As regular CFZ-watchers will know, for some time Corinna has been doing a column for Animals & Men and a regular segment on On The Track... particularly about out-of-place birds and rare vagrants. There seem to be more and more bird stories from all over the world hitting the news these days so, to make room for them all - and to give them all equal and worthy coverage - she has set up this new blog to cover all things feathery and Fortean.

Monday 21 July 2014

Fluffy Doncaster comeback for birds once driven out

A rare and once threatened bird species is making a comeback at one of Doncaster’s most popular beauty spots this summer.

Concerted efforts to nurture habitats have paid off for Yorkshire Wildlife Trust volunteers who have seen three healthy marsh harrier chicks hatch at its Potteric Carr nature reserve. The wetlands here provide ideal conditions for the birds.

Raising young marsh harrier chicks is no mean feat, as the female has to sit on the eggs for more than a month, only leaving the nest briefly to catch food dropped mid-flight by the male. Once the young fledge they sit on visible perches waiting to be fed - a sight the Trust expects to be common on the reserve in the next couple of weeks.

The breeding of marsh harriers at Potteric Carr is exciting for twitchers as the bird was extinct in England by the end of the 19th century as a result of habitat loss and persecution. Although numbers are still very low, the species has returned to breed in eastern England in recent years.

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