Conservationists are preparing to introduce goshawks into British cities, drawing inspiration from Berlin, where the apex predator thrives among people.
Dr Paul O’Donoghue, director of Rewilding UK, plans to release 15 goshawks each in Chester and London, sourcing chicks from European nests and UK breeders. He believes the raptors could restore balance to urban ecosystems by controlling populations of crows, magpies, and jackdaws, whose unchecked growth threatens smaller garden birds.
In Berlin, where more than 100 breeding pairs live, goshawks hunt pigeons in city streets and nest in parks, adapting comfortably to human activity. O’Donoghue says the success proves such rewilding projects can work in the UK: “It proves this can be done quickly – without much fuss, but with so much excitement.”
Not all experts are convinced. Manuela Merling de Chapa, a German scientist who has tracked goshawks in cities, warned that chicks raised in rural areas may struggle to adapt to urban life. Ian Henderson of the British Trust for Ornithology questioned whether the small number of birds proposed would remain in cities or disperse into the countryside.
Despite the doubts, O’Donoghue remains optimistic. With £110,000 budgeted, much of it for GPS tracking, and plans for supplementary feeding after release, he sees the project as a chance to connect people with a powerful predator in their own parks.
“It’ll inject such excitement,” he said. “People go to the park to feed pigeons. Soon they’ll be going to see goshawks.”
