Montagu's Harrier

Montagu's Harrier is the slimmest and most agile European harrier. It is an elegant summer visitor that arrives from Africa in late April. It lives in open landscapes like heaths and marshes. It has increasingly adapted to nesting in large cereal fields. This brings it into contact with modern farming. Conservationists often must mark and protect nests from harvesting machinery. It is a light raptor that floats effortlessly over the ground.

Montagu's Harriers are specialized hunters. They eat small birds, lizards, and large insects. Their flight is buoyant and 'tern-like'. During courtship, pairs perform breathtaking aerial acrobatics. These include high-speed 'food passes' where the male drops prey for the female to catch mid-air. They are semi-colonial nesters and several pairs may breed in the same large field.