Hen harriers’ friend: gamekeeping turns conservation in Yorkshire

Grouse moors are not known for being friendly places for birds of prey - but the Swinton estate has a fresh attitude

In the trees beside the heather-clad, snow-smattered moorland is an elusive creature that to some conservationists is as mythical as a unicorn: a gamekeeper looking after endangered birds of prey.

Two hen harriers coming in now," said Gary Taylor, head keeper on the Swinton estate in North Yorkshire. Taylor is sitting in a hide he built himself overlooking one of the country's best hen harrier roosting sites - in the middle of his boss's grouse moor.