Disconnect first - then Connect Derby!

Connect Derby logo

We would like to give advance notice of some interruptions to our webcam feeds over the coming months, as various changes are made behind the scenes.

Most noticeably, we expect our cameras to go offline later this week. Unfortunately we can't say just how long they will be down for. This break is necessary as we need to reconfigure our equipment and re-route our video signals through an alternative pathway. The reasons for this are rather technical, but it relates to UK government requirements for all equipment on - and people accessing - local council networks to meet certain stringent conditions in order not to compromise network security. We have been helped in this by colleagues at Derby City Council and the team from Connect Derby. I met with their friendly IT Analyst,Tim, yesterday and gave him a tour of the cathedral tower. He will be working to help us reconfigure our existing equipment as smoothly as possible over the next week or two. In fact, we're quite excited because we think that with their enthusiasm and business/innovation skills, we might be able to add extra functionality to the way our project is presented in future,

We often think it's nice to explain what goes on behind the scenes in our project, so we've offered Connect Derby a guest blog spot, should they wish to tell us about the great work they do in connecting local businesses in Derby to the ever-changing world of the internet. So watch this space.

Other possible changes that could affect us relate to forthcoming repair work on the cathedral itself, and whether we try to repair or replace our platform before or after this happens. We've been in discussion with Natural England about the implications of these activities, and are confident the scheduling won't adversely affect the breeding success of Derby's most iconic bird.

Of course, the adult peregrines don't move away in the autumn  or winter, so there should always be a good chance of seeing one or both of them if you're coming into Derby on a shopping trip or en route to work. Check the cathedral tower, but also check out nearby Jury's Inn, where our birds often like to sit and watch the ring-road traffic whizzing - or sometimes crawling - by.

Our apologies for any inconvenience these interruptions may cause.

Nick Moyes
Technical Advisor
Derby Cathedral Peregrine Project

Another one bites the (Derbyshire) dust

News has just emerged that a young peregrine, reared in Stoke on Trent this summer, was found close to a Derbyshire grouse shooting moorland in the Goyt Valley. It had been shot in its wing and subsequently died of its injuries....the latest in a series of incidents of wildlife crime on grouse moors in Derbyshire and elsewhere.

To read the full story go to:

https://raptorpersecutionscotland.wordpress.com/2016/09/13/peregrine-found-shot-next-to-grouse-moor-in-peak-district-national-park/ .

Photo of the bird shortly before it died.

This proves what we already guessed - that some of our young urban peregrines, once fledged, wander off and end up on moorlands where almost certainly they will 'disappear'.....since the game keepers will not tolerate any bird of prey on their shoots.
Such killing of raptors is illegal and constitutes 'wildlife crime'.....and it has been going on up in the moorlands of the Peak District National park and elsewhere in the UK for years.
So it is highly likely that some of the youngsters reared at Derby Cathedral end up being shot on the moors.....a real tragedy.

A national petition to ban driven grouse shooting has now reached 120,000 signatures which means that there will be a debate on this subject in the House of Commons sometime in the autumn.

A local and new petition is now open for people to sign and we urge you to do so if you are appallled by the news above.
Earlier this year, a man with a gun was filmed sitting near a decoy hen harrier on a Derbyshire moor owned by the National Trust and leased by them to a shooting tenant. The incident was too far off for any prosecution to be made but the National Trust is throwing the shooting tenant off - a move we applaud.
The petition now asks the Trust NOT to put another shooting tenant on this huge moor but to manage it for wildlife and restore its biodiversity. To read the background and find a link to the petition please see: www.nomoorshooting.blogspot.com .
And do please sign up if you will. We have 2000 signatures in a month since the petition started but we need many more......

The Project team