Buzzards again

[FUDGEY]

In my area there are loads of buzzards. 20 years ago they were very rare indeed. I must have seen a dozen tonight in a few miles driving. Regularly I see them standing in the middle of fields. It's not uncommon to see 6 in the same field. I've found out they are worming in the same way as gulls do. The rabbit population in my area has diminished in the last few years and they must have adapted to this food source because of this. Has anyone else seen this behaviour in their area?

[ron1863]

It's similar in my area, years ago they were very scarce and now they are very common. If I go up onto the hills I can see dozens of them soaring and hanging in the currents near the summit. I have also witnessed a few sitting in the middle of fields or perched low down in Hawthorn bushes.

[Pam_M]

Not many days go by that I do not see a Buzzard in my area! I love to see them and here their mewing as they soar in the sky!

[muldonach]

Your description could well apply to my part of Scotland, although in some cases the rabbit population has simply become more nocturnal.

Certainly there is a large population of buzzards around and we certainly have at least 3 resident pairs but virtually no daytime rabbits.

Worming is a very common activity but they are great opportunists and will also zero in on grass mowing machinery when they see it since there are numerous small rodents suddenly exposed.

Regards
mac

[bodshi]

Last year was the first year we have seen buzzards around here - there were three around last summer and we now see a lone one every now and then - last time was about 2 weeks ago. At Easter we had a drive down the M18/M1 to Nottingham and I was surprised to see buzzards flying over the fields alongside the motorway intermittently for most of the journey, including the roundabout at the Nottingham exit, so quite close to a major habitation. I have been used to the common sight of buzzards on our Scotland holidays but never before seen them down here like this.

I do worry about our local buzzard/s because game shooting is big business round here and the local farmer also allows people on his land to shoot crows and pigeons. I think the buzzards may be persecuted as a potential threat to the game birds and young chicks that are raised in the wood that seems to be the buzzard's base. I know they're protected but I think it would be very easy to accidentally shoot one instead of a crow. You'd think farmers would welcome them though, if they keep the rabbit population down.

[hobble]

There are lot's of buzzards here and I watch them often being harassed by two or three rooks who seem to drive them away.
They are often sat on old telephone poles, sometimes they sit in the trees in our garden.

[BarbaraEmma]

When I was out walking a few days ago I had to cross over an underpass ,the path I was on is lined with trees and when I got right on top of the underpass I looked to my left and a Buzzard was sat on top of the underpass lamp post , he was about 3 feet away from me. He looked straight at me, and wow those eyes are fabulous. He flew off and I walked on, definately made my day.
We see a quite a lot of Buzzards circling over our house,they get mobbed by the Jackdaws who drive them out of their area,but thankfully they keep coming back.

[Pete Collins]

That must have been a brilliant experience, BarbaraEmma!

I've mentioned before on other threads that Buzzards seem to doing well all over the northern Home Counties where I go walking. There are some in the village where I live and I've seen them in all the neighbouring parishes. If I go for a long walk anywhere in Beds, Bucks or Herts I usually see them - today for instance, there was one over the A5 just north of St Albans, being harassed by crows. On my previous walk on Wednesday, there were three at Chenies Bottom in the Chess Valley.