Buteo buteo (Linnaeus, 1758)

Populations in Scandinavia and most of the former Soviet Union are migratory, wintering in Africa and southern Asia. Those elsewhere are resident (Orta et al. 2015). Migrants move south between August and November and make the return journey between February and May. Birds tend to occur singly or in pairs, sometimes forming small family groups at roosts. However, they can migrate in groups, and as birds avoid sea crossings (and even freshwater bodies) as far as possible, they form huge concentrations at peninsulas and narrow straits (Brown et al. 1982, Snow and Perrins 1998, Ferguson-Lees and Christie 2001). Migration is strictly diurnal, and also often follows mountain ranges and ridges (Brown et al. 1982). It inhabits a wide variety of habitats but requires at least some tree cover for nesting and roosting; ideal habitat appears to be forest edge, or mosaics of forest and open areas. It is versatile depending on the prey animals available, with small mammals usually predominating, but in some areas invertebrates making up the majority. The nest is built on a fork or branch of a large tree, usually near to forest edge. It is a bulky platform of sticks and twigs, lined with greenery near trunk 3–25 m above ground, or on cliff ledge. Clutches are normally two to four eggs (Orta et al. 2015).