18/03/2026
We’ve been following the journeys of young Black Harriers – and the results are both fascinating and heartbreaking.
This past breeding season, our team led by Dutch volunteer Toni Hoenders monitored 34 nests across the Overberg. From these nests, 26 chicks fledged. But survival after leaving the nest is proving incredibly tough.
For the first time, with help from Dr Raymond Klaassen of the Montagu’s Harrier Foundation, we fitted GPS tags to juvenile Black Harriers to understand where they go and what threats they face. What we’re learning is worrying.
Of the 10 juveniles tagged this season:
• Four have already died
• Two are missing and presumed dead
• Only four are still transmitting data
Three of the young birds likely starved, while the other fell prey to a predator. In another tragic incident, wildfires in the mountains above Houwhoek Pass killed four chicks that weren’t tagged in their nests – too young to escape the flames.
But there is hope. This information helps us understand how these birds use the Overberg landscape and how we can protect them.
Read the full story here:
https://overbergrenosterveld.org.za/tracking-young-black-harriers-reveals-a-harsh-reality
And thank you to everyone who made this work possible, including our partners, volunteers and donors, including individuals who wish to remain anonymous, , Cape Bird Club, , Birding Africa Tours, Birdlife Inkwazi, Tygerberg Bird Club, WWF South Africa, and the Dutch Montagu’s Harrier Foundation.
📷 Photos: Odette Curtis-Scott, Raymond Klaassen & Toni Hoenders
Grauwe Kiekendief - Kenniscentrum Akkervogels
Tygerberg Bird Club / Voëlklub
CapeNature
Endangered Wildlife Trust
HawkWatch International
Conservation Outcomes
BirdLife South Africa
