Sunday 7th May is Skydancer Day, and upland wildlife conservation charity Hen Harrier Action has announced the full line-up for the event. Hosted by TV wildlife presenter Megan McCubbin and Hen Harrier Action’s Indy Kiemel Greene, it will be broadcast live on YouTube from the Hawk Conservancy Trust in Hampshire.
The theme for this year’s broadcast is “Survival”, and Megan and Indy will be hearing from the RSPB Investigations Team’s Jenny Shelton about their recent cases and progress with tackling wildlife crime.
Launch of the 2023 Young Wild Writer competition
Renowned children’s author, vet and wildlife enthusiast Gill Lewis will be announcing Hen Harrier Action’s annual Young Wild Writer competition and sharing some tips for aspiring young authors.
Winter roosting behaviour in Hen Harriers and Starlings
Armed with some dramatic film footage of hen harriers circling over winter roosts and spectacular starling murmurations, Megan and Indy will discuss the factors that influence choice of hen harrier winter roosting sites, and what motivates starlings to gather in such huge numbers to roost in the winter months, creating breathtaking aerobatic displays.
The first national RSPB Hen Harrier Survey since 2016
Megan and Indy will be discovering more about the RSPB’s Hen Harrier Survey 2023 from Senior Conservation Scientist Simon Wotton – the first since 2016 – which showed a 14% decline since 2010 for this much-persecuted, red-listed species.
Hen Harriers breeding at the ground-breaking Tarras Valley project
Five hen harrier pairs nested last year in Tarras Valley Nature Reserve, successfully fledging 13 young hen harriers, a rare good news story for this persecuted raptor.
We heard from estates manager Jenny Barlow and education and engagement officer Kat Mayer about this ambitious community project, now covering 10,500 acres following a second stage of fundraising. It includes upland moor, ancient woodland, meadows, peatlands, and a river valley, and came into being following an ambitious community fundraising campaign.
Celebrating the lives of our birds of prey
Skydancer Day co-host Indy Kiemel Greene urged, “I’m really looking forward to presenting Skydancer Day 2023 with Megan again. Please join us for a great array of films, guests and contributions celebrating the lives of our birds of prey, discovering the threats they face and how important it is that they are protected.”
Skydancer Day will be broadcast live on YouTube on 7th May 2023, from 12.30pm to 1.30pm, from The Hawk Conservancy Trust.
Discover the full line-up for Skydancer Day here: https://www.henharrierday.uk/events/skydancer-day-2023/
