Thursday 26 March 2020

Web cams to watch

Should you want to see videos of our Derby Cathedral birds in years gone by (2006-2018) you will find many scattered through past posts on this blog.
Alternatively, go to YouTube, search for "VC57UK", and all 150+ videos will come up, in year order.

As the current peregrine season progresses, we'll take a look back at a few of these videos and milestones in our project, so you can get a sense of what stage the 2020 birds are probably at.

So let's start where it all began, back in April 2006...

We had already measured up the tower and pre-constructed the new 'temporary' nest ledge, but appalling weather that year had forced us to postpone installation until 5th April. We used extra long ropes  and pulleys (supplied by Derby Mountain Rescue Team), but it was our own Nick Moyes and climbing partner, Nick Evans, who you see doing the actual installation.



Live Peregrine webcams to watch
On the basis that ours own webcams are not now going to be re-connected this season, here are some links to other LIVE peregrine web cams around the UK. Where shown, the egg count was last made at 25 March:


  • The Wildlife Trusts host many web cams including peregrines at Leamington Town Hall and Nottingham, ospreys at several sites, barn owls etc. See here.
  • (Nottingham had its first egg on 16/3, should be 4 by now)
  • Leamington Town Hall (hosted by Warwickshire Wildlife Trust has 3 eggs)
And here are a few more around the UK:
Other wildlife webcams:
And for a website which has links to literally hundreds of web cams in the UK and around the world, go here but be aware that many are not working presently either because the birds have not started nesting yet or because funding has run out.
This Latvian white tailed eagle web cam IS working and so is this osprey cam in Wales and the Manton Bay nest at Rutland Water where at least one adult has returned already.

Alternatively, go onto YouTube and search for 'species x' web cams...you'll get old videos as well as live ones. If you find any particularly good cams do please send a comment with a link.....European birds preferred!

Nick B/Nick M
for the Project Team

13 comments:

Wendy Bartter said...

I haven't forgotten about compiling a list of all the UK Peregrine nests I am currently monitoring & compiling egg stats on ... will post details in next couple of days ... it's a very frantic few weeks & no doubt by the time all clutches of eggs are completed then the front-runners will be hatching!
Will still miss watching life unfold on one of our most favourite sites & still hoping the missing key can be found!
Many thanks to the two Nicks & all the team for trying so desperateely hard to re-establish live streaming for us!

Sue from Bucks said...

They have peregrines and cameras at Salisbury cathedral https://www.salisburycathedral.org.uk/visit-what-see/peregrine-falcons-0

Unfortunately, the Aylesbury webcam is not functioning again in 2020. Most of the technical snags had been resolved but local politics intervened - not in a bad way but because the county is going unitary. The platform and cameras are on a Bucks County Council building. BCC and the 4 county district councils are merging into unitary on 1st April (yes what a date) and we were to have new elections. Then the coronavirus emergency engulfed us all with restrictions (and put off the elections) We are therefore "blind". What we knew so far was that 2019 was a disaster, no breeding and the female appeared to have been lost. 2020 observations before the lockdown told us we had a pair again.

Excitingly, a pair have turned up at another urban site in Bucks - at the big All Saints Parish Church in High Wycombe. This is very new indeed with nothing put in place and not even any way of observing "from the ground" now with the emergency. Derby Peregrine Project leaders Nick and Nick will remember my brother John, who claimed to be Derby peregrines biggest fan. Well High Wycombe was John's home town. You can imagine how I wish he could have lived to see this miracle! I like to think that somehow the universe will tell him.

We birders in Bucks consider Milton Keynes to be part of Bucks. Indeed it was until the 1960s when the new town/city (whatever we are supposed to call it!) was built and it bacame a unitary authority in its own right. There has been a pair of breeding falcons at the MK Dons stadium for a few years now. There is no camera on them but previously (and again in future one day) they are observable on match days.

It's such a shame to be unable to watch the Derby (and Bucks) story this year but fortunate that there are still a few that we can watch. Looking on the positive side, nature is going to have such a marvelously tranquil season this year no disturbance.

Burtonwurli said...
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Peregrine Project Member (Nick M.) said...

@Burtonwurli - thanks for your helpful suggestion. For various reasons I won't go in to, it seems prudent to remove it from view. Your idea is noted, though it is a much higher security issue than one might at first think. We do now have one small glimmer on the horizon which is being looked into.
NickM.

Peregrine Project Member (Nick M.) said...

@Sue in Bucks Thank you for posting your update about the Aylesbury peregrines. It is indeed frustrating when all one's efforts yield no result but, as you say, the wildlife itself doesn't care about us, and is simply getting on with getting on. I'm sure your John would have been absolutely over the moon at the news of a bird setting up home in his home town.
Nick.

Wendy Bartter said...

Quick addition re Salisbury, was fortunate to catch a changeover yesterday & snap a pic of their full cluch of four eggs ... super discovery!

Ruth said...

I actually live in Salisbury and am enjoying regularly watching the web cam which has increased it's viewing massively due to the present crisis. I also have links with Derby as I am an illustrator and produced a card, a few years ago, showing 2 adult Peregrines circling Derby Cathedral tower.

Wendy Bartter said...

Preaching to the converted then Ruth! Lol Good to hear from you, any chance of seeing your card somewhere online ... not here unfortunately as unable to post pics!
My personal good news is that new Sheffield female finally produced first egg @ 05.52 yesterday ... first Peregrine nest I ever watched, closely followed by Derby from 2012 onwards!

Phoebe said...

I see Chichester have one egg :)

Anonymous said...

No wonder there has been a dearth of birds in our garden this week. I looked out of our bedroom window in Allestree this morning and saw a peregrine falcon just sitting on the fence! Could it have been one of our Cathedral peregrines? It really brightened up my morning.

It’s appearance could also answer the puzzle of finding of a pile of small white feathers on our lawn about a week ago.

Anne

Helen said...

The ospreys are back at Loch Arkaig! Fantastic views on this webcam -
https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/osprey-cam/

Wendy Bartter said...

At long last Exeter Peregrines have their first egg this evening @ 19.39 ... pairing of resident female & a new unknown male, will be interesting to see how they gel in incubating & feeding young!

sahabatqq said...
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