The Lincolnshire Bird Club

If any Peregrine enthusiast wants to view (daytime ) mind-blowing pictures (full screen) of Peregrines at the nest with 4 chicks, then log onto the Nottingham Trent University webcam at

http://www.ntu.ac.uk/ecoweb/ntu_doing/f ... 103295.cfm

If you then can't access the webcam at first, you'll need to go to a small information bar running across near the top of your computer screen asking you to 'add on'....just click as requested.

Happy viewing.

Freddy
PS - I've just watched the female feeding the chicks (3.55pm) .....Fantastic.
..........and again at 5.50pm............Awesome.

Thanks for posting this link, it is one of the best image quality webcams I've seen. Beautiful images of these master hunters.

Andrew

Thanks for your post, Andrew, ........and now (c 8.30pm) with the city lights coming on, the female brooding the chicks, it's an almost magical scene.

Freddy
PS. Oops ! it looks as if we are in for some more feeding.

Think I am going to report these adult peregrines to Childline as despite hours of watching i haven't seen them feeding the young yet

Chris,

You know what it's like when twitching - you get to the stakeout and the bird is showing well or you have to wait until it reappears (if it ever does). However, one difference with the NTU website is that the adults WILL reappear. Secondly, unlike you who goes out to work, and as a idling, superannuated Saga pensioner layabout, I note from my regular viewing that a feed seems to be given every two/ two and a half hours or so, with a regular evening feed some time between 7.00 and 8.30.

A few evenings ago, around that bracket time, the tiercel brought in a smallish passerine, which the 4 chicks polished off in no time, immediately followed by the falcon arriving with a Feral Pigeon. After 10 minutes or so, the chicks (unusually) all ended up literally turning their backs on yet more Pigeon and the falcon scoffed the remainder.

Freddy
PS. Murphy's Law , as they say, but while reflecting on your post, I logged onto the NTU website (11.30am - Mon) and the falcon was just finishing another bout of feeding the chicks.
PPS. The tiercel arrived with a prey item just after 1.15 - Mon - and for once the 4 chicks were being fed in a neat semi-circle instead of being on top of one another.

Just finished tidying my study, and as a treat went to have a look at the webcam, bingo female feeding the young. With the realtime, interesting to see how the chicks are both fed, but also ensure rotation by pecking each other when one has had too much! Chris no need to call Childline!!!

Panic over. Both parents feeding the young at 19:45 - fantastic sight - great pictures
Amazing how they seemed to take it turns to be fed

Chris,
Great that you have finally caught up with the chicks being fed at NTU, and right on cue midway between 7.00 and 8.30pm. As you say, it's amazing how they seem to take turns to be fed. What particularly surprised me was how once No. 1 and No.2 chicks have had a good feed, they usually turn their backs on the adult and shuffle off into a corner. This gives the No.3 and No.4 chicks a real chance to feed, which they readily take; and there always seems to be enough food left. I had expected Nos. 1 and 2 to try to scoff the whole lot.

It's now just gone 8.30pm and I think the scene at NTU is quite magical as the city lights come on. The falcon will probably return now to brood the chicks and complete the scene.

Freddy

An interesting piece of Peregrine behaviour this morning. 'I just happened to turn on the webcam' at 10.15 when the falcon flew in with what looked like a moderately-sized, virtually featherless and scrawny nestling - possibly Jackdaw, Crow or Pigeon - with (for once) the head intact. All prey I've seen to date have had at least some clumps of feathers remaining and have been headless.......and it looked as if an adult had been nest-raiding..surely not, or had picked up a nestling which had fallen from a nest....and plucked what few feathers it had but carrion ??....surely not. . The experts at NTU Nottingham would probably come up with a completely different interpretation on replaying the video.....maybe it all happened too quickly for me to take in all the detail correctly.

She began to feed the chicks and when the head and neck came off in the nesting tray, one of the chicks promptly grabbed them and tried to swallow them whole but without success. It then stood on the head and neck pecking off bits - the first time that I've witnessed one of the chicks actually standing up and feeding itself.

However, the falcon then seized the piece and proceeded to divide it amongst the chicks. Due to the lack of flesh on the prey item, the whole 'snack break' only lasted about 5 minutes and the falcon then flew off.

Meanwhile, the apparently uninterested tiercel was perched nearby throughout, only a few feet away from the action.

Freddy

Interesting to note that at least 2 of the chicks are now starting to shed their downy feathers, and normal feathers are starting to show through. Also, last night noticed that the biggest chick was starting to practice feeding itself using some of the scraps left over. It was standing on the scraps, tearing and feeding itself. Brilliant views, and as someone getting back into birding this has been a real treat to watch.

Andrew

Just been watching and it seems that there are now only 3 chicks, has anyone noticed if that is so?

Ignore this question all 4 have now appeared in the nest tray.

More than once today there have been NO chicks in the nesting tray : they had all moved forward and onto a flat area and mostly out of sight 'under the camera'.

I must admit, though, that I was a bit apprehensive earlier today when the Number One chick scrambled out of the nest tray into the wind and onto the outer ledge overlooking the street. Fortunately, the tiercel returned with prey a few minutes later and the chick hopped back into the tray to feed.

However, as the birds are hatched onto ledges in the wild, my apprehension was probably unnecessary. Then again, the sole surviving chick of the Lincoln Cathedral brood last year, had to be rescued from thick vegetation, having failed to achieve real flight when flapping its wings. It was replaced aloft with no apparent harm done.

Freddy

You can occasionally catch sight of the 'leg irons' on the chicks, including those on 'Will' and 'Kate' : they were ringed, along with their two siblings, c. 3rd May.

Wildlife officers also took feather samples from them for a growing DNA database which, should it be necessary, will help identify them in the future.

For the video of the ringing, plus another BBC Nottingham peregrine video, go to

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-no ... e-13467233

Freddy

Update - Thu 2nd June - :

The 4 chicks are now independently adopting varying life styles including - :

- spending part of the night as well as part of the day on the outside ledge
- leaving the nesting tray for long periods
- being fed on the outside ledge
- moving out of sight 'below' the camera
- moving out of sight by going away from the camera along the ledge
- sometimes only 2 chicks turning up to be fed .

If it helps, I have seen all 4 chicks today (Thu), despite the fact that, for long periods, no chicks at all have been in view.

Incidentally, all the prey delivery at the nest and feeding bouts that I've witnessed yesterday and today have been supervised by the tiercel. Has anyone seen the falcon at the nest recently ?

Freddy
PS. ......typical, you say one thing and then the other happens : at 7.30 this evening (Thu), the tiercel was feeding the 3 oldest chicks in the nesting tray with Number 4 just outside. However, by 7.45, the adult had left and the 4 chicks all disappeared 'under' the camera.

Update : Sun 12th June

After being fed by the tiercel in the rain at c. 2.15pm today (Sun), the only young bird around actually flapped its wings and departed left (into the air and not down !) off the ledge........whether it was Will, Kate, Newton or Isaac ( yes, those are their names), I'm not sure.

Presumably, and since I've only seen a maximum of 2 young around the nest site these past couple of days, all 4 young have now fledged and, hopefully, are being fed at various places on their nest site building : the NTU Newton Building in Burton Road, Nottingham.....the NTU Falcon blog should be updated soon to confirm what has been happening.

Freddy