Solstice beckons

As the days grow ever shorter we huddle round our fires and wildlife tends to be furthest from our thoughts. However, here are some reminders about what is going on out there - and some suggestions about how you might help.

First, there's a petition to be signed...especially as Derbyshire has a particularly dismal record when it comes to raptor persecution. An e-petition submitted to the department of the environment has recently been accepted by the government and added to the official list of e-Petitions website. If 100,000 people sign the petition, the issue of 'Vicarious Liability' will be debated in the House of Commons.

The petition, as you will see, requires the owners of land, not just their employees (such as gamekeepers) to be liable to prosecution if birds of prey are illegally killed on their property or if employees are found in possession of the illegal chemicals that are used to poison them.

Please visit http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/23089 to sign up. It only takes a few seconds.

Many thanks.

Second, December is a good month to join your local wildlife trust or give membership as a gift. You can do this through the national website www.wildlifetrusts.org/ or, in the case of Derbyshire, via their recently re-vamped website at www.derbyshirewildlifetrust.org. Incidentally, the website does have links to this project (under 'projects' and also to the

'wildlife diary' that a certain someone writes for the Trust each week and which mentions the peregrines at regular intervals.....)
Thirdly, you could make a donation to a wildlife charity of your choice perhaps, instead of asking for a present you don't really need. The peregrine project or a wildlife trust are obvious candidates....as is (for me) Birdlife Malta (www.birdlifemalta.org), a dedicated group trying to counter the appalling shooting of migrant birds (from swallows to eagles) passing over that island. There are many more very worthwhile wildlife charities out there of course so do plump for your favourite ones.
The bid for a grant to sustain this project is nearing completion and should be handed in to the Heritage Lottery Fund before the end of the month.
A big thank you to everyone who took the trouble to send in their comments and tributes to the project. These have helped us enormously to show the level of support for our work and to indicate just what an effect the birds have had on so many of you.

The artwork accompanying this post is by Noel Cusa (top) and Mike Warren. Noel worked in industry all his life with painting as an occasional hobby. When he retired he started to paint in earnest and you can see the level of his achievement. His mentor was the great Charles Tunnicliffe. Charles' book The Peregrine Sketchbook, contains many wonderful paintings of peregrines on the cliffs of Anglesey where he lived (available on Amazon for £9).

Mike Warren lives in Nottinghamshire and has been a wildlife artist for many years, starting out in graphic design. These field sketches are from a calendar he produced many years ago.

I think you'll agree that both artists in their different styles capture the character of the bird to perfection.

Finally, the peregrine 'bible', written by the late Derek Ratcliffe (The Peregrine, Poyser Books) is also available online, though for rather more money unless you can pick one up second hand.....

Nick B (DWT)

Ps, Finally finally, The DVD on The Peregrines of Derby is also still available via the DWT website...I almost forgot to mention that!

Tony Grantham, an interview with him & a Raptor Rescue

Webcam Update:
Derby City Council whose network connections we use for our webcams has changed its website today. If you are having difficulty accessing the normal webcam pages, please use the links in the Webcam Tab on our blog's homepage.

Hear Tony's long interview on BBC Radio Derby on Monday at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/console/p00lw0bf  (it's 1hr 8 minutes in)
News has reached us that Tony Grantham, the cathedral's Head Verger for the last eleven years, has just resigned from his post and will leave the cathedral's employment at the end of January 2012 to begin work in the family business, which urgently needs more manpower.

Tony has been an essential element in the Derby Cathedral Peregrine Project since it began way back in 2005.

It was he who rang Nick B at the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust early in 2005, hoping that the trust could provide some clues as to why he and the other vergers were finding dead birds on the pavements outside the cathedral.

And, once he knew about the peregrines, it was Tony

who quickly became interested in them and helped to 'unlock cathedral doors' for us, both real and imagined.
He gave us access to the tower to look both for bird remains and for the birds themselves and he quickly became an avid peregrine watcher and web cam addict in his own right.

It is fair to say that without his help and guidance in

those early years especially, this project might well not exist today. In particular, he managed to persuade the cathedral hierarchy at the time to allow Nick M and his mate, Nick E, to fix the nest platform. Ever since, Tony has bent over backwards to help us and the watch point volunteers in all manner of ways.

He has helped with rescuing fallen youngsters, helped organise the ringing of the chicks and the various annual nest clean-up operations. He found us somewhere to store the gear for the Watch Points, looked after the donations, brought in signs when we had forgotten to do so and drove back to the cathedral from home to help out when we urgently needed it.

Tony always has a cheerful disposition and we couldn't have wished for a better Head Verger to assist us.

The good news is that Tony will continue to be part of the project as a volunteer next year, helping at special events, opening up the tower for us when we need evening or early morning access for ringing etc - so we are not losing him entirely.

We wish him well working alongside his wife Dawn in their family business which has grown by leaps and bounds in the last few years.

Tony: you have been a real friend and an amazing advocate for the peregrines. You have been the 'quiet man' of the three of us, always willing to help and to assist.

We will miss your cheerful presence at the cathedral hugely! With luck we'll lure you back to help out from time to time - if you can get some free time that is!

Nicks M and B

The photos show Tony watching as chick 005 was rescued in 2008 (top) and standing by as another rescued youngster was released on the tower roof (below).
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Raptor Rescue: last Friday I got a message that a peregrine was trapped in the huge Westfield shopping centre in the city so I quickly set off to investigate. As I suspected, the bird wasn't a peregrine but was a sparrowhawk. It had chased some avian prey inside the large entrance lobby and found itself behind a huge wall of glass. It was about 30 feet up and would never find its way out. The maintenance staff quickly brought a cherry picker along and I climbed

into the bucket cab and was hoisted aloft as an audience of onlookers gathered below. Fortunately the bird was easy to catch and release, much to the disgust of the fleeing local feral pigeons. It's not unusual for sparrowhawks to end up inside buildings as their prey seeks cover. They fly upwards and rarely make their own way out.

All's well that end's well on this occasion!

Nick B (DWT)
Photo; the male sparrowhawk just prior to release. It was panting but flew off strongly into the blue beyond.

The Big Two Million

Derby's peregrine falcons now have a global reach.
But can we do more to reach new audiences closer to home?

This month saw the number of online visits or “hits” to the Derby Cathedral Peregrine Project’s webcameras top the 2 million mark. This is a real milestone for us, especially as it also marks the start of a new phase in our project.
Beginning next nesting season we want to bring live video streaming and sound to the public and to schools, and we want to increase the amount of outreach work we undertake, especially to minority audiences. We would also like to bring live 24 hour camera coverage to the cathedral itself in some way. To this end we are preparing a small grant application to the Heritage Lottery to get funds to take forward these and other plans.

We Seek Your Views
We would love to hear from you if you’ve enjoyed watching Derby City's peregrine falcons - and especially if you really get a lot out of them.

In previous years we received lots of lovely comments about the project. But now we seek answers to a few specific questions – and maybe your ideas for a title for our funding bid, too. (Your answers will help us formulate that bid.)

The sort of things we would like to know include:


1. Has watching our birds changed your life in any way?
2. Have you gone on to a greater involvement with wildlife as a result? (e.g. joined any organisations, gone to meetings, attended events you wouldn't have gone to otherwise?)
3. Have you taken any other actions for wildlife? (e.g. donated to projects, become a volunteer, or campaigned against something as a result of being involved with our peregrines, or reading the blog?
4. Have you got someone else as hooked as you are? e.g. at work? at home? or at school? If you have persuaded others to watch the peregrine webcams, what was their reaction?
5. If you suffer from an illness or disability, what difference has the project made to your life, health or happiness?
6. What improvements would you like to see, and what new audiences ought we to try to reach? Over 60s? Disabled? etc. and how can we achieve this?
7. Finally, because we’re keen to understand the economic benefits of Derby’s peregrines, do tell us if they’ve influenced you to make special trips to Derby, where you came from, and what else you visited whilst here.


We need responses fairly quickly - so do please email us your feedback at enquiries@derbyshirewt.co.uk or simply give us any other thoughts on the value of the Peregrine Project, and any reasons why you think it should be enhanced with lottery money. It's possible your comments might be compiled into the evidence we submit to the Heritage Lottery Fund. Alternatively, sign in to post a comment here on this blog.


What's in a Name?
Our funding bid needs a title. Can you help us choose one from the shortlist below? It needs to sum up the mix of conservation, community engagement and the whole ethos of what we've achieved so far. We've selected six options. Email us your favourite to enquiries@derbyshirewt.co.uk, or leave a comment on our blog.

A. Fantastic Falcons

B. Peregrines are Perfect

C. Peregrines for The People!

D. Peregrines in Partnership

E. Peregrines, People and Places

F. Wrapped up with Raptors

Many thanks (in advance)

Nick's M and B

Derby's Peregrines on DVD

"The Peregrines of Derby Cathedral" is a great little DVD, now available for purchase for just £6.

It tells the story of Derby's peregrine falcons and features Chris Packham, well-known as both a BBC TV presenter and as a vice-president of The Wildlife Trusts.

All profits from its sale go directly to support our webcams and other project costs. All the Peregrine Project Team appear on the film, as does national prey expert, Ed Drewitt, from Bristol Museum.

The DVD lasts 35 minutes and includes a large number of webcam video highlights taken over the course of the breeding season. Each short video clip comes with  a commentary, so can be of great for schools to use in class.



You can order the  DVD for  £6 GBP (post free within the UK)  from the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust office in Belper [see below].



To pay by debit /credit card and have one posted direct to your home at no extra cost (if you live in the UK) please phone the Trust on 01773 881188 (Mon-Fri 9am - 4.30pm).
Your copy will be dispatched the same day. UK cheques should be made payable to Derbyshire Wildlife Trust and sent to the Trust at: East Mill, Bridge Foot, Belper, Derbyshire, DE56 1XH.

We can post abroad but we will ask you for an extra 'donation' of £1 GBP towards the higher postage costs. (The DVD is not region-coded, so it will play on all machines worldwide.)


If you wish you can watch a short DVD promo, read testimonials below, or see more of the work of artist Steven McLoughlin which is included in the video.

The Peregrines of Derby Cathedral is an independent production by Delta Echo Media who have kindly given us all the rights to help us raise funds for the project.

The DVD makes a superb present for anyone interested in birds, let alone for anyone who has ever logged on to our web cams or visited Derby Cathedral to see these magnificent birds for themselves.


Testimonials

• DVD came in the post this morning, have just watched. It is a pure delight, cannot recommend it highly enough. Congratulations to all concerned!! and Thank You! Audrey (UK).
• DVD excellent. I won't spoil it for anyone who has not yet seen it by saying no more than you are in for a treat. Enjoy!! (Pam - Derby, UK)
• Just finished watching the DVD, which I thought was excellent. Superb. (Ed Green, Chief Executive, Derbyshire Wildlife Trust)
• Oh my gosh...I just finished watching the DVD and logged on to congratulate you all for such an incredible production. Thirty five minutes of pure magical joy. I was smiling the whole time. Ave Maria will hold new meaning for me now. (Veronica, Cornwall, UK)
• Have just watched the DVD, which is truly excellent - a definite "must-have". (Anonymous blog comment, Derby)
• I really enjoyed watching the DVD last night. Thank you Derby Wildlife Trust for a really speedy and efficient postal service. It's a super DVD and I thoroughly recommend it. (Sue H. Bucks, UK)
• Ee-chupp! Yeah, my DVD came today. It's wonderful. I was so mesmerized by the opening, it wasn't until it stopped playing that I realized I had to click "play film" :-) (Karen Anne, North America)
• "Its superb . The photography is lovely, the graphics great and the webcam images fantastic -the whole story, great mating and the early chicks are really nice too. It's good to see a modern slant on it visually. Liked the talking heads and the whole story. Thank you for inviting me to contribute. (Chris Packham, BBC TV Presenter)

On The Ropes

Superman makes his descent from the tower

Sunday 25th: The Archbishop of Canterbury is preaching at the cathedral this morning. You have to be seated by 10.30 should you wish to go along.


Nearly one hundred fundraisers abseiled down Derby Cathedral last weekend in support of the local Mountain Rescue Team and the cathedral itself, raising around £14,500 in pledges of sponsorship.

The rescue team had set up an abseiling platform at the top of the 212ft tower of the cathedral, the second highest in the country and invited members of the general public to raise sponsorship to support both the team and the Derby Cathedral Charity, which supports projects connected with the cathedral.

Despite some very windy conditions on the Saturday, most abseilers commented how much they had enjoyed the experience, even though many had been very nervous before putting themselves in the hands of the experienced rescue team.

Among the adventurous participants was a partially sighted man, who bravely climbed the steep narrow stairway to the top before stepping off the edge of the tower, even though the night before, he had asked his wife exactly what abseiling was as he was unsure what he’d agreed to do. Another woman was celebrating her 40th birthday by taking part, having completed the challenge previously when the team had held the event four years earlier. The Sunday also saw the characters of Superman (see above) and Scooby-Doo make the descent in full costume, much to the delight of several children in the audience gathered below. One abseiler from Rolls Royce in Derby managed to raise close to £1700 in pledges by taking part.

Diana Cunningham from Smith's Clocks about to set off

This text and images have come courtesy of the Derby Mountain Rescue Team's website. Follow this link for more details of last weekend's fantastic fund-raising abseil. (Had we thought about it we could have got one or two of them to nip around the back and sort out our droopy camera for us! Nick M.)

The crowd look on.

Abseil down today

Today (Sunday 18th) the Derby Mountain Rescue team have organised an abseil down the tower between 12.30 and 4 pm so if you ever wanted to try this out, today's your chance. Proceeds are split between DMR team and the cathedral.

Peregrine prey remains found below the tower this morning included a snipe's beak and two feathers from a golden plover - the birds are now getting back to their winter diet! The falcon was sitting right by the pud cam on the waterspout. No sign of the male bird.

Nick Brown (DWT)

More photos from the summer - and a diversion

Dave King recently sent me a CD with photos he had taken back in June. So here are a few just to remind you of our birds. It seems a long time ago now that the nest platform was busy with activity. And a long time until next season too.

Meanwhile, if you want to keep track of some wildlife, you could follow the journeys made by several satellite tagged ospreys, some of which have already started to make their way down to West Africa (the experienced female Beatrice and the young male Joe for example).

Roy Dennis, who set up The Highland Foundation for Wildlife, has been tagging ospreys for several years now and it has been fascinating to watch the journeys these big birds of prey make day by day as they fly down from the Highlands of Scotland where they breed to their wintering grounds in West Africa. Just google Roy Dennis and you'll arrive at his website.
I see that Joe made an epic non-stop 470 kms in a day flight recently, ending up on the west coast of France - and this only two months since he made his first flight ever!

I've been out watching local hobbies recently. These small falcons, relatives of the peregrine, have just fledged their young and before long, they too will be heading off south for Africa.

Both ospreys and hobbies are day migrants and they can be seen at various raptor watch points such as those in the Pyrenees and in southern Spain but always singly, never in the large groups that some other raptors, such as honey buzzards and black kites, can be seen flying in. Only a few days ago, almost 3000 honey buzzards were seen passing over the Pyrenees in a single day from one famous watch point called Organbidexka.....a wonderful spectacle.

Nick Brown (DWT)