As part of our agreement with landowners, Severn Trent, we carry out bird monitoring and ringing in the valley. The nesting success of Goshawk and other raptors in the area is very poor compared to other areas in the country, due to suspected persecution. On top of that, there are other natural causes that may affect the breeding success of the birds, and one particular example is told below.

This example of what can happen to jeopardise a Goshawk nest turned out to be a spectacular, if somewhat unlikely, triumph. A Goshawk nest, with 3 female and 1 male chick all in a healthy condition was ringed and the pulli were returned to the nest, 70 feet up in a tree. Seven days later, the nest was checked again after a heavy storm the night before. To our dismay, the nest had blown out of the tree and was in pieces on the forest floor. Three Goshawk chicks, looking very bewildered, sat amongst the debris with the leg of the 4th chick showing the fate of that unlucky bird; probably injured in the fall it had been eaten by its siblings.

One person was left to watch over the birds whilst the other went to fetch assistance. As the adult Goshawk was still very much in attendance, it was decided to erect an artificial platform in the tree and to rebuild the nest, with the assistance of staff from Severn Trent and the Forestry Commission. To ensure that the adults would accept the new nest, a camera was also erected in the tree. As soon as we had left the area, the adult birds started to feed the chicks as if nothing untoward had happened. The 3 remaining chicks fledged without a problem.

Or so we thought. Another visit to the valley to check the recently fledged birds, revealed that one of them was clearly having problems flying upwards. Although able to fly downhill or on the level, it was unlikely that this bird would survive in the wild. Our only option was to try and catch the bird and take it to a vet; much easier said than done! After 2 days of near misses, a friend suggested that the use of his Pointer dog may help to catch the bird. I had reservations about the dog but we were in need of a change of tactics, and this was the only other option available. The dog was released and in 20 minutes the bird was safely captured; I cannot praise the dog enough and it was fantastic to see it at work.

The bird was taken to the vet for X-rays and it turned out that it had a broken bone in its wing that had set in the wrong place. This must have happened during the fall from the tree. Unfortunately, the vet was unable to reset the wing and confirmed that it would be unlikely to survive in the wild, but the bird was taken to a specialist breeder where it will be able to live safely for the rest of its natural life.

My thanks go to all those people involved in the rescue, for without their hardwork, determination and generous spirit, the outcome of this particular tale may have been very different.

Jack