Team will help kite fly to freedom today

Jul 20 2009 by Tony Henderson, The Journal

THE team running the project to re-establish red kites in the North East thought they had released their last young birds.

A total of 94 were imported from an established population in the Chiltern Hills in Oxfordshire to be set free in the Derwent Valley in Gateshead.

But they reckoned without Pink C6, a tagged youngster which fell out of its nest in June in the Derwent Walk Country Park.

Now the youngster will be the last red kite to be released by the Northern Kites Project, which finishes at the end of this month.

Staff believe the grounded C6 was still being fed by its parents, Red Philip and Flag, who were the first pair to successfully nest after the species’ return to the region.

The young bird was found and rescued by two members of the public days after its nest fall.

It was taken into care by the Northern Kites team and reared using the same techniques employed with the original reintroduction birds from 2004-2006.

The bird has grown well and is now ready to be released today on the newly-named Kite Hill.

It is hoped that the youngster will soon re-acquaint itself with its parents, and enjoy a successful family reunion.

Keith Bowey, Northern Kites project manager, said: “There are a number of extraordinary elements to this story, not least of which is that the young bird survived for two or three days on the woodland floor, before being rescued by members of the public. Clearly Flag and Red Philip knew where it was and were providing it with food.

“The fact that members of the public, recognised what this bird was and knew that they had to take action to save it, is a testament to how the public profile and appreciation of the kites amongst the people of the North East has worked not just for the project, but for the kites themselves.”

Tony Henderson