This morning a female Marsh Harrier flew through the rain just over the garden. I took a single photo, just as a record of the event, before reflecting on the fact that it's 'only' forty-five or so years ago that I saw my first marshie on a family holiday in East Anglia. Back in the early seventies Minsmere was the only place you could see these handsome raptors: Hen Harriers were far easier to encounter. I came across lots more during early holidays in France, where I first noticed that they seemed to prefer cereal crops, just like Montagu's.
Now it seems 'our' Marsh Harriers have also moved out onto arable land: they are a daily occurrence up here on the Heath, and I rarely visit Hemblington Church without seeing one. Perhaps if the idle rich were to stop persecuting Hen Harriers, they might make a similarly dramatic recovery...
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