Britain’s Birds of Prey Need Your Help

Words and Photos by Abi Rose

Join Bikes and Bird Hides for a 30 mile fundraiser ride to help keep these magnificent birds where they belong, in our skies

Birds and Bike Hides has been bike birding around the north of England for the past five years, and we’re incredibly lucky that every time we’ve ridden we’ve had shouts of glee for a kestrel hovering over a field, or a buzzard soaring alongside a tree line or even a magnificent marsh harrier swooping down over reed beds.

Spotting any bird is incredible, but a bird of prey is a guaranteed highlight.  

But, not everyone feels the same way. Did you know in the past 15 years there have been more than 1,500 instances of birds of prey persecution in the UK? From hen harriers to white-tailed eagles, peregrines to goshawks, golden eagles to red kites. These amazing birds, and they are amazing, are being trapped, shot, and poisoned in big numbers, despite being protected under UK laws. 

We want to bring our community together to not only do a classic bike birding social ride, but also raise funds for the important work of the RSPB Investigation team who tackle these crimes. So, we’re heading out from the North Yorkshire town of Harrogate along traffic-free lanes and quiet country roads.

Why Harrogate? Well whilst North Yorkshire is an area of beauty where cyclists flock to ride, in the past 15 years of RSPB gathering data on bird of prey persecution, the county has racked up 185 incidents of bird of prey persecution – the highest amount of any UK county and by quite a stretch (the next is the Highlands with 69). So, let’s show up and demonstrate why we love riding in these areas: the birds. 

We’d love to have you join us. You can grab a ticket here, it’s a donation of your choice with all money heading straight to the RSPB Investigation team.