Dead Buzzards on M4?

[PeeJay]

I regularly drive along the M4 from Bristol heading towards London. A few times now I've noticed a startling number of what I think are dead Buzzards along the central reservation. Seems to be between say Swindon and Reading, maybe a bit further. Driving along it feels as though there are streches where I see one every few hundred yards, sometimes 8 or so in a row.

Anyone know what why this is and what's causing it? The bodies always seem to be along the central reservation rather than the hard shoulder.

Cheers

[Wild-Woman]

Are you sure they are buzzards? Not that I'm questioning your id skills but we've seen many a pheasant along that stretch on our way to visit our son.

[PeeJay]

I think you may be right there. I found a couple of posts going back to 2006 on (of all places) a Daily Mail article which mentioned lots of dead pheasants.

I'm always doing the driving so just get an impression of dark brown feathers and assumed it was buzzards or the odd kestral but I guess pheasant would fit the bill.

I'm still puzzled as to why there are so many and always along the central reservation. If they're being struck by vehicles I'd have thought they'd be all along the width of the carriageway.

[Gill Catton]

Yes and there's a lot of newly released youngsters out there at the mo,

Id of dead birds is quite difficult. I was looking at what I thought was a dead pigeon until I saw the bright red tail and I realised it was actually an ex African grey! (that had ceased to be)

[Wild-Woman]

They're probably the ones that had anything left...if you catch my drift. The ones that didn't get that far were probably obliterated by lorries.
They're not the most intelligent of birds and the young ones are even worse. The only positive thing that may become of these birds is dinner for red kites and corvids methinks.