

Apr 26 2025
Leave a comment
Daily Post, Flora/Fauna

Red kite, green field

Friday 25th April 2025, 2.35pm (day 4,992)

Red kite, 25/4/25

Red kites (Milvus milvus) were nearly extinct in Britain at the end of the last century but in the 2000s, thanks to some serious efforts on behalf of conservationists, have made a remarkable recovery. If you are aware of the place you might not think that Luton would be one of their strongholds, but that is where this picture was taken, just on the edge of that town. There were a number of them gliding around this afternoon seeking prey, and clearly, Luton is not a great place to be a fieldmouse.

Tagged , , , , , , ,
Nov 27 2022
Leave a comment
Daily Post, Flora/Fauna

Red kite

Friday 25th November 2022, 2.00pm (day 4,110)

Red kite, 25/11/22

Certainly a red kite, a species of bird that was close to becoming extinct in the UK some decades ago, but thanks to a number of programmes of reintroduction, now making a fine recovery. I caught a number of these on camera in Wales some years ago, but those were coming to an organised feeding station. This one was as wild as they come, soaring on the thermals above a road in Lincolnshire. It turned into the sunlight just as I had it in the sights.

Tagged , , , , , , , , ,
May 15 2015
1 Comment
Daily Post, Flora/Fauna

Red kites feeding

Thursday 14th May 2015, 3.00pm (day 1,358)

Red kites, 14/5/15

For the second Thursday in a row I went off on a trip outside England and into another nation of the UK — this time Wales, its first appearance on the blog. I am visiting a colleague in Aberystwyth, a town with more books per head of population than anywhere in the world, apparently. Later in the day she took me to a place in the hills above the town, a centre devoted to maintaining the population of red kites (Milvus milvus), handsome birds of prey. The birds gather to be fed every day at 3pm. This was my best attempt at capturing the flock as they came down and feasted on the bounty, they all move damn quickly and I don’t have the equipment to freeze their movement in the way a pro would. But I like the one on the bottom left, caught looking at the camera.

Tagged , , , , , , , ,