Harriers: Journeys Around the World by Don Scott
Don took early retirement so as he could devote significant amounts of time to studying Hen Harriers in his native Northern Ireland. His passion for this bird is wholly undisguised and his time has been, without doubt, profitably spent. A member of the Institute of Biology and founder member of the Northern Ireland Raptor Study Group, he has been studying this particular species for 23 years. However he has other strings to his raptorial bow and was instrumental in proving the first breeding records for Northern Goshawk and Short-eared Owl in Northern Ireland. He has also had in excess of 40 articles and papers (mainly regarding harriers) published, and consequently his interest in the genus has now taken him to the four corners of the planet in pursuit of (and to study first hand) all of the sixteen recognised species.
So what do we have here?
Simply put, this is one man's ornithological quest to see these birds written up and well presented in a limited-edition volume (just 700). The reader is treated to accounts of his travels and encounters with Hen, Western Marsh (and its subspecies harterti), Montagu's, Pallid, Black, African Marsh, Pied, Eastern Marsh, Reunion, Madagascar Marsh, Cinereous, Long-winged, Northern, Swamp, Spotted and Papuan Harriers — and oh what enviable encounters they've been!
The book rightly begins with a couple of dedications written by Rob Simmons, not least to Roger Clarke. Roger, who sadly passed away in 2007, was most certainly a 'harrier man', something which I can vouch for personally having met him in the mid-nineties and briefly discussed the genus — his enthusiasm was simply palpable. There then follows a short preface by David Hollands, a prologue and an extensive set of acknowledgements.
From then on it's all about the birds themselves and there is a fulsome introduction to the harrier family and a map of the places that the author visited in search of these wonderful birds.
First up then is the Hen Harrier, a species familiar to most British birders though one that is still, sadly, horribly persecuted. The account gives lots of detail about Hen Harrier life history and describes in absorbing detail the first recorded instances of tree-nesting by this species in Northern Ireland — in fact anywhere in its range (something that was only ever previously associated with the Spotted Harrier of Australia, and the Swamp Harrier in New Zealand)! Though the accounts are generally brief they pack in a lot of information and none more so than for this species, understandably really given the amount of time Don has spent in field watching them. Western Marsh Harrier is another species with which most of us will be familiar with and the author recounts his observations from Mallorca (where he watched birds being mobbed by Black-winged Stilts) and elsewhere. The utterly charismatic Montagu's Harrier (the most diminutive of the family) also gets the same treatment and his joy at encountering this bird for the first time leaps off the page. The text concerning the exquisite Pallid Harrier is extremely interesting and the difficulties of separating females from female Montagu's are not glossed over.
His accounts of Black (an enormously striking member of the genus) and African Marsh Harriers of the fynbos, karoo and wetlands of southern Africa will undoubtedly make the reader want to book a flight to observe these birds for themselves. Asia next and the observations of Pied Harrier (eye-candy written large) and Eastern Marsh Harrier make for a truly enviable read. The former species surely a solid contender for the world's best-looking Circus.
The recently separated Reunion Harrier is the rarest of them all: admired and protected in its natal range, it is clearly a must-see species, particularly when you have read about its tiny population. Its sister species, the Madagascar Marsh Harrier, is well treated with remarkable observations relating to birds flushing bats from tree canopies: as Don puts it, '...strange behaviour for a so-called marsh harrier'. A South American visit was clearly on the cards given that Cinereous Harrier and the superb Long-winged Harrier are found nowhere else. Sadly, though strongly suspected, tree-nesting wasn't confirmed for the former species.
Northern Harrier should be on every European birder's radar. The North American counterpart of our Hen Harrier, it's clear that this species intrigued the author and his joy at discovering a significant (and previously undocumented) roost at Merrit Island, Florida is a pleasure to read.
Swamp Harrier (aka Australian Harrier) is certainly an impressive species (I speak from experience having watched them in New Zealand), It is one of the largest and heaviest of the tribe and a species also known to tree-nest (in New Zealand) while the remarkable Spotted Harrier (also of Australia and nearby islands) is considered, as Don points out, to be the most primitive of all the harriers. Its plumage echoes that of the Spilornis Serpent-eagles and of course it's widely recognised as a habitual tree-nester. Yet the author briefly puts forward the case for it being derived from, rather than ancestral to, other harrier species. His travels in search of these two Austral species were not without danger however.
Finally, we are treated to an account of the author's observations of the stunning Papuan Harrier (regarded as endemic to Papua New Guinea), the last of the recognised species of harrier he had yet to see — and see it he does.
The book concludes with a chapter entitled 'Finale and Afterthoughts' and here the author discusses his favourite harrier species (which, unsurprisingly, turns out to be the Hen Harrier); his 'greatest harrier moments', which includes being part of the small team of birders who logged the largest roost of mixed species ever found (in excess of 3,000 individuals!) in Gujarat, India; 'conservation concerns worldwide'; and a conclusion. Beyond this there is a general bibliography and a list of scientific names relating to the birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians, insects and plants discussed in the main body of text.
All in all this 182 page book is laudable, the photographs are excellent (in a few instances simply jaw-dropping) and the overall layout is uncluttered and easy on the eye.
If you like harriers (and who among us doesn't?) I'd recommend purchasing a copy of this book. It's clearly been a labour of some considerable love.
Hardback. 200 pp., 77 colour photographs, 5 watercolour illustrations
RRP £38.50 (& £4 p&p), ISBN-13: 978-0-9532002-6-9 .
