curlews at hillhouse on world curlew day

Today marks World Curlew Day, a day to celebrate and raise awareness about Europe’s largest wading bird with its distinctive down-curved bill and hauntingly beautiful call. As the UK launches its Action Plan for Curlew, we at Hillhouse Farm in the Scottish Borders are proud to share our own conservation journey and success story. The Action Plan for Curlew has been developed as a joint initiative between charities (including the RSPB and Curlew Action), farmers, scientists and others.

growing curlew numbers at hillhouse

For many years, we’ve been quietly and determinedly working to protect and nurture our local curlew population. Our efforts are bearing fruit, with Dave Sutherland, who manages our farming operations, reporting an increase in sightings across the farm. Just recently, Dave spotted five curlews together in the Stell Field on our hill ground – a heartening sight that suggests our conservation measures are working. Dave’s dad, Jim, once saw nearly a dozen, so that sets us a target for the future!

“There’s nothing quite like hearing that distinctive bubbling call echo across the farm,” says Dave. “Each year, seeing more curlews return gives us hope that with the right approach, we can reverse their decline.”

why curlews matter

Curlews are not just beautiful birds – they’re an important indicator species for the health of our farmland and moorland ecosystems. Added to the UK Red List of highest conservation concern in 2015, these birds have faced sharp population declines since the 1980s, primarily due to changes in farming practices and increased predation affecting their breeding success.

These elegant birds spend autumn and winter along our coasts, before heading inland to moorlands and farmland like ours during spring and summer to breed. Their distinctive call has become part of the soundtrack of spring in the Scottish Borders, and we’re determined to ensure future generations can experience this natural heritage.

hear the curlew’s song

The curlew’s call is often described as haunting, mournful, and evocative. Some even find it a bit eerie! We think it’s beautiful – have a listen.

our approach to curlew conservation

At Hillhouse, our conservation efforts align with many of the recommendations in the newly launched UK Action Plan for Curlew:

• Habitat Management: We’ve adapted our farming practices to ensure suitable nesting habitat over 60 hectares of rough, ungrazed grassland and manage rush cover to create the mosaic landscape curlews prefer. The same area is also excellent for lapwings and oystercatchers, which we see in abundance.
• Delayed Mowing: In fields where curlews nest, we delay topping or silage cutting until after chicks have fledged, giving them the critical time they need to develop.
• Curluew Scrapes: we have natural and created “scrapes” which are shallow depressions in the ground to provide wet, muddy areas suitable for feeding and breeding. These areas offer soft ground for curlews to probe with their long bills for food like insects and invertebrates.

The habitats we create and maintain for curlews and other waders (e.g. lapwing, oystercatcher) are beneficial for biodiversity more generally. The five fields which are within our wader grazed grassland area are also teeming with wildflowers, herbs, rushes, pollinators (bees and butterflies), insects, invertebrates and small mammals.

part of a bigger picture

The new UK Action Plan for Curlew, launched today, emphasises the need for collaborative action across six key areas, including establishing protected areas for breeding curlews, developing conservation toolkits, and supporting nature-friendly farming practices.

Success stories emerging from initiatives across the country demonstrate what is possible when farmers, conservationists, and policymakers collaborate. In Orkney, numbers are increasing again after control of the local stoat population. The Curlew LIFE project in Northern Ireland’s Antrim Hills saw 202 curlew chicks successfully fledged over four years.

looking forward

As we mark World Curlew Day here at Hillhouse Farm, we remain committed to being part of the solution for curlew conservation. We believe that productive farming and biodiversity can coexist, and our increasing curlew population serves as a testament to this approach.

Small changes in management can make a significant difference to these vulnerable birds while enhancing the natural value of our farming landscapes.

How you can help: One of the best ways to support curlew conservation is to back nature-friendly farming. Consider signing the RSPB petition asking the UK Government to invest more in supporting farmers who work to protect nature alongside producing food.