Young British Red Kite Takes First Flight in Spanish Rewilding Project

A young British red kite steps out of its aviary in the remote hills of western Spain and takes to the air. At just six months old, it is experiencing freedom for the very first time.

Silently, the bird climbs higher above the scrubland before vanishing into a distant wooded valley within seconds.

This release marks the latest chapter in a conservation success story that has now come full circle.

How Red Kites Returned From Extinction in the UK

Nearly 40 years ago, red kites had vanished from England and Scotland, and only a few breeding pairs survived in Wales.
During the late 1980s and early 1990s, chicks from Spain and Sweden were brought to the Chilterns, on the Oxfordshire–Buckinghamshire border, as part of an ambitious reintroduction programme.

The project exceeded all expectations. Red kite numbers have since surged, with more than 6,000 breeding pairs now established across the UK—around 15% of the world’s entire population.

Dr Ian Evans from Natural England was one of the early pioneers of the programme.

He said: “There were a lot of unknowns. The first lot we released, we thought they might just die or they might just move away.

“In 1991, we had our first breeding pairs and that was really an eye-opener because we thought ‘well, this can be successful’.

“That was the springboard for establishing other release sites in England and Scotland.”

Why British Red Kites Are Now Being Sent to Spain

Today, the conservation effort has reversed: British-born red kite chicks are being taken to south-west Spain to help revive a population on the brink of collapse.

In Extremadura, fewer than 50 breeding pairs remain, threatened by predators such as the eagle owl, as well as illegal poisoning and electrocution from power lines.

In 2022, conservationists were granted special licences from Natural England to collect red kite chicks—mainly from Northamptonshire—and transport them to Spain. More than 120 chicks have been collected so far, with around 30 exported each year.

About the Red Kite

• One of Britain’s largest birds of prey, recognisable by its reddish-brown plumage, long wings, forked tail and distinctive mewing call

• Once hunted to near extinction in the UK, wrongly believed to threaten game birds and domestic animals

• Now largely a scavenger, feeding on carrion and small prey

• Endangered in parts of Europe due to ongoing persecution, including illegal shooting, trapping and poisoning

Inside Spain’s Red Kite Recovery Programme

After being flown to Madrid, the chicks are driven 240 miles (385 km) south to a wildlife hospital in Villafranca de los Barros, run by conservation group AMUS (Acción por el Mundo Salvaje).

When I arrive, the small team—led by ornithologist and project manager Alfonso Godino—is carefully preparing the young birds. Each chick is weighed, measured, and fitted with a GPS backpack so researchers can track its movements.

The motionless birds appear almost lifeless as they are handled. Godino explains that red kites “play dead” when they feel threatened. Asked whether the tagging causes pain, he compares it to the brief discomfort of having ears pierced.

The juveniles quickly adapt to the backpacks, which allow researchers to monitor them from the ground.
After tagging, the birds spend two weeks in holding aviaries near the Portuguese border to acclimatise to the local environment.

The release site is remote and still. A sheep carcass lies nearby, left intentionally to attract the young kites to feed.

When the aviary gate is opened, there is no rush for freedom—just a few hesitant wingbeats. It takes several hours for the birds to gather the courage to leave, eventually taking off one by one into the wild.

“Now is the exciting moment when they are in the wild, they can learn to search for food, to avoid predators, to interact with other species in the area… thanks to the GPS we are going to closely monitor these birds we have released,” Alfonso tells me.

For AMUS field technician Sofía Marrero, this is the most anxious moment.

“The mortality for raptors in general is really high during the first years of their life,” she says. “So now it’s a little bit hard because you already know that some of them may not get to sexual maturity, so it’s a bittersweet moment.”

Red Kite Survival Rates Remain Low

Only about a quarter of the released red kites have survived so far, with predators and natural factors posing the greatest threats.

In 2023, eagle owls killed half of the newly released chicks. In response, the AMUS team has changed its release timings and methods to improve their survival odds.

Extensive work has also been carried out to modify thousands of kilometres of power lines to reduce the risk of electrocution.

But illegal poisoning remains the most serious human threat to birds of prey.

Between 2020 and 2024, 3,060 red kites were tagged across 40 project areas in 12 countries as part of the Life EuroKite project. By September 2024, 1,377 of these birds had died—622 from natural causes, 195 from poisoning, and 54 from illegal shooting. Experts warn that these numbers represent only a fraction of the true scale of persecution.

Illegal Raptor Persecution: Ongoing Concerns in the UK

In the UK, the RSPB continues to work with European partners to help investigate poisoning cases. A report last year found that at least 1,344 birds of prey were illegally killed in Britain between 2009 and 2023.

“Raptor persecution is directly linked to game estates so in the lowlands pheasant and partridge and in the uplands grouse,” Mark Thomas, head of investigations at RSPB says.

“All the statistics prove that… two thirds of all the convictions are for gamekeepers so these are people employed lawfully to control vermin they can control but on some estates some of these gamekeepers kill things that are fully protected,” he adds.

The charity argues that licensing game estates would reduce the problem, though the Countryside Alliance disputes this.

In a statement, the non-profit organisation said: “Any incident of raptor persecution is utterly condemnable, with the penalties already including a prison sentence along with an unlimited fine.”

Early Signs of Success for Spain’s Red Kite Restoration

In Extremadura, the relocation project has already produced promising early results: three breeding pairs have formed, successfully raising two surviving chicks. With more GPS-tagged red kites reaching maturity next year, conservationists hope these numbers will grow—and that the species can reclaim its place in the Spanish skies.

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At Natural World Fund, we are passionate about restoring habitats in the UK to halt the decline in our wildlife.