Yesterday morning was fine and bright in Derby - if cold. Winter has arrived as you can see from the lack of leaves on the trees. Gulls were flying from their overnight roosts to feed along the river and perhaps in fields beyond the city's boundaries. A grey wagtail flew by and I heard the calls of a mistle thrush too.Both adults were on the cathedral tower. The male was on the platform. While I was looking for prey remains he made the 'ee-chup' call above my head. I looked up and saw him glide from the platform, circle round and then fly over to the new hotel where he proceeded to sit on the Y of Jurys....just as Joyce S of Derby had also reported. I've also seen the female again on St Mary's, the roman catholic church, so it seems our Church of England birds are sampling both catholicism and now mammon....
There was not much in the way of prey remains - just a few snipe, lapwing and various thrush fe
athers.
athers.The project team had a useful meeting with the hotel manager last week, discussing various ways in which the hotel might help the project next year. The birds themselves clearly haven't waited for a meeting- they've taken advantage of its presence already!
Nick B (DWT)
Postscript: The video below was taken in May 2009 as Jurys Inn, Derby, was nearing completion. It compresses 90 minutes down into 75 seconds, and shows our adult falcon looking out over the hustle and bustle of city life below. (Warning: Don't play the audio too loud!!)
30 comments:
So nice to have the cams back, though it looks pretty foggy, I was so pleased to hear Jury's may help out next year :)
Nice to see the camera working again, thanks so much. We are experiencing rather warmer than normal temperatures for time of year. Thanks for the recent report and hopefully the adult birds will be seen around for the winter months. Then before we know it next season will be upon us. Glad to hear the new hotel is willing to help out.
Hello all
How brilliant that Jury's are interested in supporting the project! I wonder why the birds seem to have a preference for the "Y"? I was a fool to stay away from the blog for so long - however did I manage without a regular diet of dreadful puns ....
One on the tower cam
It would be nice if Jurys Inn can do something to support the project. I look forward to hearing some good news from you soon. Cheers, Jennie of HK.
Wouldn't it be great if Jury's got involved with the peregrine project? Now that I have moved bck to Derby I find myself stuck in a traffic jam most nights beside Jury's Inn! I have noticed a few times one of the birds perched on the letter "J". Ah well it makes sitting in a jam more interesting.
Looking forward to next season.
Best wishes to all.
Mary T (ex Caerphilly - now Belper)
Welcome back, both Mary T and Sue in Bucks, albeit in different ways.
In chatting to Jury's Inn it made us realise that we ought to ask anyone whose visit to Derby has been prompted by our peregrines to ensure they tell their hotel/guest house/restaurant/shop or tourist information staff of the reason for their visit. It's great if a local business knows how they get their trade, and it may help us demonstrate the economic benefit of this project
delighted to read that Jury's manager has met with project team, hoping for a positive outcome.
"It's great if a local business knows how they get their trade, and it may help us demonstrate the economic benefit of this project"
I absolutely agree!
Falcons could be a very good reason to visit. In Derby and wherever they nest. ;)
just to let everyone know the operation went well and im now back at home, after a shorter stay than first thought in hospital. it turns out that my consultant is vey interested in the peregrines too. we had quite a chat about them. he was saying although the interest he has never been out to the cathedral to see them. ive advised him its well worth the visit
looks like prey on the tower cam
I had never heard of the Jurys Inn hotel chain until I came across their new hotel, pictured daily on this website. So, it has to be good publicity for them and I hope they'll be generous in return for all the free publicity they've got - and will get in the future, if they play their cards right.
Looks like a falcon is feeding on the tower cam! 9:30pm in the dark :)
Phoebe
Our's is not the Jury's Inn with peregrine connections. According to their website, their Exeter hotel has a peregrine nest, 10 swallow boxes and 6 bat boxes, see:
http://www.jurysinns.com/Exeter_Green_Light.html
Thanks for everyone's feedback.
@wayne1984 - glad the operation went better than expected, and you make a swift recovery. I wonder if you got extra special treatment because of your interest in the falcons!
@DonM Thanks for the information about the nest box placed on Jurys Inn at Exeter (my old university town) I've emailed them to ask for further information, as I'd not heard of news of breeding - I thought they were still at St Mary's. I'll report back if I learn anything more.
@everyone. If you make a visit to Derby Cathedral anytime between now and Dec 19th you have the opportunity of supporting a wide range of UK and international charities by buying your Christmas Cards from the stalls set up indside the cathedral. More on this later.
juvie at the pudding cam.
One on the tower cam
@ Wayne, good to see you back and glad the op went well.
Two peregrines on the tower cam one a juvie, I think!
Alcoa Anglesea has named their one female juvie this year after Froona. Her two brothers fledged a few days ago, although there are two juvies in the box at the moment:
http://www.alcoa.com/australia/en/info_page/falcon_webcam.asp
one close up on the tower cam
falcon on the tower cam with prey
There's an adult and a juvenile on the towercam. Is is likely the youngsters could still be around when mating season starts? If so I wonder how the parents will deal with them.
@phoebe
Back in 2007 (our first year of webcams) we recorded a juvenile female from the previous 2006 season returning to the nest to investigate a set of newly laid eggs. Not only did she push the adult male (i.e. her dad) off the nest, she then investigated the eggs and did a small nest-scraping action over them. We were amazed, of course, but the book of words written by Derek Ratcliffe revealed that sometimes juveniles can even return from the previous year and assist with the feeding of the young! Whilst this is very unusual, it's not unknown, and it doesn't seem to pose any threat to next year's generation.
Nick.
Oops - I forgot to add the url to some 2007 photos from our blog entry for 11th April which shows the juvenile on the nest ledge:
http://derbyperegrines.blogspot.com/2007/04/fourth-egg.html
Nick, in the 2007 photos, the juvie female looks considerably smaller than the adult female. I thought initially she was male until I re-read your comment.
Is that usual at that age?
one on the nest ledge
Nick, Phoebe, that's stunning! Never heard before.. :O
Thanks so much, I love all the possible info about peregrines' behaviour though unusual. But we know every PF is unique! :D
Two peregrines on the east wall lettering of Jurys Inn this morning at about 11:30am, one on the Y and one on the S
Wayne - so pleased to hear all went well with your op - we'll soon have you running marathons then?
Project team - Congratulations on the well deserved praise on the new peregrine website you alerted us to. Are you aware that you also have a mention in Mike Dilger's excellent book "Britain's best Wildlife"? As I'm sure you're aware, I'm a massive convert to Derby, entirely due to the peregrines and the wonderful team who have done so much to capitalise on the fortune of the birds choosing your city. I have been known to come up on a day trip specifically for Watch Days. If I came up for a longer stay, I'd certainly choose to stay at Jury's and I'd ask for a room with a view directly over to the cathedral so I could sit in my room and birdwatch. I have wandered over to have a look at the hotel before and it's a very smart place! It was a bit of a shock to see the other side of the building - I'd vaguely imagined it might be a river but no, it's a mega-big road. I'm sure I can't be alone in thinking that Derby is special because I feel so welcome and part of the project. This is down to the Project Team and the special people who've helped, you're all stars.
Sue xxx
two on the tower cam having a chat :)
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