Steve Docker is a Resource Development Officer with Field Studies Council Publications. Here he talks to Keith Offord, a raptor specialist, to find out more about this fascinating group of birds. They also discuss the new WildID Raptors of Britain and Ireland guide, published in January 2025.

Keith Offord is an experienced field ornithologist, bird tour guide and photographer. Amusing, easy to talk too, and a very patient tutor. I have known Keith for many years and he has taught me a great deal about birds. I have many good memories of encounters with birds, especially raptors, at some wonderful locations around the United Kingdom.
Last year, Keith and I co-authored WildID Waders of Britain and Ireland, alongside wildlife artist Mike Langman. Its success inspired us to produce another bird guide during 2024. This time we have worked together on the new WildID Raptors of Britain and Ireland guide.
I put a few questions to him …
What is the new guide all about? Why do we need another guide?

There are countless fine volumes dealing with all aspects of raptors, from their biology to their identification. Many of these are in my bookcase. It would be difficult to do anything completely ground-breaking.
However, the new WildID Raptors of Britain and Ireland is different to previous guides because it is specifically aiming at the identification of raptors as you see them in the field. Glorious close-ups showing every feather are nice, but are of relatively little value compared with distant silhouettes showing the crucial features of wing shape and tail length and how the species typically holds its wings when gliding or soaring.
This guide also enables easy comparison between species providing a practical, very portable, weather-proof aid, for use in the field.
Explain about your work and your interests. What raptor-based activities do you currently do?
Since the mid-1970’s I have monitored breeding raptors in North Wales with a particular emphasis on Hen Harriers and Merlins. These are two of the most important Schedule 1 species which are qualifying features for the Berwyn and Migneint SPAs (Specially Protected Areas). The work (under licence from Natural Resources Wales) involves extensive observation, location of nests and recording of eggs laid, young hatched and young fledged.
As a result there now exists one of the most comprehensive data bases documenting the status of both species. The work also entails regular liaison with and the fostering of excellent relations with landowners.

Since 2014 I have been Co-ordinator of the North-East Wales Raptor Study Group – a small, dedicated team of licensed enthusiasts who undertake similar field work. As well as acting as a central point for such activities this is an important platform from which to inspire and mentor the raptor workers of the future.
Aside from this I enjoy helping people who are in the process of learning raptor identification. For many years I have run regular and very popular workshops under the title ‘Getting to Grips with Raptors’.

Inevitably, the opportunity to share raptor watching abroad has resulted in multiple tours to migration points such as Tarifa in Andalucia, one of many overseas destinations I have run tours to along with my wife Linda under our operation Wild Insights.
How did you first get involved with raptors? Who or what inspired you?
I think my first awareness of raptors came, at the age of 8, from gazing longingly at the image of a Peregrine in the Observer’s Book of Birds. I had never presumed I would ever see one. But four years later, as I was cycling along the side of the Exe Estuary one winter morning, one hurtled over in pursuit of a small wader. It was an indescribable moment.

It was in the same area that I had the great fortune to meet the late, great Robin Khan, top raptor expert whose work with Montagu’s Harrier in Cornwall and Honey Buzzard in Devon had made him well-known both locally and beyond. Robin was not only my mentor but also my lifelong friend. We travelled the world watching raptors and other wildlife.
In the mid 1970s, having moved to North Wales I had the great privilege of inviting Robin to see the local breeding Hen Harrier population not far from my home. For years to follow we would reunite to spend weeks up on the high moors.
It was Robin’s encouragement which resulted in me fulfilling the dream of working full-time as an ornithologist, dividing my time between running courses and workshops, organising and leading overseas tours, giving talks to interested groups throughout the United Kingdom and undertaking regular ornithological survey work.
My first experience tutoring courses was at the (then) Peak District National Park education and learning centre at Losehill Hall. But this soon extended to include other ARCA colleges such as Higham Hall and also Field Studies Council centres such as Preston Montford and Flatford Mill.
Independent workshops on the more challenging groups of birds were the next logical step. They included ‘Getting to Grips with Raptors’ – a mid-Wales based event which has always been very popular – a reflection of the enthusiasm that is associated with raptor-watching.
What is your favourite raptor species, and why?
This is a really difficult one as I love them all. However, if pushed I guess I would say Hen Harrier. Like the Observer’s Book image of the Peregrine, I had drooled over images of Hen Harriers. Finally, in 1972, I saw my first: a fabulous male which effortlessly tacked and dallied into the springtime breeze, high on the Welsh moors. Since then I have been incredibly lucky to spend a lifetime working with this amazing species, getting to know every aspect of its biology and behaviour. Despite this, whenever I see one, the excitement is undimmed.

What is your favourite place for observing raptors?
In the United Kingdom I love the Welsh hills in the spring and summer. In the winter the Dee Estuary takes some beating. Overseas, it has to be Tarifa in Andalucia where it seems impossible to scan the sky without seeing raptors.
What is your raptor ‘magic moment’?
My life has been full of amazing raptor moments. But if I cast aside the annual arrival of Hen Harriers on their breeding ground, it was probably finding and watching Gyr Falcons in Iceland. I had spent over a week scouring likely-looking cliffs with no success. Finally I struck lucky with a pair sitting like sentinels on volcanic stumps. In the days to follow I marvelled at their sheer speed and power as they overcame such sizeable prey as Barrow’s Goldeneye.
Do you have any advice for someone wishing to know more about raptors? What is your top tip for success?
I would always recommend spending a significant time in the company of an experienced worker. Becoming proficient on raptor identification requires considerable patience. It is important to not become reliant on colour, which is hugely variable. In many cases, birds present in the field as silhouettes. Shape, flight pattern, habitat and wing-to-tail ratio are infinitely more important as is the understanding of behaviour.
Many of our raptor species are scarce or even rare. Breeding grounds are heavily protected, so any kind of disturbance can only take place under licence.
A good place to start is to go out with your local bird club, especially to the coast in winter. I would also recommend finding out if there are any local raptor workers who might be willing to take you with them to gain experience in the field.
The most important steps along the way are getting to know the more common species really well. They will constitute the vast majority of sightings and you should always ask yourself why the raptor you are trying to identify is not one of these before concluding that it is anything more exotic.
It is also important to understand the habitats where raptor species are most likely to be found – these are covered in the new guide.
Finally, even if you spend a lifetime watching, you will never know everything but the more you are out there the further you go up the learning curve.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
When I’m not raptor-watching my other passion is the guitar, and more recently, the renaissance lute both of which are consuming more time these days.
Want to learn more?
Check out British Trust for Ornithology raptor monitoring initiatives. Cudyll Cymtu is a newly developed BTO scheme starting in March 2025 to monitor raptors in Wales. Field Studies Council run a wide range of courses. Also, why not visit the websites of Steve Docker, Keith Offord and wildlife illustrator Mike Langman.
Field Studies Council produces a wide range of identification resources including WildID fold-out guides and AIDGAP books. All guides are available from the Field Studies Council online shop.
Photographs courtesy of Keith Offord.