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Helpston's wildlife

Hobby

John Clare records keeping a tame hobby, although in fact this was probably the much commoner kestrel, not least because there are very few records of hobby breeding in the region before the end of the nineteenth century.

Today the hobby is a much commoner, although still reasonably scarce, breeder around the village. This is one bird that has been increasing its population in recent years, across the country, largely as a result of the creation of new habitats in disused gravel pits.

Birds can often be seen hunting for large insects, particularly dragonflies, over the water at Bainton Pits and around Swaddywell. In September they can occasionally be seen over the village itself hunting for house martins.

It is our only summer migrant bird of prey, arriving back from its African wintering grounds in early May.

The hobby's latin name, falco subbutteo, means a falcon that is smaller than a buzzard, but is more commonly associated with the table football game. The inventor of subbutteo named it after the hobby, his favourite bird!