on Exmoor sit for ages on
a fencepost just watching,
waiting perhaps for a rabbit,
a vole or even a mole to break
cover. Small mammals, lizards,
frogs and often insects will
form a big part of their diet.
As you'll find out later, the
long tail and broad wingspan
of the RED KITE (see page
158) make it awkward for
it to navigate woods, but the
buzzard can hunt among the
trees, swerving and scanning
the ground like a hawk. And
sometimes you can see them
just strolling across the ground,
looking for earthworms.

They have a broad and
impressive wingspan, which
often leads people to mistake
them for a golden eagle. If
you've seen a golden eagle, you
realise they are a lot bigger.
Like a Ford Focus compared to
a Mondeo. This common error
has led the buzzard to have a
nickname: the 'tourist eagle'.

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