Red Kite Chicks Grow Up Wild _ Fierce _ Red Kite _ Robert E Fuller

I found a red kite nest that was being used each year. So in December, before their breeding season started, I built a 16 meter scaffold tower so I could climb up to the nest and install a hidden camera, which would hopefully record the secretive nesting behaviors of these striking birds of prey. Once the cameras were working, I rebuilt the tower 20 meters away, so if the kites nested here again, I'd be able to put a hide on top quickly without disturbing them. These birds are legally protected. I have a Schedule 1 license that allows me to film them on the nest, but I'm keeping my distance in these early courtship stages so I don't disturb them. I watch this camera via a wide monitor further down the wood, as the female laid her first, second, and third egg amongst a potentially dangerous bed of rubbish. After 35 days of incubation, I caught a glimpse of the first fluffy red kite chick. Join me for the next installment of this story, as the two remaining chicks hatch, and despite squabbles and disagreements, an eclectic diet sees them developing together into healthy young red kites. Just one day after the first chick has hatched, the female leaves the nest, and what at first looks to be just one chick, then appears to be two. We have a second chick, this is incredible. It isn't long before the female returns with the fish, this time she's got a roach. The male must have brought it to her on a nearby branch. Red kites often eat carrion, but they're also adept hunters, even able to snatch fish from the water. The male then delivers another fish, but this time the female eats it. The adults will be on feeding duties for up to 10 weeks, so they need to keep their energy up too. Red kites feed on a range of prey, small birds, mammals, invertebrates, and like this pair, even fish. Up here on the Yorkshire wolds, unfortunately a lot of pheasants succumb to collisions on the road, and these birds take advantage of an easy meal. The male soon returns with a stick for the nest. They keep adding material throughout the breeding season, and as the female leaves, it looks like he's opted for an easy meal. The wasi next is very interesting. The male red kite is feeding the chicks. This isn't often something you see with birds of prey. Males usually don't know to tear off little bits, like this male kestrel, and this male barn owl. Young chicks can't swallow prey whole, but this male red kite is delicately tearing off bite-sized morsels. The female returns and grabs some pheasant leg for herself. It's quite difficult to tell the difference between male and female red kites. They look very similar to one another, but when they're together on the nest, you can see the female slightly larger than the male. Before the male leaves, and she returns to brood in, and just in time, a common buzzard flies overhead. The female alarm calls. The male's on the scene, dive-bombing the buzzard. Luckily, the buzzard gets the message and doesn't come any closer. Even though the buzzard's gone, there's still a threat back at the nest. The male has returned with plastic. It could become very dangerous to the chicks. They could become waterlogged or even drown. The male is clearly doing a fantastic job providing for this family. There is surplus food around the nest, and for a good reason. As the female stands, I can see the third chick has hatched. One thing that is clear is that these siblings are very aggressive. Even when there's a plentiful food supply, this aggression is to maintain dominance between them. Based on size, should food resources decline, the squabbles have stopped for now. But a misplaced wing causes a momentary lapse in the peace and quiet. The red kite chicks are now two weeks old and thermoregulating, which means they can retain their own body temperature, so it's a perfect time for me to head up into this hide. This will give me a new vantage point to capture some intimate moments between this red kite family. This is an incredible view from up here. I'm now eye level with the nest. Wow, look at that, she's back on the nest. That didn't take long. She's brought in a thrush to feed the chicks. But that bit is too big and the female takes it back and tries them with a smaller piece. It always amazes me watching birds of prey, how delicate they are when they're feeding the chicks. But the chicks sometimes get impatient, grabbing at the food themselves. The parents are doing such a fantastic job, keeping all three chicks so well fed. When they're finished eating, the female is actually taking the carcasses away and that keeps the nest really clean and tidy. It's been a much better first day than I ever anticipated, but it's getting late and the female's away, so I'm going to quietly slip out of the hide. These chicks are about two weeks old now and a little too big for the female to brood. But she still stands on the nest edge, keeping guard. With no adult brooding them, when the heavens open, these chicks get wet. And with plastic in the nest, this could spell danger for them. She steps forward and protects them from the rain. Fortunately, it's just a passing shower. These chicks are growing fast and they're getting much bigger. The female spends more time on nearby branches rather than on the nest. And with more space, these chicks are flapping their wings, building up their muscles. And losing their downy feathers, gaining their adult plumage. The oldest chick is starting to stand more and more now. Being 16 meters up, it can quickly become windy up here, making standing up even harder. So they hunker down and let it pass, before getting in some more flapping. And giving us a glimpse into the development of their iconic forked tail, for which red kites are so well known. As they grow, they need more food. Snapping at a rodent brought in by the male. Some bits look less appealing than others. And some are not edible at all. This is just fur for the nest. The next delivery is a fresher one. An adult arrives with a baby bird. The next delivery is even fresher. Too fresh, it seems. The male has brought a live duckling. And in a last ditch effort for survival, the duckling leaps from the nest. This duckling will likely survive the 16 meter fall, but without its mother, it's doomed. We can really see the development in these chicks. The two younger chicks are growing in confidence. Standing and stretching their wings. Showing their beautiful adult feathers coming through. But it is cramped in a nest now. The female arrives and starts rearranging sticks. And the male arrives with another fish, that now goes down in one. But the next meal isn't quite as easy to swallow. One of them has bitten off a bit more than it can chew. Trying its best to swallow a whole rat's tail. The struggle goes on before a sibling grabs it. And faces a lengthy battle with it too. But finally manages to swallow it. It's been amazing to follow this red kite family over the past few weeks. From seeing the second and third chick for the very first time. To see them grow, develop and flourish into young red kites. With a remarkably varied diet. Join me next time, as these chicks get all their adult feathers through. They fledge and learn the ropes of life beyond the nest.