A month or so ago, a friend casually mentioned that they thought red kites were starting to nest near their house. Very near, in fact; actually in the garden. Even in the hills beyond Tregaron, where kites wheel and dive in such abundance as to be almost unworthy of comment, having a nest within view of your kitchen window is unusual.
On the boundary of the property, the crook of a sycamore tree provided an apparently suitable spot for the pair to set up home; occasional bulletins told of the progress, albeit slow and halting, of nest building. It seemed the birds were in no great hurry – limiting their activity to the odd twig or two each day – but eventually they had assembled a slightly ramshackle structure that managed to support the weight of a sitting bird.
I was looking forward to taking up the invitation to drop in for tea and have a look for myself. Then the anxiety began. These are “schedule 1” birds under the 1981 Wildlife & Countryside Act, meaning that a red kite has year-round protection against disturbance, especially “while it is building a nest or is in, on or near a nest containing eggs or young”. Could the arrival of an extra person at a quiet rural dwelling constitute “disturbance”? When I caught myself looking at adverts for telephoto lenses I realised I was on uncertain moral ground, and decided not to take up the offer.
The most recent news was disappointing. The red kites had abandoned the nest – and, more worryingly, one of the pair was no longer visible in the area. Hopefully, this had just been a test-run by newly paired youngsters and they will return next year for another attempt; but I was left with the shadow of how I would feel if the birds had left after I had been to visit.
Not without regret, I’ve concluded that the only sensible place to watch these magnificent birds is where they are truly free to roam.
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