Picture Gallery - Red Kite
Red Kite over Grand Drive
It was a bright, sunny but cold, winter day and I was out walking. Looking around at the scenery I noticed, high above, a kite floating across the sky with the sun showing up the colours of red, gold and brown. I watched in fascination as it twisted and turned, dipped low and then soared high effortlessly.
Who was in control? The answer to that is Mother Nature for this was not a human held kite but a magnificent Red Kite; once persecuted in the UK to almost extinction but holding on (by those great yellow talons) in remote areas of Wales and parts of Europe. They had been extinct in England by the 1870’s.
Re-introduction via a breeding programme has resulted in a slow but steady increase in their population and they can now be seen over the Chilterns, South Downs and even the Surrey Hills. Next time you find yourself walking in the countryside take a look upwards and see if you spot the tell-tale forked tail of the Red Kite.
Alternatively, you could see one as you walk up Grand Drive just like I did!
Linda Fitch
