🔗 Share this article

Releasing swift keck-keck-keck calls that resounded through a central Berlin green space, the large hawks climbed far above the treetops and circled before diving downwards to scatter a ragged flock of crows that had begun to harass them.

"They are basically a flying superhero enforcing justice to the urban environment," stated a conservationist, watching the sizable light-breasted birds through binoculars. "They're like stealth bombers."

The Accipiter gentilis is an apex predator – and conservationists aspire it will soon deliver awe and delight to British cities, mirroring its presence in German metropolises. In the United Kingdom, this fast-moving bird of prey was persecuted to near disappearance and only started to recover in rural areas during the 1960s. It remains commonly targeted on shooting estates and hunting grounds.

Flourishing in Continental Cities

In other parts of the continent, the northern goshawk is doing well – even in bustling cities such as the German capital, the Dutch capital, and the Czech capital. From a park in Berlin, where a sizable nest rested in the crown of a tree less than 100 metres from a monument, the elusive hunter preys on city birds in the streets and even rests on rooftops.

The raptors have adapted to busy vehicle flow – although high glass buildings still pose a threat – and are far more at ease with the steady stream of dogwalkers, runners, and kids than their forest-dwelling counterparts would be with humans.

"This is similar to any park in the UK, that's the amazing aspect," said the director of a rewilding initiative, which plans to introduce goshawks to Chester and London in the initial phase of a project reintroducing them to urban environments. "It proves this can be done quickly – without difficulty, but with so much enthusiasm."

Assisted Colonisation Plan

The conservationist is preparing to submit a proposal for the "urban reintroduction" of the northern goshawk to the authorities in the coming weeks; the scheme envisions the release of 15 birds in both of the two cities, obtained as juveniles from natural European eyries and British aviaries.

He hopes they will provide help of the UK's beleaguered garden birds by hunting mesopredators such as corvids, magpies, and small crows, whose numbers have grown without control and endangered birds further down the food chain.

Their presence should have an immediate impact on the "bold" mid-sized birds that prey on smaller ones that the public adore, explains the conservationist, referencing a similar effect observed in canine predators. "This is what's called an landscape of fear. Everyone knows the big guys are in town."

Possible Challenges and Risks

Conservation projects across Europe have faced fierce resistance from farmers and activist groups in recent years, as large carnivores such as wolves and bears have come back to territories now populated by humans. As their numbers have grown, they have begun to consume livestock and in certain instances confront humans.

The reintroduction of the goshawk into urban Britain is unlikely to trigger a similar backlash – the birds currently reside in other parts of the country, and pet-owners and urban gardeners have minimal to fear from them – but the species has caused tensions even in urban centers it has long called home.

In the German capital, where an estimated 100 breeding pairs constitute the highest-known density in the world, and other German cities, these hawks have become the target of pigeon and chicken breeders whose birds are being consumed.

A researcher who has studied goshawk adjustment to city environments used GPS transmitters to monitor 60 birds as part of her PhD, and states that while there could be possible advantages from employing goshawks to regulate mid-level predators in British cities, chicks removed from rural nests may find it hard to adjust to city life and emphasized the need to include all interested parties from the start. "In general, it's a hazardous business."

Scientific Views

An ornithologist who has studied hawk behaviour in rural Britain said it was uncertain if the birds would choose to stay in cities and unlikely that the suggested quantity would be enough to have a significant positive effect on garden bird numbers. "What is the fate of those 15 birds?" he asked. "My guess is they'll likely scatter into the closest countryside."

The project leader is nonetheless upbeat about the project's prospects. The specialist, who has previously been granted a licence to tag the Highland tiger and was a technical consultant for a program that brought the large bird back to the UK, argues that approaching reintroductions in a "humane way" is the key to achievement.

Past Rewilding Attempts

The conservationist's first effort to reintroduce wild cats to the United Kingdom was rejected by the environment official on the recommendation of the nature body in recent years. A draft application for a trial reintroduction has also met opposition, even though the chair of the nature body recently showed enthusiasm about the idea of reintroducing lynx during his two-year term.

If the goshawk initiative goes ahead, the raptors will be fitted with GPS transmitters – an task projected to represent almost half of the projected project cost of £110,000 – and be given a steady source of food for as much as is needed after being released. In Berlin, the conservationist stressed the psychological benefit of urban residents being able to spot a hunter as secretive as the raptor while they conduct their daily routines, rather than locating conservation projects only in rural areas.

"It will bring such excitement," he declared. "People go to the green space to feed birds. Soon they'll be going to see hawks."