IT was not so long ago when the use of pesticides had all but driven our native raptors (birds of prey) into extinction.

Fortunately the plight of these animals did not go unnoticed and legislation over pesticide use and conservation efforts have managed to prevent this catastrophe.

The kestrel can be frequently encountered. It has a voice which it uses in display but it is nowhere near as shrill as the buzzard, which is larger. It is the distinct form of flight which makes the kestrel one of the most easily identifiable of all the British raptors. When hunting, the kestrel can hover perfectly motionless in the sky its head hung low as it scans the undergrowth below for prey.

Once prey is sighted, it swoops down in a series of steps getting closer and closer to the ground whilst still keeping a tight focus on the prey. Once satisfied that it has the prey firmly in sight and there are no dangers present, the kestrel makes its final sweep and pounces on the prey with its talons. Kestrels like to use the fact they are an exceptionally stable flying platform to eat their prey on the wing.

Prey is reasonably varied but kestrels’ generally preferred diet is voles. Voles have fluid population numbers, with huge populations blooming rapidly when conditions are right but in leaner times they can become scarce, hence the need for the variety in the kestrel’s diet.

In leaner times they will tackle other small mammals and even lizards which can sometimes be seen wriggling round in the talons of the kestrel as they soar skyward. Kestrels’ prey is not just confined to the ground and they will even pick off birds from branches and even large insects.

Raptors like the peregrine, goshawk and hobby are occasionally seen over the district as is the sparrow hawk. But one raptor that used to fill the Wyre Forest skies just 50 years ago , the red Kite is still a very rare sight, yet if you journey just a short distance away from our district this most wonderful of animal can frequently be seen.

Pairs of these animals were released in the countryside alongside the M40 and a journey will more often than not reveal some views of this bird. During the pesticide crisis red kites took refuge in the mountains of mid Wales and in recent years these birds have been naturally spreading out.

The closest I have regularly seen kites to the Wyre Forest has been around Ludlow, really not that for from us at all. I guess it will just be a year or so before these splendid birds will join our other raptors over the skies around Wyre Forest district.