BIRD LOVERS are being called upon for a study conducted by researchers at the University of Reading.
A Wellcome Trust-funded project, in collaboration with the University of Roehampton, is seeing experts investigate the feeding of red kite feeding trends in the town to better understand the impacts on them, humans and the environment.
Reading has long been known as a town of red kite lovers, and the research team wants to see if that is still the case. They will be conducting interviews with residents, asking about the birds’ health and feeding habits.
Juliette Waterman, a University of Reading research student, said: “Red kites were extinct in England before they were reintroduced in 1989. Since then, research tells us that Reading loves red kites. A 2015 study estimated that up to one in twenty households said they had fed red kites, meaning more than 140 red kites were fed each day.
“It’s been eight years since that study and we want to know what’s changed since then – are residents still feeding red kites on the same scale? Are people more or less favourable towards red kites now than they were in 2015?
“You can help us answer these questions and find out more about our relationships with red kits by taking part in our survey.”
Those who feed red kites, or have done so in the past, and are interested in being interviewed, can take part in this survey: s.surveyplanet.com/5b6sdp7o
