News 2024

24/03/24 Osprey arrival: 1st seen, an adult at the nest site at Hexham NE, overlooking the Tyne.

16/04/24 Black Kite arrival: 1st seen, gliding behind wood to NE at Bywell.

04/05/24: Honey-buzzard arrival: male up with Black Kite at Ordley.

11/05/24: Hobby arrival: pair in display at Towsbank.

31/05/24: Black Kite largely arrived with 23 birds at 14 sites; Honey-buzzard still arriving with 20 birds at 12 sites; Hobby still arriving with 3 birds at 2 sites; Osprey pair settled at their one site; 3 Goshawk have been seen at 2 sites; 15 Red Kite have been seen at 11 sites.

07/06/24: Black Kite settling down to breed with 26 birds at 15 sites; Honey-buzzard settling down to breed with 30 birds at 19 sites; Hobby still displaying with 5 birds at 3 sites; Osprey pair settled at their one site; 3 Goshawk have been seen at 2 sites; 16 Red Kite have been seen at 12 sites.

16/06/24: Black Kite have settled down to breed with 28 birds at 16 sites; Honey-buzzard have settled down to breed with 34 birds at 22 sites; Hobby still displaying with 7 birds at 4 sites; Osprey pair ongoing at their one site; 4 Goshawk have been seen at 3 sites; 16 Red Kite have been seen at 12 sites.

30/06/24: Black Kite may have young now with 29 birds at 16 sites; Honey-buzzard are sitting tight with 36 birds at 24 sites; Hobby have settled to breed with 8 birds at 5 sites; Osprey presumed ongoing; 4 Goshawk have been seen at 3 sites; 21 Red Kite have been seen at 17 sites, becoming more visible with young in nest.

16/07/24: mid-season lull: Black Kite overall with 30 birds at 17 sites, since 8/6 6 sites found to be occupied by 9 birds; Honey-buzzard overall with 39 birds at 25 sites, since 17/6 7 sites found to be occupied by 9 birds; Hobby have settled to breed with 9 birds at 6 sites; Osprey are ongoing; 4 Goshawk have been seen at 3 sites; 26 Red Kite have been seen at 21 sites.

31/07/24: for Black Kite synchronised fledging around 19/7-21/7 with 13 young and 11 adult seen at 9 sites in 2nd half of month. Honey-buzzard as usual maintain a low profile in rearing phase with just 10 birds (8 male, 2 female) seen at 8 sites since 17/6.

10/08/24: Black Kite have had a fantastic season with 21+ young raised at 13 sites so far. Honey-buzzard are becoming more conspicuous as fledging nears with 11 sites now found to be occupied in the rearing phase. Osprey have raised 1+ young at their site overlooking the Tyne near Hexham.

25/08/24: 34 Black Kite adult have been noted at 18 sites, fledging 26+ young, dispersal is now in progress. 41 Honey-buzzard adult (25 male, 16 female) have been noted at 26 sites with 10+ young at 7 sites, just starting to fly above the canopy. 2 Osprey adult have raised 1+ young at their site overlooking the Tyne near Hexham. No Hobby young seen yet and Goshawk have not been sighted recently. Red Kite have strongholds on the moors of Derwent, parts of Hexhamshire and the upper South Tyne.

31/08/24: Black Kite adults have dispersed but juveniles are still in natal areas in many cases. 41 Honey-buzzard adult (25 male, 16 female) have been noted at 27 occupied sites with 22+ young at 16 sites, adults beginning to leave and juveniles becoming stronger-flying. Osprey last seen on 26/8. No Hobby young seen yet and Goshawk have not been sighted recently. Red Kite away from moorland areas are inconspicuous.

07/09/24: Black Kite juveniles are lingering in many natal areas. 41 Honey-buzzard adult (25 male, 16 female) have been noted at 28 occupied sites with 30+ young at 19 sites, many adults have left, juveniles are foraging in their territories. No Hobby young seen yet and Goshawk have not been sighted recently. Harris’s Hawk probably bred in West Dipton Burn where adult and juvenile seen in late August.

15/09/24: Black Kite juveniles are still lingering in some natal areas. 42 Honey-buzzard adult (25 male, 17 female) have been noted at 31 occupied sites with 41+ young at 26 sites, adults have left along with some juveniles but some are still foraging in their territories. Hobby have raised 1+ young at one site, Towsbank, on 11/9 with no young seen at 5 others occupied earlier. An adult Goshawk male was at one site, Towsbank, on 11/9 but no young seen. Eight types of raptor were at Towsbank on 11/9.

23rd December 2024: Updates with 2024 data now completed for Osprey, Hobby, Goshawk; the Osprey is establishing itself on the Tyne; the Hobby had an encouraging position in the spring but success was very poor; the Goshawk continues to suffer from relentless persecution.

14th January 2025: Updates with 2024 data now completed for Black Kite, Red Kite; the Red Kite has been largely replaced by the Black Kite in the lowland valleys but retains healthy populations on the moors. The amazingly fast colonisation by the Black Kite continues while the Red Kite continues to suffer from low productivity.

7th February 2025: Updates with 2024 data now completed for the Honey-buzzard in SW Northumberland; it was another successful year in spite of the wet start. There is a continuing small increase in the core area populations and studies outside the core area confirmed the continuation of healthy populations elsewhere in the study area.