HawkTalk Issue 90 Spring 2022

A message from our Chief Executive Penny Smout CEO

In this issue

The Marvels of Moulting Egyptian Vulture Project 04 Marion Paviour Award 2021 06 Lights, Music, Owls 08 … Action! Winter in the National 09 Bird of Prey Hospital™ It’s o-FISH-al … 10 Owlets 11 Biodiversity Breakfast , Saturday 7 May Exclusive Members’ Event , Saturday 11 June BioBlitz , Saturday 18 June Flight at the Movies , Saturday 25 June African Sunset Safari , Saturday 9 July and Friday 29 July Top Trumps , Saturday 16 July and Friday 5 August Sky Hunters at Sunset , Saturday 17 September Tickets for above events all on sale at www.hawk-conservancy.org/events or call us on 01264 773 850. 03 Dates for your diary

I am writing this as we are in the process of recovering from the impact of Storm Eunice. After that trauma, the arrival of spring flowers and the occasional glimpse of the sun does rather lift the spirits!

The storm was a very scary experience for those at the park, and also worrying for those of us at home concerned about their safety. While we have lost some of our major aviaries and other structures, I am so thankful that no one was hurt, and all the birds affected were swiftly and safely relocated. Volunteers and staff have been working hard to clear up the debris and make the site safe. Our crack team from Saqqara IT managed to get us up on a wireless link after our broadband went down which impacted our emails, tills and web shop. The team’s response, across the board, has made me hugely proud. It has certainly added some extra challenge to what was already going to be a busy year. We have so much to catch up on after the last two years. We have a number of development plans on the park and are delighted to announce that we were successful in securing the grant I mentioned last time. It will support several areas: our education programme will benefit from a proper outdoor classroom, our sustainability and appeal to electric vehicle drivers will be enhanced by installing charging points, and, of course, we have some plans to improve our displays. These will all be appearing over the rest of this year, so keep your eyes peeled to spot the changes! With the lifting of restrictions, we are so delighted to be able to invite you all back for our favourite activities. The highlight of the calendar is always our annual big event, this year themed a Flight at the Movies; it will be such a tonic after being kept apart for so long. While embracing our ability to reunite, we do have news of a departure to convey. Judy Lewis, from our Feathers Restaurant team, has decided to retire after nearly 15 years at the Trust. We will certainly miss her but definitely want to celebrate all that she has done for the Trust and hope she will visit often. We are keen to ramp our conservation work back up and get going on some exciting new projects. We have research and conservation projects lined up in South Africa just waiting for the UK team to return, and new projects in the UK we are eager to launch. While work in South Africa was limited by travel restrictions, our UK Raptor Nest Box Project has been struggling to keep up with demand! It has been really exciting that so many land owners are keen to engage with us, and we have enlisted the support of kind volunteers, including John Hanson school, to build some of the boxes. We are always on the lookout for handy carpenters to help with this, so please do get in touch if you have both talent and time on your hands! You’ll have the satisfaction of knowing you’ve provided a comfortable home for our favourite owls and Kestrels, and more importantly, their chicks! Have you been following the travels of our three Uzbek Egyptian Vultures? Such a fascinating glimpse into their early lives. They are currently in Yemen, India and on the India/Pakistan border. The one on the border, my favourite as it is coincidentally shares its name with our Finance Manager, Anya, is not far from the Vulture Safe Zone in Sindh, Pakistan, that we have been supporting. Just shows what a small place we all live in and how important is it to work to protect the natural world everywhere. I hope we will see you before too long and that you are looking forward to our Members evening in June. See you then!

Hawk Conservancy Trust Visitor Centre, Sarson Lane, Weyhill, Andover, Hampshire, SP11 8DY T: 01264 773 850 E: info@hawkconservancy.org www.hawk-conservancy.org

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