RSPB: Eyes to the skies for spring visitors

From soaring red kites, to sighting my first swallow, there’s so much to look forward to this season. While one swallow might not make a summer, a first sighting is a sure sign that warmer weather is on the way. A April is the perfect time to look out for them catching insects on the wing, before the spend the next few weeks gathering mud and straw to construct their cup-shaped nests.

One of my favourite species to look out for is red kites, and over the last few years I’ve been incredibly lucky to see plenty of them soaring around the skies in Co. Down. Seeing these majestically graceful birds of prey soar through the skies is an unforgettable sight. Look out for their reddish-brown bodies, with tail feather than fan out with a deep ‘v’ in the middle, creating that iconic silhouette against the sky when they are in flight.

As the season changes, red kites will be busy getting their nest sites ready. Known as quite the kleptomaniac as nests have been found with everything from gloves to crisp packets, tea towels, socks and the odd pair of underwear. It’s thought that red kites decorate their nests with colourful items to let others know the nest is in use.

Red kites are often spotted gliding on warm sunny days over farmland, and every year the RSPB NI received hundreds of reports of these sightings and they are once again calling for the public to keep their eyes to the skies and log any sightings.

While Co Down remains a hot spot for the species, red kites have been spotted as far as the North Coast and Fermanagh. Listen out for their whistling ‘peeee-owww’ call on the wind!

RSPB NI are particularly keen for any sightings where you can read coloured wing tags the birds might have, as it helps them track individuals. However, any sighting, even of untagged birds, is valuable information for their monitoring efforts. If you think you’ve seen a Red Kite then log any them using the online form here: https://bit.ly/RSPBNI_RedKiteSightings