Wildlife Cam Campaign – Hengistbury Head

February 26, 2019

Live streaming

We are currently live streaming from our cameras across Hengistbury Head, Dorset.

We’ve been lucky enough to watch a heron chick hatch and flegde and 5 kestrel chicks mature during the spring period. We’re currently working on what we can bring you from our other bird feeding stations, so for the time being we’ll be streaming from Holloway’s Dock at Hengistbury Head – we hope you enjoy watching the gentle landscape and looking out for birds during low tide in the harbour.

The Heron chick we’ve loved watching hatch, feed and grow into a mature bird has now fledged from the nest aloft the Scots Pines and will be spending its time now in Christchurch Harbour and along the Stour Valley. What a fantastic experience this has been to witness the maturing of this fascinating creature.

The Heron has been such a favourite to watch that we have missed out on our Blue Tits which have all now left the nest so we are switching our cameras to the nesting Kestrels.

Our Kestrels nest high in the tops of the tallest pine trees on Hengistbury Head. We had 5 eggs laid at the end of April which hatched and the chicks fledged in the middle of June. The male bird does most of the hunting until the chicks are bigger and only then will the female risk leaving the nest to hunt close by. Voles are their favourite prey but they will search out small birds, woodmice, shrews, insects and earthworms. The Kestrel has amazing eyesight and can spot a beetle 50m from its perch!

Out of season we are planning, for the first time to bring you live pictures from Christchurch Harbour and from one of our bird feeding stations.

While you’re enjoying the live stream, you may have to press the play button again after 10 minutes to keep watching the action.

Keeping cameras working in the hostile environment of gales, driving rain and salty sea spray is expensive. This year we are raising funds to add more live streams for 2021. The costs of streaming are £1,000 a year and we’d also like to put a new camera in next year too, we rely upon donations to make this happen.

So please join us in donating towards our Wildlife Cam Campaign by donating here online.

Thank you!

Please note: our webcams show live footage of the natural world. Please understand that at times this may include images of feeding on prey.

TARGET – £2,000

RAISED SO FAR – £1,471

Bournemouth Christchurch & Poole Council Logo

Hengistbury Head Visitor Centre