For the first time since the 1960s, hen harriers have failed to nest successfully in England

Just two pairs attempted to nest this year in England, but both failed. At one of these sites the RSPB was working with the landowner to ensure the nest was protected. Sadly, the eggs never hatched. No new hen harriers this season means that the hen harrier (Circus cyaneus) is one the brink of extinction in England. The news of the nest failure follows the publication in May of the State of Nature report which showed that 60 per cent of those wildlife species which are monitored are declining across the UK. In 2011, the Government published ‘Biodiversity 2020’ (the revised England Biodiversity Strategy). In this strategy the Government made a clear commitment that there should be no extinction of an English wild species at the hands of man. This mirrors an international commitment under the Convention of Biological Diversity. Martin Harper, the RSPB’s conservation director, added: “With no birds nesting successfully this year, the hen harrier is clearly on the brink of extinction in England. We are eager to hear proposals from DEFRA about how the hen harrier can be restored to its rightful place on the English uplands.”

Source: RSPB, 9 August 2013
http://www.rspb.org.uk/media/releases/351247-hen-harrier-on-the-brink-o…