The Historical Status of the Honey Buzzard in Northumberland

Nick Rossiter

The Honey Buzzard Pernis apivorus is usually considered to be one of the rarest breeding birds of prey in Britain. It has been noted in Britain as a summer visitor since the 1670s when Willughby & Ray (1678) wrote ‘It hath not as yet .. been described by any Writer, though it be frequent enough with us’ and provide a satisfactory description. Heysham (1794-97) reported it breeding in northern England: ‘this bird is very rare in Cumberland. I have only been able to meet with one specimen, .. I am informed it makes its nest in high trees, and breeds in the woods at Lowther’. Macpherson (1901) adds that it was claimed in 1835 that at least three more Honey Buzzards had been killed at Lowther and preserved there. For Northumberland Wallis (1769) adds to his account of the Common Buzzard Buteo buteo: ‘also the rusty brown, yellow-eyed Honey-Buzzard, with a black Cera, and a grey head, about mountainous, woods and heaths’.

The species does appear to have been rare nationally in the early 19th century with Selby (1831) noting it as ‘one of the rarest and most elegant of the British Falconidae’. However, there was then a significant recovery perhaps made obvious by more effective collecting techniques. Hancock (1874) noted that ‘it is certainly now, according to my experience, one of the commonest larger birds of prey. Since 1831, and up to 1868, twenty five specimens have come under my notice, all taken within the two counties [Northumberland and Durham].’ Besides commenting on the one proven instance of breeding in 1841 at Newbiggin, near Hexham, Hancock also makes the interesting observation that ‘Young birds very much predominate and usually two or three are taken about the same time and near the same place, as if they belonged to the same brood.’ Bolam (1912) increased the tally in Northumberland to ‘about 40’. In the Historical Atlas, Holloway (1996) highlights north-east England as still holding a residual population of this species from 1875-1900. It appears that Northumberland has always held some special appeal for the Honey Buzzard.

Unfortunately neither Hancock (1874) nor Bolam (1912) itemize the individual records of Honey Buzzards in Northumberland. It is the aim of the present work to compile all records from all available sources to provide an information source for future reference and to analyse the records obtained with respect to a number of parameters. In the compilation, besides the standard ornithological texts, two Hancock manuscripts have been searched as indicated in the sources. The result of the compilation is shown in Tables 1 and 2, the first table showing records from c1825-1909 and the second from 1910-1996. Only records fully accepted by the contemporary authorities have been included. Table 1 contains 35 records compared to the ‘about 40’ cited by Bolam (1912) for the same time period. It would therefore appear that nearly all the 19th century records have been found in the present study.

Figure 1 shows the numbers of Honey Buzzards found by decade from the 1820s to the 1990s. The graph indicates that relatively high numbers (0.95 birds/annum) were present in the 1830s and 1840s and the lowest numbers (0.15 birds/annum) occurred from the 1910s to the 1960s.

Figure 1. Honey-Buzzard: Total Counts by Decades 1825-1996.

Figure 2 shows the distribution of records by time of the year. Each month is divided into thirds covering its early, middle and late parts. The pattern shown is as expected for the species with a protracted arrival period during May and June and young fledging from late August through to mid-September with some lingering into October and even November and December. The pattern shown is similar to that found in a recent analysis of records from 1986-95 (Fraser et al 1997) which showed peak numbers in May and September.

code

locality

date

source

type

phase

prey

age

sex

1

Wallington

c1825

L,S2

shot

 

 

 

 

2

Thrunton Wood

31/08/1829

L,S1,S2, HBN,E

shot

dark

wasp

juv

m

3

Bedlington

06/1830

F

shot

 

 

 

 

4

Cheswick

early 10/1831

S1,F,S4, HBN,E

shot

pale

 

juv

m

5

Walbottle

summer 1831

H2,H3

shot

dark

 

juv

 

6

Beadnell

18/08/1832

H3,E

shot

pale

 

ad

f

7

Whitley Sands

27/08/1835

H1,H2

sea

 

 

ad

m

8

Alnwick

c1835

S3

shot

 

 

 

 

9

Twizell

27-28/08/1836

HBN,E

trap

dark

wasp

ad

m

10

Fenham (Newcastle)

10/1836

H2

shot

 

 

 

 

11

Walker/ Willington

14/10/1836

H2

shot

 

 

juv

 

12

Close House

21/06/1837

H2

shot

 

 

ad

m

13

Newton by the Sea

24/05/1838

H2

sea

dark

 

ad

 

14

Blagdon

19/09/1839

H2,H3

shot

dark

 

juv

 

15

Newbiggin (Hexham)

24/08/1841

H2,H3,H1

seen

 

 

ad

 

16

as 15

24/08/1841

H2,H3,H1

seen

 

 

ad

 

17

as 15

24/08/1841

H2,H3,H1

shot

 

 

juv

 

18

as 15

24/08/1841

H2,H3,H1

shot

 

 

juv

 

19

Blyth Sands

22/09/1841

H2,H3,H1

sea

dark

 

juv

 

20

Newbiggin by the Sea

c05/10/1841

H2,H1

sea

dark

 

juv

 

21

Twizell

20/09/1846

HBN,E

trap

 

wasp

 

f

22

Stamfordham

09-10/1863

H2

trap

 

 

juv

 

23

Howick

c22/09/1864

H2,H3

shot

 

wasp

juv

m

24

Middleton (Belford)

10/1864

H2

shot

 

wasp

 

f

25

Cresswell

24/09/1868

H2

trap

 

 

 

 

26

Middleton Hall (Belford)

c1871

HBN,E

shot

 

Bum-ble bee

 

 

27

Dunstanburgh

21/09/1881

HBN

sea

 

 

 

f

28

Alnmouth

early 10/1881

HBN,E

sea

dark

 

 

 

29

Haggerston

c06/1885

HBN,E

shot

 

 

 

 

30

Etal

c17/09/1896

HBN,E

shot

dark

 

juv

 

31

Falloden

c20/09/1896

HBN,E

shot

 

 

 

 

32

Haggerston

10/06/1899

HBN,E

seen

 

 

 

 

33

Gosforth

09/06/1905

B1

shot

 

 

ad

f

34

Barrasford

01/07/1908

B2

shot

 

 

 

 

35

Alnwick

08/10/1908

B1

shot

 

 

juv

m

Table 1. Historical Records of Honey Buzzards from 1825-1909.

 

code

locality

date

source

type

phase

prey

age

sex

36

Chesters

09/c1911

B2

shot

dark

 

juv

 

37

Dipton Wood

11/09/1930

B2

seen

 

wasp

 

 

38

Newcastle

18/09/1944

N, NHS

shot

pale

wasp

juv

m

39

Bilton

7-9/06/1948

N

seen

 

insects

 

 

40

Embleton

01/07/1950

N

seen

 

 

 

 

41

Heaton

14/09/1953

NHS

trap

dark

 

juv

 

42

Gosforth Park

16/10/1955

NHS

seen

pale

 

 

 

43

Kyloe

03/11-end 12/1957

NHS.M

seen

 

 

 

 

44

Tranwell (Morpeth)

04/11/1962

NHS

seen

 

 

 

 

45

Ellingham

30/06/1971

BIN

seen

 

 

ad

 

46

Alnmouth

18-20/06/1975

BIN

seen

 

 

 

 

47

Holystone

02/07/1977

BIN

seen

 

 

 

 

48

Newton Pool

05/05/1981

BIN

seen

 

 

 

 

49

West Monkseaton

07/05/1981

BIN

seen

 

 

 

 

50

Scremerston

23/08/1984

BIN

seen

 

 

 

 

51

Scremerston

18/06/1985

BIN,M

seen

inter

 

 

 

52

west of County

19/05/1988

BIN

seen

 

 

 

 

53

Longbenton

09/05/1992

BIN

seen

pale

 

 

 

54

Holywell

04/07/1992

BIN

seen

pale

 

 

 

55

Uswayford

21/05/1995

BIN

seen

dark

 

 

 

56

Holy Island

27/05/1995

BIN

seen

dark

 

 

 

57

Hauxley

25/05/1996

BIN

seen

pale

 

 

 

58

Scotswood

25/09/1996

BIN

seen

dark

 

juv

 

Table 2: Historical Records of Honey Buzzards from 1910-1996.

Sources in Tables 1 and 2: B1 - Bolam, Birds of Northumberland and the Eastern Borders 1912; B2 - Bolam, Catalogue of Birds of Northumberland, TNHSN 1932; BIN - Annual Ornithological Report 1970-1996, Birds in Northumbria; E - Evans, Vertebrate Fauna of Scotland, the Tweed area 1911; F - Fox, Notice of Some Rare Birds, TNHSN 1838; H1 - Hancock, Catalogue of Birds of Northumberland, TNHSN 1874; H2 - Hancock, NEWHM H377, MS Journal of the Birds of Northumberland and Durham 1874; H3 - Hancock, NEWHM H376, MS Collection of British Bird Labels (printed - Howse, Index-Catalogue of the Birds in the Hancock Collection, TNHSN 1900); HBN - Hist. Berwickshire Naturalists' Club; L - Liddell, Notice of Falco Apivorus, TNHSN 1831; M - Card Records in Hancock Museum; N - Annual Ornithological Report 1939-1951, Naturalist; NHS - Annual Ornithological Report 1952-1969, TNHSN; S1 - Selby, Illustrations British Ornithology 1833; S2 - Selby, Catalogue of Birds of Northumberland, TNHSN 1831; S3 - Selby, Report on Ornithology of Berwickshire, HBN 1837; S4 - Selby, Account of Two Rare British Birds, TNHSN 1838; TNHSN Trans. Nat. Hist. Soc. Northumb.

 

Figure 2. Honey-Buzzard: Totals 1825-1996 by Time of Year. M1=May 1-10, M2=May 11-20, M3=May 21-31; J1=June 1-10; J2=June 11-20; through July, August, September and October to N1=November 1-10.

 

Ages have been published for 22 birds recorded in autumn of which 17 were juveniles and five adults. For 14 birds obtained in autumn from 1829-1849, nine were juveniles indicating a not insignificant breeding population at this time. Ages are given in the tables only when they can reliably be determined from the information available. Presumably nearly all spring records are in fact of adults.

From 1825-1910, 22 of the 35 individuals recorded were shot, four trapped and a surprisingly high number of six involved in disasters at sea including drowning or colliding with boats. After 1910, 20 of the 23 individuals were involved in sight records and only two were shot. Out of the 22 birds which were assigned a colour phase, 14 were thought to be dark, seven pale and one intermediate. Nine of these 14 dark birds were juveniles, two adults and three unassigned. Only 13 individuals have been sexed: eight were males and five females. Before 1950 dissection of specimens or close observation indicated food preferences for nine individuals. In autumn seven ate wasps and one ate bumble bees and in June another ate insects in general. The summer diet is likely to be less specialised than the autumn one.

Geographically there is a bias in the early records towards the north-east of the county where a number of leading ornithologists were based. There is, however, also an interesting series of records in autumn in the Tyneside area in the 1830s, 1944, 1953 and 1996. It is possible that this series results from birds dispersing from breeding areas on the Tyne and its tributaries. Since 1992 there have been a number of unsubstantiated reports from valleys in the south-west of the county and it is possible that the species is re-establishing itself here as a rare breeder. Nationally, records of Honey Buzzards on migration increased strongly from 1986-89 to 1990-95 with 150 alone recorded in 1995 (Fraser et a1 1997). The reason is likely to be the reduction of persecution of large raptors in eastern Britain which has most obviously benefited the Common Buzzard but may also have enabled the Honey Buzzard to increase its range. The Honey Buzzard dislikes a maritime climate and is now being given the chance to recolonise drier areas of Britain from which it has been largely excluded for some 150 years

Acknowledgements: I am very grateful to Hugh and Stella Chambers and June Holmes of the Natural History Society of Northumbria for their help in locating reference and archive material.

References:

Bolam, G. (1912), Birds of Northumberland and the Eastern Borders, Henry Hunter Blair, Alnwick.

Fraser, P.A., Lansdown, P.G. & Rogers, M.J. (1997). Report on Scarce Migrant Birds in Britain in 1995, British Birds 90(10) 413-439.

Hancock, J. (1874) A Catalogue of the Birds of Northumberland and Durham, Nat. Hist. Trans. Newcastle 6,1.

Heysham, J. (1794-97). Catalogue of Cumberland Animals, in: Hutchinson, W. The History of the County of Cumberland, F. Jollie, Carlisle I.

Holloway, S. (1996). The Historical Atlas of Breeding Birds in Britain and Ireland 1875-1900, Poyser, London.

Macpherson, H.A. (1901). Birds, in: Victoria History of the Counties of England, Cumberland, Archibald Constable, Westminster I 179-217.

Selby, P.J. (1831). A Catalogue of the Birds hitherto met with in the Counties of Northumberland and Durham, Trans. Nat. Hist. Soc. Northumb. 1: 244-295.

Wallis, J. (1769). The Natural History and Antiquities of Northumberland and of so much of the county of Durham as lies between the rivers Tyne and Tweed, commonly called north Bishoprick, W. and W. Strahan, London I.

Willughby, F. & Ray, J. (1678). The Ornithology of Francis Willughby, London.

 

Published as "The Historical Status of the Honey Buzzard in Northumberland", Nick Rossiter, Birds in Northumbria 1997, p.121-125 (1998).

© Copyright Nick Rossiter 1998

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