The Red Kite Story

Once a common sight in towns and cities all over the UK, the Red Kite has been brought back from the verge of extinction by the world's longest running conservation programme. But what was the cause of the decline of this magnificent species, and what are the implications of bringing it back?

In the Middle Ages, the Red Kite was a valued scavenger which helped keep streets clean and was protected by a royal decree. Killing a kite attracted capital punishment! However, in the 16th Century a series of Government Acts declared the kite, along with a number of other birds of prey as vermin. As a result, it was persecuted throughout the UK and by the 18^th Century, there were no longer any red kites in England and Scotland, and only a handful of pairs in the undisturbed oak woodlands in remote parts of the Tywi and Cothi valleys in Wales.

In order to address the problem, the first Kite Committee was set up in 1903 and the RSPB has been involved continuously since 1905. A bottleneck was reached in the 1930s when only two breeding pairs were discovered, and DNA analysis has recently shown that the entire Welsh population is derived from a single female.

The RSPB, along with local landowners, rural communities and the Welsh Kite Trust have now seen their efforts to maintain these fragile breeding populations paying off. Today there are between 350 and 400 pairs in Wales, with sightings in every county. The Red Kite was named the 'Bird of the Century' by the British Trust for Ornithology at the end of 1999, because of its determined fight back from the brink of extinction, and only this year was named as the National Bird of Wales.

The clash of opinion: To protect or not to protect

However, there are those that believe by protecting the Red Kite as a species, the RSPB have upset the predator-prey balance and directly contributed to the decline of British songbirds. SongBird Survival is one charity that shares this opinion, and they have provided the following statement:

‘Whilst accepting there are many reasons for losses, up to a level of over 80% in some cases, the charity is convinced that uncontrolled predation from both avian and mammalian predators is largely to blame. For instance, Sparrowhawk numbers (now over 100,000) are consuming over 107million small birds each year.  Red Kite numbers are being artificially increased by the RSPB to the point where they, together with the 414% increase in Buzzards, are impacting on ground-nesting birds; Lapwing, Curlew, Dunlin, game birds, all suffer seriously within Wales. SongBird Survival is funding two research projects, one with the BTO; the other with the University of Reading, aimed at demonstrating the scientific realities of what current levels of predation are doing to our much-loved songbirds.  Past research includes the Review of mammalian predators, published in 2006.'

In reply, RSPB Cymru argue that: ‘Red kites have a diverse dietary niche, where almost any accessible food may be taken throughout the year.  Their diet changes through the seasons depending on food availability, from small mammals (including rabbits) and invertebrates (mainly earthworms and beetles) in late spring and autumn to carrion (mainly sheep) in the winter.  Medium sized birds feature in the diet during the breeding season but do not form a significant part of the diet. There is no evidence to suggest that the increase in the number of red kites in Wales are limiting breeding songbird numbers.  However, there is growing evidence that changes in farming practices have led to the declines of many farmland songbirds, and emerging evidence that numbers of some woodland songbirds have declined due to long-term changes in woodland structure.'

Whichever side of the fence you wish to sit on, we are lucky in West Wales, to have a choice of where we can go to view these magnificent birds at close quarters. The feeding stations have been set up in order to support the Red Kite populations, but also to act as education facilities for the public, so we are better informed to make our own minds up about how we view the future of the Story of the Red Kite.

Red Kite Feeding Stations in West Wales

The Red Kite feeding station in Llandeusant, Carmarthenshire sees up to 70 kites per day coming to feed at this time of year. From January to March 2008, any school or college groups that pre-book will be given free entry as part of an education programme being provided by the centre.

The other Red Kite feeding station in West Wales is based in Bwlch Nant-yr-Arian, Ceredigion. Here, RSPB Cymru staff and volunteers are on hand to explain more about the red kite, as well as showing wonderful footage of Red Kites, filmed by the Welsh Kite Trust.

Sarah Beynon.