The Hen Harrier

"Artist, ornithologist and author, Donald Watson has made an especial study of the Hen Harrier Circus cyaneus over many years and his field notes and sketch books of this exceptional bird of prey go back to the 1940s. The book opens with the world distribution of the harrier family, then there is a fuller treatment of the Hen Harrier in Europe and North America (the Marsh Hawk), its history and present status. Further chapters detail hunting methods and prey selection, the breeding cycle, migration and distribution. The second part of the book is a closely observed account of the Hen Harrier in Donald Watson's particular study areas in Scotland, in moorland and forest habitats. The author's colour paintings, line drawings and reproductions from his field sketch books are an outstanding accompaniment to a most readable yet scholarly text."--Bloomsbury Publishing Cover Contents Acknowledgements Introduction 1 HARRIERS OF THE WORLD General and specific characteristics Origins and structural adaptations 2 IDENTIFICATION AND PLUMAGE Comparison between Hen, Montagu's and Pallid Harriers Albinism and melanism in Hen and Montagu's Harriers PART ONE: THE HEN HARRIER 3 THE HISTORY OF THE HEN HARRIER IN BRITAIN AND IRELAND The decline The recovery and present status 4 WHAT KIND OF PREDATOR? Hunting methods Hunting habitats Food Prey selection Food consumption 5 THE BREEDING CYCLE: COURTSHIP TO INCUBATION Nesting habitats Return to breeding grounds; pairing and courtship The food pass and copulation Nest building The nest and nest sites Social nesting Polygyny Neighbours Laying and incubation 6 THE BREEDING CYCLE: HATCHING TO FLEDGING Hatching Feeding of chicks; hunting and rhythms Development of chicks; mortality and cannibalism Other behaviour of chicks Breeding success and failure to breed Age of breeding birds Reactions to disturbance; predation on nests Moult of the adults The post-fledging period 7 MIGRATION AND WINTER DISTRIBUTION 8 THE HEN HARRIER AS AN ARTIST'S BIRD PART TWO: A STUDY OF THE HEN HARRIER IN SOUTH-WEST SCOTLAND: Introductory note 9 THE BEGINNING: THE NINETEEN FIFTIES 10 WATCH IN THE HEATHER: THE FIRST NEST 11 MOORLAND NESTING: 1960–68 12 FOREST NESTING: 1965–75 13 WATCH FROM A HIDE 14 NEST SITES 15 BREEDING DATA 16 FOOD AND HUNTING GROUNDS IN THE BREEDING AREA 17 FOOD AND HUNTING GROUNDS IN WINTER 18 COMMUNAL ROOSTING IN WINTER 19 POSTSCRIPT: A CONTROVERSIAL BIRD Appendix 1 : Local names of the Hen Harrier Appendix 2: Avian species mentioned in the text Appendix 3: Non-avian species mentioned in the text Appendix 4: Protection under the Acts of 1954 and 1967 Bibliography Tables 1-30 Index A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z