The RSPB has offered reassurances to farmers that red kites, which have recently been reintroduced to parts of the UK after 200 years, do not pose a threat to livestock.image expired

The Kites, which have already been supported in Northern Ireland, Wales, the North of England, and the Republic of Ireland over the past few years, have continued to suffer persecution in some regions where they have been reintroduced.

 At the beginning of the month it was revealed that a seventh bird had been poisoned since Red Kites were reintroduced into the Republic of Ireland. With the lambing season underway, the RSPB has advised farmers that the birds are scavengers, preferring worms, scraps and mice, and will not endanger lambs or other livestock.

RSPB red kite officer Adam McClure said, “These birds of prey lack the power, strength and speed to take anything larger than a young rabbit, never mind a lamb. Appearances may be deceiving, but the red kite is actually a bit of a wimp. These birds may look amazing wheeling high above, but they do not have the size, power or the agility to take prey on the move. Kites can be lazy too, if they can get a meal without killing, so much the better.”

The birds were initially reintroduced into the UK between 2008 and 2010 and have begun to breed in the wild. Despite the unfortunate incidences of persecution, the reintroduction has been the longest and most successful reintroduction project on record, with breeding pairs of the kites now thought to number in the hundreds throughout the UK.

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