Photos from the ground and two Updates

Update 24th May: the NEXT Watch Point is tomorrow Wednesday 25th.....will one fledge while the Watch Point is running? If you go you might see it happen....
See Wendy Bartter's latest video capture made today showing just how little fluff is left on them and how active and flappy they are!

UPDATE: Watch Point report for Saturday 21st. by Helen: 
All three chicks were fairly active during today's Watch point and could be clearly seen through the telescopes set up below on Cathedral Green. The young birds spent a lot of time preening, sending a shower of white downy feathers down from the platform on at least one occasion. They were also frequently seen exercising their wings. The adult female spent much of the time perched on the platform, whilst the male bird kept watch from one of the gargoyles at the top of the tower. Both adults took to the sky a few times and were spotted high up above us, before disappearing out of view for a while. One young boy arrived at the watchpoint carrying his own toy peregrine and was clearly thrilled to see the birds for real. Along with his sister, they were soon both able to spot the adult birds in flight, much quicker than some of the watchpoint volunteers! He made the most of the telescopes and left with a huge grin on his face. It was a real pleasure to see such enthusiasm. There was an international feel to the watchpoint today with visitors from near and far stopping to look through the telescopes, including people from Italy and Ukraine. There was a large group of cyclists from Alfreton Cycling Club who were on their way back home but managed to get great views of the birds. It was another very successful morning with a total of around ninety visitors. 
(Thanks to our noble volunteers: Helen, Gillian, Chris and Andy)
Ps. Don't forget to give us a donation if you can - details are below in red!


Dave Farmer visits the cathedral from time to time with his camera and takes superb photos of our birds from the ground below. Here are two he took on 19th May showing one chick flexing its wings and the adult male feeding another.

Can you suggest a caption for this photo? if so, leave your suggestion in the comments for this post.
(Both photos by Dave Farmer (gdfotos.co.uk)

Meanwhile... A small request

We (Derbyshire Wildlife Trust) run this project for everyone around the world so you can watch the whole breeding cycle of our famous peregrines on Derby Cathedral for free. However, this does have some cost implications, mainly around maintaining the webcam service and running the Watch Points.

So, if you have enjoyed watching our web cams please consider making a donation towards those costs . These amount to somewhere in the region of £2000 per year.
We get no other funding, but have been able to rely on our faithful webcam watchers and Watch Point visitors to help us run the project.

There is a tab on this blog which helps you decide how you want to donate.

If you drop by one of our Derby city centre WatchPoints you can even pop a few coins inside the head of our life-size peregrine falcon.

Or you can send a cheque payable to Derbyshire Wildlife Trust to its office at Sandy Hill, Middleton by Wirksworth, Derbyshire DE4 4LR.....or phone the office to discuss other methods on 01773 881188 but PLEASE SPECIFY YOUR DONATION IS FOR THE 'PEREGRINE PROJECT'.
Thanks in advance,

Nick Moyes, Alice Smith and Nick Brown
for the Project Team