Here at the Hawk Conservancy Trust we are fortunate enough to have had Cinereous Vultures in our collection for many years. An iconic vulture and one of the largest we house.

Black-chested Buzzard-Eagle Not only is Azura a beautiful bird, she is also gentle and kind in character, and a very independent girl. She is 7 years old, so a fully-mature adult. She was hatched in a collection in Spain and came to the Trust when she was a couple of years’ old. She was a member of our team when we undertook flying displays at Longleat Safari Park and since her return to our team on site at the Trust, she has proven to be very popular with visitors, particularly for her striking appearance and incredible flying. She can be […]

With the government’s announcement on Monday 23 March 2020 regarding COVID-19, the Trust is closed for the foreseeable future. It is vital to reduce the spread of this terrible virus and keep our visitors, staff and volunteers as safe and healthy as possible. Rest assured that we have measures in place to make sure our birds are well-cared for while we are closed; that is our top priority. In order to do that, we need to do our best to ensure we have a strong and healthy Bird Team to take care of our birds, themselves and their families. Gary Benton, […]

We were very lucky that our Africa Project Officer Andre made it to the UK for a visit to the Trust (and safely back home to South Africa!) just before the virus restrictions were increased.

Due to the government guidelines on social distancing, we’ll be closing the Trust for the foreseeable future.  We feel we need to do our bit to help reduce the spread of this terrible virus and keep our visitors, staff and volunteers as safe and healthy as possible.  Rest assured that we have measures in place to make sure our birds are well-cared for; that is our top priority. In order to do that, we need to do our best to ensure we have a strong and healthy bird team to take care of our birds, themselves and their families.  We’re […]

But, the species still faces numerous threats. Our latest research on Red Kite population changes is out now!

What happens when the park is closed every year? We close for around four weeks at the start of each year to undertake vital maintenance and development projects. We’ve caught up with Gary Benton, our Head of Living Collection, to find out more about what the team actually get up to in this time:

Diego Mendez won our Marion Paviour award in 2019 for his fascinating research project with King Vultures! The King Vulture is one of the most understudied raptors in South America; Diego is using the funds from the award to survey roosts, foraging grounds and, potentially, nests of the King Vulture in central Bolivia.

We are extremely proud of the work we do in our National Bird of Prey Hospital™; we continue to deliver an excellent record in Bird of Prey rehabilitation. Our Hospital Manager Cedric Robert along with our vet John Chitty, members of the Bird Team, and dedicated volunteers work tirelessly to ensure the wild birds admitted to the Hospital receive the best care possible. 2019 was no exception; with approximately 60% of cases concluding in a successful rehabilitation and release back into the wild! Here are our highlights from the year:

January – A team of trained field staff were able to respond to a poisoning incident in Kenya on a hyena carcass, where 20 vultures were killed.