A close call

With the curlew-that wader with a haunting call-now almost extinct in the South of England, Simon Lester meets the Duke of Norfolk, who is hoping to pull them back from the brink on his West Sussex estate

- Simon Lester

HOW exciting to hear the evocative burbling of the enigmatic curlew deep in the West Sussex countryside and to see this year's cohort of juveniles skulking within a backdrop of pink mallow instead of purple heather.

I am at the Arundel estate to meet the Duke of Norfolk, Andrew Hoodless-the new head of research for the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT) and the Duke's headkeeper, Charlie Mellor, to learn about this pioneering landowner's project to reintroduce the Eurasian curlew back to the South Downs as a breeding bird.

Curlews are in serious trouble in the UK: populations of these prehistoric-looking birds, with their long legs and curved bills, have plummeted by 65% since 1970 and worrying declines are being detected in their upland strongholds, notably on inbye fields. In southern England (south of Birmingham), there may be fewer than 250 pairs ('Is it too late for the curlew?', November 14, 2018).

After their plight was highlighted by the radio producer-turned-author Mary Colwell -who wrote Curlew Moon-several reintroduction projects sprang up around the country. The bird is also fortunate to have another vociferous champion in the shape of The Prince of Wales, the catalyst who brought together all the interested parties by hosting two Curlew Recovery Summits, the first event on Dartmoor in 2018, then a second at Highgrove in 2020, and launched the Curlew Recovery Partnership (www.curlewrecovery.org) last year.