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Kershope Forest lies within Carlisle District in the extreme north of Cumbria, and forms the apex of a triangle with Borders Region of Scotland to the west and Northumberland to the east. These notes refer to the years l996-2000 and into the first part of 2001. The Cumbria Bird Club breeding survey enabled me to cover some of the forest, with six tetrads, and with much more time spent on supplementary records. The use of a vehicle permit made this possible. The attraction of Kershope lies in its obvious diversity — a forest mosaic. Whereas Spadeadam Forest is a rolling expanse of uniform — and relatively young — spruce trees, with Lodgepole Pine in the wetter areas, Kershope displays an interesting progression from clearfell to mature spruce, and much of it has a changeable aspect from one age group to another. In addition there is a fair bit of ?amenity‘ planting of hardwoods. Mainly raptors 1996 onward saw the start of massive clearfell in this and the other border forest. Much of this was done with the liaison of the Kielder raptor group, so that the more sensitive bird populations should not have been too severely affected. The big stands or copses, some over 70 years of age and 25 hectares in size, are being progressively cut down. Logging and associated forestry obviously displaced some of the larger predators. Buzzards seem to cope the best, being less selective in nest sites than Goshawk, but the involvement of the raptor group should have saved enough of the larger trees to give Goshawks a chance to breed. It all depends on the degree of disturbance in the next year or two. Goshawks are probably the most interesting predator, but they are difficult to see except in the right weather early in the year. The best way to see one is to get panoramic views of the (remaining) stands on a clear, calm day, and to be prepared to wait around. One day in eastern Kershope in spring 2000 two displaying Goshawks had circled in the company of Buzzards without apparent hostility. February 2001 produced two displaying Goshawks south of the B63l8. Both male and female flew in parallel without circling, but the male once took a lunge at a hovering Kestrel before resuming its flight-path. The short rapid wing-beats of the displaying Goshawks were confusing (to me) until comparison with the much smaller Kestrel. In December 2000 an immature male Goshawk had spent over five minutes trying to catch a crow among small conifers. This time the very broad wings and almost 'rhomboid‘ tail in hunting flight were distinctive. There may a 'down side‘ to successful Goshawk populations. Goshawks can predate the smaller predators and this may be one factor in the absence of Short-eared Owls, which have not bred in Kershope Forest for over five years. This slow, day-flying owl must be an obvious target for a ?super-predator‘, but the fact is that Short-eared Owls are almost absent from the Kielder complex as a whole, even in areas which are 'Goshawk-free‘. It is worth noting that the Short-eared Owl — and the next species, the Hen Harrier — are ground-nesters, and thus are at risk from that serious predator of ground nests, the Fox, which exists in good numbers in the forests. Conversely, the crepuscular/nocturnal Barn and nocturnal Tawny Owls, which nest off the ground, are common, and bred in most of the western tetrads in 1999. The Hen Harrier is elusive. The species is being protected at present on the Tarras moors only five miles to the north-west, and any sightings are probably of these birds. When the intensity of logging is reduced in Kershope it seems reasonable to expect this species to return as a regular breeder. It‘s too much to expect the 'Langholm Study‘ at Tarras to go on for ever, and what will happen to Tarras harrier populations after that remains to be seen. Ravens are also present, and have bred in tree-sites as they sometimes do in the nearby Tarras area. There are plenty of these sites available: year 2000 has seen some close-to-the-road displays, but where is the sheep carrion to feed them? I have seen Ravens at several localities in northern Kershope but they may relate to only one territory. These records have always been in the forest adjacent to farmland. At Spadeadam there are historic sites which may get re-colonised if the non-forest land use of sheep farming is maintained. The forest ranger had noted most smaller raptors at around 4 a.m., but once managed to see a Sparrowhawk attack a juvenile Barn Owl at 8 p.m. in summer. My own sightings (usually between 10 a.m. and 8 p.m.) were usually of Kestrels and Buzzards, since both these species seem to tolerate logging operations. Most of my Merlin records were those of post-breeding in September, plus one case of a Merlin attacking a Buzzard near to Crookburn. So far (at least for me) the Peregrine Falcon has been elusive in Kershope. Passerines Logging did not appear to significantly affect the smaller bird species, many of which, such as Siskin and Crossbill, are nomadic anyway. Migrants such as Cuckoo, Whinchat, Wi1low Warbler and possibly Tree Pipit seem to cope with the changing habitat. Site fidelity does not seem to be of major importance. Sedentary species such as Great Spotted Woodpecker and Jay have not been affected at the time of writing. A family of Crossbills was feeding on a path (presumably on grass seeds) on February 23rd 2001, just east of Stelshaw. The presence of heavily-streaked young indicated breeding at some time during the winter. About a mile north were more Crossbills, with one male producing an extremely melodic song. This song was also in evidence west of Stelshaw on July 26th 2000. These obvious breeding records are similar to the 'BWP‘ dates of August to April for the comparable Dumfries populations. The wind-throws and edge effects produce regular Great Spotted Woodpecker, and there is scope for the likes of the Green Woodpecker, which breeds in southern Kershope near to Catlowdy, and occurs by the Kershope Burn beside Pinn Bridge. Redstart and Tree Pipit occur on the edges of these 'copses‘, and often there are areas where both Tree and Meadow Pipits sing together. Pied Flycatchers are all but absent from the forest: perhaps nest-boxes would help. Willow Warblers are common and some 'edge‘ areas have Chiffchaff. Other warblers are generally absent from the conifer areas apart from Grasshopper and occasional Sedge Warblers among the smaller trees. Parts of the forest should be exceptionally rewarding when the massive clearfell is colonised by weeds or replanted, hopefully with deciduous trees. Already Curlews have tried to colonize some clearfell in defiance of the numerous crows, and the uneven-aged tracts are awash with Wrens, Willow Warblers, pipits, and a sprinkling of Whinchats; Stonechats breed but — like all inland Stonechats — they are difficult to find. There seems to be a regular site at Crookburn. Scarcer Species Some of the open areas may well be used by the elusive Nightjar: it has happened before and much of Kershope is riddled with gravel tracks, much more so than Spadeadam. At present the border forest complex has clearfell areas which must total at least 50 square miles. Many of these open spaces have the classic woodland edge near to these tracks: the
'pine edge‘ effects look similar to that of Nightjar sites in Galloway and in Blean Wood, Kent.
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