Red Kites are pretty common where I live. Thanks to their reintroduction into the area around the M40, I see them circling above my neighbourhood every day.
I’ve seen the kites being mobbed by gangs of crows before now – especially at the time of year when there are eggs and chicks for the crows to protect.
This morning I could hear an unusual bird song, so I went outside to have a look. I could see a single kite being mobbed by a group of much smaller birds. Definitely not crows.
It’s an overcast day and they were very high, so I wasn’t absolutely certain at first, but I think (mostly from looking up the sounds) that the kite was being mobbed by a gang of House Martins.
This was very exciting – firstly because it was a behaviour that I’d never seen before, and secondly because I didn’t know that we had any local house martins. Given that they’re frequently seen “near water and in the vicinity of woodland” I’m now rather surprised that I hadn’t seen them until today!