Film | Kestrel chicks fly free after tough start

In this final chapter of the incredible story of Mr Kes, the kestrel who brought up six chicks alone, the chicks finally take to the wing and fly free.

These kestrel chicks had to overcome a difficult start in life. Their mother disappeared when they were just a week old, leaving their father, Mr Kes, to raise them alone. But, with a little help from me, this brave male kestrel defied science and learned to take care of them. Now three weeks old, these kestrel chicks are almost ready for their next adventure… fledging! This is when a young bird takes its first flight, leaving the nest for the first time.First ViewsFirst they take a peek out of the nest. And once they've discovered the world outside, they spend a lot of time looking out - one chick is so enthralled it drops a vole that its hard-working kestrel dad Mr Kes has just delivered. As they prepare for this milestone, the youngsters stretch and flap their wings, practising their pouncing skills which they will need when they learn to hunt too.Mr Kes' Work Is DoubledAs the day draws nearer the kestrels' doting dad doubles his efforts, delivering extra food to keep them strong. And when he’s away, I lend a hand too.

At the start of June, the first of the clutch takes flight. But it misses its footing and lands in the wet grass. Unable to fly with sodden feathers, I lift it up back onto a branch. Two days later a second kestrel also fledges. This one makes it safely to a branch close by and its siblings look on excited. That afternoon a third kestrel also takes to the wing - and also ends up in the grass. Unlike the first, it manages to hop to a stone wall and then fly back to the tree on its own. Still left to fledge are the three youngest chick. These are the chicks I took into my care after they became dangerously thin and cold when their mother disappeared and so its not surprising they are a little behind their siblings. But a day later the first of these fledges.

In order to tempt the final chicks from the nest Mr Kes stops delivering food. This works for the fifth kestrel which takes flight the following day. But the littlest chick is looking weak so I intervene with a final meal to give it a little energy for its first flight. And the following day, a week after the first of the chicks fledged, it too takes to the skies! This has been a truly unique story. Mr Kes defied all the textbooks to raise this clutch on his own and now, with a bit of help from me, all six chicks are flying free.

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