16/10/19 - Nightjar/Kestrel release

The fantastic, dedicated and expert work of Jean will be well known to many of our regular readers – with numerous stories posted on here of rescued swans and owls, rehabilitated raptors and hand-rearing nestlings, hedgehogs, orphaned otters and so much more. It’s a privilege for us to work with Jean, and helping to release some of these amazing creatures onto the NNR as part of the final piece of their rehabilitation back into the wild. However, each individual comes with a tale, which often involves miles of travelling, late nights, early mornings, nightly feeds and such amazing dedication by Jean and her support network at Battle Flatts Vets. 

Last month, Jean brought a Kestrel into the valley to be released in safe, prime feeding habitat, and in area which is home to many other Kestrels. This unfortunate individual fell from a nest in an aircraft hangar, and with it being very high up it was unable to go back into the nest, leaving Jean no option but to rear it until it was ready for fledging. Upon release at the NNR base it flew a short distance onto one of our new way marker posts, where it sat, preened and took in its new surroundings. 

Over the following days we were able to watch it hunting, hovering and catching food in the surround fields at Bank Island, occasionally coming back to sit on the post. Many thanks to Jean for her tireless efforts, which results in so many wild animals back out there living a truly wild life. For those that have been in contact recently wanting to support Jean, the link can be found here - https://www.gofundme.com/f/ldjuu8 - for her Go Fund Me page. 

Following on from the Kestrel release, we were also fortunate to see a young Nightjar which had been in Jean's care - seemingly only just fledged it was picked up exhausted and in unsuitable habitat by a concerned dog walker, presumably having run into difficulties when starting to disperse on its first migration to its wintering grounds in Africa. Weighing just 50 grams when it arrived, over the course of a few weeks with Jean’s expert care by slowly re-warming, re-hydrating and gentle feeding, it soon put on weight reaching over 70 grams and was ready to be off.  

At this time of year birds are heading off on their autumn migrations so it was released in prime habitat on Skipwith Common NNR – where it flew well landing in the undergrowth in the shade of a Silver Birch tree. 

After a couple of minutes, it flew again, a short distance, flicking itself over a fence and onto one of the main heaths before landing and scampering into the cover of heather. Hopefully thanks to Jean’s helping hand, this bird will be able to feed up further on the local moth population before making its way south, perhaps returning to Yorkshire in future years.