Birdwatcher 'elated' to catch a glimpse of rare bearded vulture only seen once before in the UK

Birdwatchers were delighted after a bearded vulture was spotted in the UK for only the second time.

The species was captured by photographers on Howden Moors, near Sheffield, on Sunday morning, after it was last seen in the UK in 2016.

William Bowell, a retail manager who watches and photographs birds as a hobby, managed to catch a glimpse of "Britain’s largest bird of prey" and said it was a "truly magnificent sight" to behold.

It comes as hundreds of bird lovers travelled to the Peak District over the weekend to try and spy the rare vulture.

Mr Bowell said the bird was tracked through the West Midlands and Derbyshire, but nobody had “pinned it down” until the weekend.

After being told about the bearded vulture’s location by another bird watcher he walked for two hours to get to the remote location.

“He spotted it on Friday night so I went down on Saturday morning," the south Lincolnshire resident said.

"I missed it by about 20 minutes and went back on Sunday morning. I left home at half three in the morning."

On finally spotting the bird he added: “They were sublime views, I just never expected it. When we got there after missing it on Saturday it was elation.

“I never expected to get anything like those views, it was mind-blowing. Quite unexpected and quite remarkable.”

The bird is thought to have been wild-born from a population that was reintroduced into the wild in the Pyrenees.

Mr Bowell said he will not attempt to photograph the bird again while it stays in the area.

“I just don’t think I’ll be able to repeat it, so unless it roosts somewhere a bit more accessible… I’ll wait for the next rare bird to appear,” he said.

The bearded vulture has been classified by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species as being near threatened.

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