Author: bbosisto

Over the past few weeks we have recieved some emails from concerned members reagrding the continuing harvesting operation at Davidstow Woods and the potential threat to early nesting rare breeding birds.

After making some enquiries I had a very helpful email back from Reuben King; the Forester of the site:

Dear CBWPS,

Thank-you for your enquiry related to the harvesting works at Davidstow.

We have begun our planned harvesting and continue to monitor the site for nesting birds, If we find any we will put in place appropriate exclusion zones to minimise disturbance.

Considering a range of constraints, there is no risk free time of year to work, but we plan our work to minimise its impact. We have started the harvesting in Davidstow now to attempt to avoid the spring/summer period, whereas we recently worked Rough Tor Plantation during the summer months to minimise the impact on the important starling roosts.

The Bodmin Forest Plan (Bodmin Forest Plan) covers an area approx. 589ha which provides a range of habitats for different nesting birds. The area we are currently harvesting at Davidstow covers approx. 2% of the Bodmin Plan area. Our programmed cyclical felling and restocking continues to provide structural diversity to the forest, providing habitats for a range of wildlife.

With reference to Davidstow please ensure that your members comply with safety signage at all times.

If you have any further questions, please let me know.

Kind regards,

Reuben King 

Forester

Cornwall

Forestry England

It is reassuring to hear that Forestry England are aware of rare breeding birds and will actively protect them. But we can help them with this by sending records to myself at recorder@cbwps.org.uk. I can then send the location to the forester who can set up an exclusion zone if it is needed. This is a great example of how sharing bird news with CBWPS can help sensitive species as we have excellent connections with orgisations such as Forestry England, Natural England and Cornwall Wildlife Trust.

Now is a great time of year to look for displaying Goshawk, drumming Lesser Spotted Woodpecker and calling Long-eared Owl at night. Sharing any sites you find with us will protect the breeding sites and help contribute to national surveys.

Bob Bosisto ; County Recorder

You may have heard that a rare species of raptor has graced Cornwall since 28th September, a juvenile Northern Harrier! This sublime looking bird of prey has delighted many birders from across the country and has been a welcome addition to the county lists of most Cornish birders too. Here we discuss where it came from and what makes it identifiable from the more expected Hen Harrier.

Local birder Edward O’Connor reported an interesting looking harrier species from his local patch at Higher Bochyn; a Natural England Reserve located on Goonhilly Downs. A team effort ensued to confirm suspicions that it was indeed a juvenile Northern Harrier; a 2nd for Cornwall.

So what makes this bird a Northern Harrier, rather than our resident Hen Harrier? At a distance you may notice that it has a darker looking head and the extsensive orangey hue to the underparts is certainly very eye-catching, when compared to a typical juvenile Hen Harrier. The devil is in the detail with this particular species though and to confirm the identification you need close and clear views of some subtle features that are best expalined via these stunning photographs and text from Mashuq Ahmad; a member of our County Rarities Committee.

Only one previous record of Northern Harrier has been confirmed in Cornwall before, an adult male photographed at Men -an- Tol on 23rd November 2013. Why are they so rare? Amazingly they breed no closer to us than Canada and northern North America and only certain weather conditions can facilitate such an extreme occurence of vagrancy. As the Northern Harrier was migrating south along the East Coast of North America on its way to wintering grounds further south it will have got caught up in Hurricane Lee.  As the remainder of this powerful storm sped quickly across the Atlantic , an uprecedented arrival of American vagrants where found across Britain. The fast moving weather system, accompanied by a warm front was a key factor as birds managed to survive this incredible journey, a ‘perfect storm’ for rarities!

At time of writing (6th October 2023) the Northern Harrier is still being seen on the Lizard, currently around Kynance Cove. If you haven’t been down to see it then why not go and enjoy this stunning raptor in an idyllic setting.