Today, Sunday, the skies are clearing and there's a suggestion of sun by 8am. Quick trip to town. No birds on the cathedral or flats but two on the tall police HQ aerial. Amateur digiscoping produced these shots of the male caught mewting (the falconers' term for pooing - you can see the stream dropping!) and later facing me. The second bird flew off as I arrived. To view the aerial go to Fox Street in Chester Green. The big noisy flock of starlings on the wide grass verge nearby had no idea what was sitting high above them .......Nick
Ps Our spot flies should have a better day I hope.
Post script: Here’s a picture below of our adult male back on the Cathedral nest platform, late on Sunday evening. Notice the small white spot on his right “cheek”. This distinguishes him from our female. The grey back and horizontally striped feathers distinguish both parents from their browner offspring.
I’ve taken the liberty of adding this picture to the end of the Nick B’s latest entry, rather than pushing it out of the way with a completely new entry. Nick M.
I’ve taken the liberty of adding this picture to the end of the Nick B’s latest entry, rather than pushing it out of the way with a completely new entry. Nick M.
33 comments:
1723 gmt and there is a birdie on the nest. If it is any thing like me it is trying to stay out of the rain!!
Still there. Quite active, but I can't figure out what he or she is doing.
1800 still a bird on the nest... had nearly given up looking
20.30 Mum, I think, is on the nest - lovely to see her. Haven't seen her since back from my hols. last week.
Anna, Ripley
Great closeup picture of a bird friend taking a Sunday afternoon nap.
Saved a photo of his or her sweet face, at
http://members.cox.net/katkolling/derby.jpg
fantastic close up this evening. Its almost as though she is posing for the camera!!
is it one of the young as it seems to have downy feathers under its neck
The bird that had been on the platform on Sunday afternoon/evennig was our adult male. I've added a snapshot from the webcam as a post-script to the latest diary entry.
My goodness HelenHoward -you are fast! I accidentally posted a "dummy" diary entry online for no more than two minutes before deleting it and you spotted it and posted a comment. Wow - don't you have anything better to do than spend all your time with these peregrines??? . . Err, come to think of it, that's exactly what I've been doing this last six months. Oh, well, guess I haven't any grounds to complain, then. ;-)
1132 and there is a visitor to the nest!!
12:03 at a magistrates court in deepest Bucks - and there is a bird on the box! First time I've been lucky in ages, so I'm very happy. I'm not so happy at this freakish weather. I'm feeling angry at the politicians and similar using it as a political football to blame others for lack of planning/lack of flood defences etc etc. WAKE UP!!!!! It's global warming and climate change - there is nothing you can do to combat such forces - we must address our trashing of the earth. Touch wood, I don't live near a major river and haven't had any problems personally but it's heartbreaking to know of the effect on wildlife and humankind alike in the unlucky areas. If it's any small comfort, I thought the garden in the "Fears for Other Birds" blog looked a treat - but what a pity about the poor spotted flycatchers. I live near lots of waterways - Tring reservoirs, Grand Union Canal, Wendover and Aylesbury Arms and touch wood, think things have been OK there for the birds. I believe the local kingfishers fledged OK and the mute swans that come to the bottom of my garden started with 5 cygnets and hurrah hurrah still have 5. Incidentally, I've STILL not managed to see the Aylesbury peregrine!!! The peregrine identification tips are really helpful, thanks.
Sue H
I don't know how this stacks up against previous times here, since I just moved back to the family home here after being mostly away for many years until I retired, but as maybe more cheerful news, there are many birds here on the Rhode Island coastline, including egrets and swans which I am pretty sure were not here when I was a kid. Also there are now seals in the bay, which there also weren't then. Of course, maybe they are just relocating.
Heavens, I have just been reading about the rain/flooding in Britain in our newspaper here. I did not realize how bad it was. I had been picturing just some heavy storms. My thoughts are with you guys.
I think a lot here about the sea level rise from global warming, as where I live will likely be at least partly under water in the next 50-100 years. I am now wondering how much of Britain is nearly at sea level.
Now I feel like a prophet of doom! However, whenever something bad happens, "they" say "of course, exceptional things will sometimes happen". The trouble is, the exception is happening very frequently now. Notably, we had Boscastle in 2004, Carlisle in 2005 (when the US had New Orleans too). 2006 we had a killer heatwave by way of a change. Recently, we have had major major floods in Shaffield, Rotherham and Hull and now, as you will be aware, along the rivers Severn and Thames. My best friend lives in Gloucester where the floods have got into the water pumping machines so drinking water had to be cut off. The electricity also. Oxford is holding its breath as the crisis is expected tomorrow. To partly answer the question about height above sea level, think of England, Scotland and Wales as on a tilt, pressed down (and sinking) on the bottom right hand corner. So, the top left (Scotland) is "safest". Much of London is vulnerable given surge tide situations (that's what the London Barrier is all about). I wouldn't live somewhere like Canvey Island (Thames Estuary) for all the tea in China. All buildings in major river flood plains are vulnerable in flooding situations. All of the people interviewed from the stricken places shake their heads in disbelief and say they've never ever known it be like that in the place the live. And the politicians fiddle while Rome burns (or maybe as it drowns)
A very depressed Sue H, Wendover
15:55 and the box still has a peregrine visitor. At least the weather doesn't look too bad up there in Derby. We have massive black clouds rolling in again here in Bucks. Hope all is OK along the Thames which is not far away and at Oxford (about 30 miles upstream). Nice bird spotting from the office window this morning - red kite.
Sue H
lucky you sue seeing a red kite. As I hace said b4 here when you see a red kite you know why it has its name because it just hovers in the sky, almost hanging. I am so grateful that the floods havent touched us personally though the bottom of our road was and do you hear Live Aid being done for our own people!! Do we heckers like and they say charity begins at home!! The only inconvience I have had is wet washing. When put into perspective at least its not floating across the kitchen floor in a deluge of sewarage!! I feel better for that.
ps no birdies in the nest at the moment. Naughty me taking over the blog for a sound off!!
Any bets as to when the web counter hits 200,000??
Ted in Maryland
I've never been to Oxford, only London and Cambridge. I guess the Cam floods? Onto those "backs" as I think I remember they call the gardens, and maybe even into the town, if I am recalling its layout correctly? Oxford is perhaps the same set up, with a river going thru it?
I am used to looking at New England rivers with houses next to them and wondering what happens in the spring floods.
One of my indelible memories of England was, despite my best efforts to remember, frequently stepping off the curb and looking for traffic in the wrong direction, causing screeching of breaks...
Where are our birdies :-)
There are even worse pictures on the news now over here. And they are basically saying it's global warming.
hi helen,
just to pick up on your live aid comment i totally agree, but dont forget the live earth concert 2 weeks ago, that was all about raising awareness of the imminent global warming, unfortunately it's probably twenty years too late.
since the terrible floods in south yorkshire some local clubland acts i.e singers (or 'turns' as some like to call em up here)have been staging flood victim charity concerts.the local working mens clubs and pubs host a mass of different enertainers all on one night charging ticket prices, raffles, auctions etc, all in aid of the flood victims, it's a shame that the hard working ordinary club singers have to take it upon themselves to work for nothing and raise money for these people, when there are british millionaires out there flying around in their private jets to marbella to escape the weather, not even caring. unfortunately all the south yorkshire autorities have done so far is ship a few caravans in for the people to temporarily live in - that may sound like something positive but in all honesty there are problems over allocation and as far as i'm aware even today no victims have yet been allocated a caravan becuase of the bad weather the workmen havent been able to prepare the ground and connect to the utilities. we are supposed to be a fast moving, hi tech, prosperous country - it's ridiculous
oh to be a bird - care free
i thought this blog was about our peregrines not just a chat room to mone about the worlds problems, come on guys back to basics! ie, our wonderful peregrines
Morning all
I'm feeling a bit more cheerful today - looks a lovely day in Derby (although sadly no bird on the box for me) and they've valiently weathered the problems down the west of the UK so far.
:-) The weather forecast is not good though :-( To answer Ted in Maryland - I reckon the counter will make 200,000 today - it's very near! Helen - I really envy you living in Derby, you have such a great Council with such great partners in this project. And, of course you have the stars of the show "live", not just on webcam! Yes, we're lucky in Bucks to have the red kites. I love to watch their mastery in the air, using that big forked tail like a "rudder" as they hang in the air. It's awsome to realise their wing span in 5 feet!!!! A great place to see them is the M40 cutting near Stokenchurch - very hazardous to birdwatch while driving though (do get out and visit the nearby nature reserve - don't look while driving!!!) They are a fantastically successful re-introduction - hurrah! Karen-Anne - Cambridge is OK at the moment - it's the west side of the UK that is getting it. The two rivers in crisis are the Severn and the Thames. Oxford is on the Thames (in fact, lies on the ford of the Thames where in old times the oxen crossed the river - Ox-ford, geddit!)
Common sense says this is global warming and climate change - anyone who says otherwise is deluding themselves. It affects everything. Yes, there is the human tragedy but there's such impact on wildlife too. As our experts have told us, the poor little migratory birds have not done well this year. Maybe their first nest was washed away but there is not the insect life around for them and their chicks - and the whole reason they fly hundreds of miles here in summer is for food! One thing leads to another - towards the top of the bird food chain we have peregrines preying on smaller birds (although in Aylesbury there are more pigeons than you can shake a stick at so that peregrine has plenty of food!) I think global warming is the biggest threat the whole world has at the moment and we should all be working together to do something - it is unstoppable at the stage we're at but it's time we woke up and at least admit it's happening.
Sue H, Wendover Bucks
Hi anonymous at 9:23
Lets hope the world's "little problems" don't wipe out all the wildlife in the world, including our wonderful peregrines!
Sue H, Wendover
What a surprise here in derby today , the SUN is shinning and its rather warm, i have just got back home from derby cathedral after going down to see our peregrines, none on the tower but have seen all 4 birds in and around the town centre this morning. So just to let all you guys no that our birds are fine just gone out to sunbath or perphaps dry off from all the rain! andy
come on guys let get to 200,000 2day. you are lucky Andy in derby
It's 199,366 as I write - I'm doing my bit! The sun's shining here in Bucks too but I know I won't manage to see "The Aylesbury Peregrine" - I'm desperately jealous of you folks in Derby! I'm going to go off down the "leaky canal" and catch a look at the swans though, making the most of the fine weather (it leaks because our geology is pure chalk - so we'll be the last place on earth to flood anyway)
Sue H, Wendover
A handsome bird on the nestbox.
13.45 Who's that in the nestbox? He/she's facing the wrong way -can't see black spot on cheek. How lucky peregrines are to nest so high up.
Anna, Ripley
Still a nest box visitor. I'd think it was not very interesting to be perched facing the back of the box...
Pax 9.22am B.C. Canada
falcon sitting on edge of nesting box.
So sorry about the flooding problems you are having, we went through the same thing a couple of months ago, sandbags everywhere to try and stop the waters :-(
18:58 and a bird on the platform.
Count 199,568
Sue H Wendover
So nice to have a long visit from a bird friend again.
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