Hen harriers to be bred in captivity and released on to Salisbury Plain

Raptor has not bred in southern England for decades - with only breeding populations found on northern moorlands

Hen harriers are to be bred in captivity in England for the first time and released on to Salisbury Plain in a new attempt to revive the endangered bird of prey in southern England.

The raptor's only English breeding populations are on northern moorlands, where the bird has been subject to huge persecution in recent decades because its prey includes red grouse - a lucrative gamebird.