Tony the Head Verger from Derby Cathedral can be seen tonight on BBC "East Midlands Today" rescuing tiddler or "007" as described in the yesterdays blog entry.We don't think he'll be demonstrating his water-skiing pose, as we see here. But who knows? Perhaps you can suggest a better caption for this picture?
How Wild is Your City?
Tonight at 7:30pm (18th June '08) there will be a short walk from Derby Market place to the river and back to the Cathedral to see how much (or little?) wildlife we can find. Join staff from Derby Museum outside the Assembly Rooms/Tourist Information Centre for this easy walk on mostly level ground, finishing with a peregrine watch, of course.
(I owe a small apology to all 35 people who turned up for this walk tonight: I promised to tell them at the end how many different plant species we recorded yesterday whilst walking in just a 300metres in any direction from Derby's Tourist Information Centre in our Market Place. The answer is: one hundred and twenty five! Nick M.)
Learning Outside the Classroom
And tomorrow (Thursday 19 June) school teachers are invited to call in at Derby Museum & Art Gallery for an event showcasing our new primary education services.
Drop in any time from 1pm – 7pm to find out what’s on offer and sample some taster sessions.
These new sessions include:
Secrets of the Mummies; Roman Derby; Vikings; Looking at Art; Habitat Heaven; Nature Detectives; Victorian Voyage; Houses and Homes; Time Travel Toys and Children at War.
Pupils will be demonstrating sessions from 1pm-3pm, and there'll be a chance to tell us what you'd like us to do to help you use the Peregrine Falcon project in your classroom.
(All teachers/teaching assistants who attend will receive a free voucher entitling their class to 50% off one of our new sessions.) Follow this link to find out more about Learning with Derby Museums
39 comments:
what about
Look into my eyes you are able to fly !!!
Latest update at 1730 Wednesday evening: all four young in sight, the three males on the tower and 003 on a roof above a shop called Emily Brigden's, close by.
Someone phoned earlier to say they could see a dead bird hanging from anti-pigeon wires above a building close to the cathedral and could it be a peregrine. Fortunately, when I got down, it proved to be a pigeon though it was easy to mistake....not so fortunate for the pigeon of course.
Nick B (DWT)
How about (in Russian accent)
aah 007 we have been expecting you!
^^^^^^^^^^ ha ha ha very very funny!
Watching one of the juvies on pudding cam right now enjoying a meal. Pretty sure it's tiddler 007 although he certainly doesn't look like a tiddler any more.
Adult, I think, perched behind him.
For those who don't live in the BBC East Midlands Today region, here's a link to the clip from today's programme (not sure how long this will access the clip - the website allows you to access stories from the latest programme).
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/7462310.stm
There's definitely a pub theme emerging with these fledging peregrines - only right and proper for a city with as fine a range of real ale as we have in Derby!
Liz, Derby
We don't manage to get East Midlands TV but downloaded i t and it was fantastic. Keep up the good work. Ordered my DVD today looking forward to its arrival
The following came straight to my mind for a caption .......
"You put your right wing out,
and then your left wing out,
shake them all about
and do the locomotion!"
or
"Look, you aren't a penguin, and this isn't Terminal 5 .... so YOU CAN FLY!"
So glad to hear all still well. Have looked at the BBC item on the Internet - brilliant! (and I think it might not be available for long - take a look today if you want to see it) The two lovely blokes down in the pub looked a most unlikely pair of guardian angels, but good on them - well done boys! "Tiddler" may be small, but I'm sure he's big enough to deliver a good peck so they did well to get him into that laundry basket. Not sure about a caption - "verging on flight"? "shaken, not stirred"? "come fly with me"?
I'm once again consumed with jealousy at fabulous opportunities you lucky Derby people have - I'd have been up for the walk tonight like a shot if I lived nearer. Hmmm - I'm really going to have to think seriously about moving!
SueH, Wendover, Bucks
Poor pigeon. Nick, your heart must have stopped.
What are anti-pigeon wires? Are they likely to harm birds, or just make places unlandable?
"YOUR NOT DAFT ARE YOU? FERAL PIGEONS DON'T TASTE VERY NICE!!!YOU ONLY EAT RACING PIGEONS THAT COST US HUNDREDS OF POUNDS"
Pigeon racing is a traditional sport that this type of bird is killing as people are losing top birds to these evil preditors!!! If their was a bird big enough to take you peddigree/beloved cat and tare it apart would you all still think it was great to watch??????
Pigeons saved tousands of soilders lifes in the war (google that)but yet you all think its great to watch racing pigeons being ripped apart and eaten!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sorry about your Pidgeons, I quite like them, But fish gotta swim & birds gotta fly, dogs kill cats, cats kill rats, peregrins kill pidgeons THATS LIFE
Agree with anon above, but there are too many pigeons around. These Peregrins are fantastic. Just been on live cam and for the first time for ages got sound, can actually hear sqawking but no peregrins there. Hope you get someone to help tomorrow sorry that I am not available.
We do appreciate the obvious frustration that pigeon racers and breeders must experience when their birds are lost to these natural predators, which themselves reached the brink of extinction only 50 or 60 years ago.
It must be especially infuriating if you feel that the peregrines (or the webcam viewers themselves) take delight in seeing such birds being taken. That is not the case, and we’re sorry if that impression may have come across here at times.
Peregrine falcons take a very wide range of bird species, definitely including feral pigeons and, yes, we accept, some captive reared individuals which haven’t yet got savvy to avoiding peregrines – the mark of a good racer, perhaps.
You are right – homing pigeons did play an important part during the war in getting messages across enemy lines, and for that reason peregrines were intentionally killed for the war effort. Then along came DDT which nearly wiped the species out entirely. What we’re seeing now is a return of that species to its former numbers – and in the case of Derby we have records which show that peregrines were living here on the Cathedral over a hundred years ago, and probably well before that.
We hope that everyone here will be careful in their comments, and not in any way imply glee at the loss of pigeons, which we recognise are kept for a noble sport, and that the two interests can co-exist.
Derby Cathedral Peregrine Project Team.
Adult feeding three juvies on the pudding cam, pretty sure thats our Tiddler on the right. DD
Peregrines are indigenous birds, and, yes, unfortunately they are creophagous. However they do not kill for the fun of it, and eat almost everything on the carcase. We are very good at telling other peoples that they should protect their own wildlife - eg lions and tigers, and should be grateful that no peregrine ever caught a human being! Sorry for the pigeon fanciers though, as I am for all the other species. xxx
I,m not going to tell you again. Your not old enough to go to the pub.
Just tried to look at the cameras and a peregrin is blocking the view - how naughty of him/her!
Remember 'Eddie the Eagle', well meet Derby's own 'Tony the Peregrine' caught here practicing secret moves.
your right cats kill rats also kill birds so would you watch if dog or cat started killing these killers (peregrines) dont think you would
so why should pigeon fanciers just stand and watch there favorites been eaten alive
they say its just natures way survival of the fittest or luckiest well if thats the case stop rescuing the dam things when they fall out of nest let nature decide with them also
"Just remember when you are eating all the pigeons and song birds, Watch out for the eagle owl. He wants to eat you!"
The myth of some sages that global warming and de habitation are the probable causes of rapidly declining song birds population of the North American Continent.
The "Sages" are turning a blind eye and won't admit that
RAPTORS ARE DESTROYING BETWEEN 4 MILLION AND 7 MILLION SONGBIRDS EVERY DAY OF THE YEAR.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
THE END IS NEAR A WAY HAS BEEN FOUND ,[IT WILL SAVE YOU LOT BUILDING ALL THOSE WOODEN BOXES WHICH WILL IN TERN SAVE TREES AND THE BIRDS THAT SING ,MY ADVICE IS RECORD ALL YOUR FOOTAGE BECAUSE CHANCES ARE THERE WONT BE ANYTHING TO FILM COME NEXT YEAR ]
JUST REMEMBER IT IS HUMAN NATURE TO PROTECT WHAT IS HIS OR HERS
Are the adult peregrines ringed? Do you know how old they are or where they have come from?
What on earth has the post a comment site degerated to?.Sorry I,m on the side of the Peregrines.
Dennis,local lad.
Yes, Dennis - there are suddenly a lot of very peculiar people leaving comments, in language that I think is inappropriate to the site. Suggest if they are not interested in the welfare of the peregrines that they should refrain from commenting here. This used to be a place where everyone had intelligent conversations... I notice these people are always "Anonymous". Still shows what the world is like...
Must be human nature to want to protect killers. We all love nature programmes that show the killers hunting down the grasseaters and tearing them apart; no wonder we want to kill other humans and Gaia asap.
I wonder how many children would be watching if they actually saw the killer killing their prey? Lets show them ripping the victims head off, tearing their torso open etc...what a pretty sight that would be for CBBC at 8.00am..Rory
You are quite right Penny, this is a peregrin site for people who like peregrins, I know not everyone is in to the same thing and I am glad that we are not it would make for a boring world. If you dont like peregrins because they eat other birds that is your choice but please dont ram your point of view down everyone elses throat.
Gaz @ Matlock
WHY NOT WE GET IT RAMED DOWN OUR THROATS BY THE rspb HOW GOOD THESE KILLERS ARE .ONLY BECAUSE THEY CANT MAKE MONEY FROM SONG BIRDS THATS WHY THEY ARE LETING THEM OVER POPULATE TO GET MORE REVINUE FROM THEM SO THEY CAN BIE MORE LAND ,[TAKE A INJURED HAWK TO THE rspb HEAD OFFICE AND SEE WHAT THERE REACTION IS THEY ARE NOT REALY INTERESTED IN THE WELFAIR OF IT JUST THE INCOME IT PRODUCES ]
What? have you any idea how insane you sound?
I have already responded by commented above unaware that this conversation is going on below. I suggest we refrain from putting more comments on to this person as I personally feel that they now appear to be enjoying the attention they are receiving.
Chris M
I have been watching since the first egg was hatched and have learned a whole load of stuff, I asume the youngsters will fly off at some point and find their own teritory, but there is one thing I am not sure of, after the young have gone off to set up new homes, will the adults stay in the vacinity of the cathedral or do they move to different areas?
Gaz @ Matlock
The adults will remain around the cathedral all year although they may stray slightly further afield over the winter they generally remain within the area.
This is the third year the adults have raised a family and they were around the site prior to that.
i can invite all the blood lust people on here to a dog fight it has a bit more blood in it just seems you are all into things like this ,o and dog fights contain about the same amount of sufering as a bird does whilst it is being eaten alive ,[luvley jubley]
Thank you to everyone for a frank exchange of views on this topic. Only those comments with offensive language have so far been removed.
This thread should now be treated as closed.
Derby Cathedral Peregrine Project Team
I promise you,I WILL fly,anything to get away from a RED shirt!
Dennis,local lad.
"and once your wing tips have touched like this, bring them back over your head and that's called flapping"
Gaz
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