An exciting day for some visitors to our project and Update

Update: Report on Watch Point 8th June: this was well attended (over 300 visitors), partly because there was a duck race on the river nearby and stalls on the Green drawing quite a crowd. The peregrines behaved reasonably well with the chicks being visible for short spells and two feeds taking place. The sun however was intermittent and the wind remained a cold north easterly!

THE NEXT WATCH POINT IS ON SATURDAY 8TH, 11 AM TO 1.30/2 PM, WEATHER DEPENDENT.

To read about the ringing of our chicks, scroll down below this post.
The display in the cathedral cafe window on Irongate is worth checking out if you're in Derby.....and the coffee and food are good too!
This Tuesday we had another group of children visit the cathedral for both an illustrated talk by Ian (with a member of the staff signing for the children) and to look through the telescopes. They were from Woodlands School's Hearing Impaired Unit. The chicks didn't show very well but the adults did - and the rain held off with even a brief glimpse of the sun! (Thanks again to our trusty band of volunteers who helped us out).

Woodlands School group at the Watch Point

St. Benedict's School visitLast Wednesday, Ian Layton, our HLF-funded Engagement Officer, had arranged for a small group of children with either sight or mobility issues from St. Benedict's School in the city to come to the Cathedral to experience not only our peregrines but also some imported birds which they could hold and touch, given that most would be unable to see the peregrines.
The visit, funded by our lottery grant, was a great success and the children thoroughly enjoyed the experience. A falconry centre in Nottinghamshire brought a range of their birds of prey for the children to hold and to touch - a brilliant experience for those with little or no sight, in particular.
Both the birds and the children behaved exceptionally well - and thanks also to our great volunteers who helped out (Nikki, Steve, Howie and Pam) and to John Armitage from the cathedral.
Ian Layton wrote:
"The group arrived about two minutes after the falcons had flown off to Jury’s Inn – leaving us with precious little to see or hear. But just after our introductions, the female flew back to the Cathedral tower calling loudly and making plenty of noise! Perfect timing!!

We had set up a couple of scopes through which those youngsters with some sight could see the birds and the female helpfully sat on the lip of the platform for ten minutes whilst everyone had a good look. Whilst this was happening we explained a little about the birds - their life cycle, adaptations, diet etc .

Following this we went across into the Cathedral where the group were introduced to a number of imprinted (raised in captivity) birds of prey. All the young people were carefully encouraged to hold a bird on a gauntlet and – guided by the falconers – were enabled to feel the talons and feathers of an Eagle Owl, a Barn Owl and a Ferruginous Hawk as they held them on their arm. Whilst the group were having the closest experience of wildlife many of them had ever had. The youngsters were also able to touch ‘009’ – the young Derby peregrine killed in 2009 by flying into a building which has since been stuffed.

The session concluded with a bird song recognition quiz – ranging from Cuckoos, through Skylarks to – of course – peregrines.To round off, we made the point that today was really more than just about falcons, hawks and owls – it was to help people learn to care about wildlife and to realise about the pressures many species are experiencing.

As they left, they were talking about placing a barn owl box in their school grounds and about developing more wildlife education in school.

This afternoon I’ve received two emails from school – the first stating that one of the young men had returned saying it was “the best thing he’d ever done” – and the second from the head of the department asking whether the hawks and owls would be available for a wildlife event to be held in August. All in all, a very positive day!"

Watching a peregrine on the Jurys Inn sign with volunteer Howie Hall on hand

Josh just manages to see the peregrine's nest

Shannon touches a (very tame) eagle owl

Josh with a barn owl on his wrist

James about to hold the eagle owl

Ringed and filmed (and video-ed too) plus Updates

The ringing of the four chicks last night (29th) went very well and we were lucky that the rain held off.
A five-strong BBC TV crew (including presenter Sanjida O'Connell) was present, filming for a regional (East Midlands) programme to be called The Urban Jungle which will go out in July (no date as yet). Parts of the film may be used nationally at a later date I gather. You can read her blog about her visit here.

TV crew film Sanjida on the top of the tower

Martin bags the chicks on the platform

Ant, Nick and a bundle of chicks ready for ringing inside the tower

BBC's Sanjida OConnell comes face to face with a chick.

The chicks behaved very well considering, sitting quite still while awaiting their turn to be ringed and



Do I really have to be ringed?



Well at least I got my dinner inside me first!

having their mouth's swabbed for DNA analysis.
The ringer, Ant, thought that there were three males and one female, the latter by far the noisiest! Martin the abseiler cleaned the camera lenses and lifted the new camera up a few inches so as to be above the 'squirt' line (thanks Martin for waiting up there while the chicks were ringed and filmed!)
Thanks also to Tony G for letting us in and out of the tower and for taking the photos. Nick M was on leave that day, sitting in a pub somewhere, but still keeping a watching eye on us all (and especially Martin) and tweeting away to let everyone know what was happening.
Nick B (DWT)
Ps. The colour ring numbers were 021, 022 and 024 the three males and 023 the female.
Pps. A short (and silent) video of the ringing can be found on You Tube

Report on Watch Point 1st June by Ian Layton: The sun shone on Derby today and once again we had over 250 people view the peregrines. We had people of all ages and backgrounds use the scopes - with folks from as far away as Turkey and Sweden signing the visitor's book.The birds themselves were in fairly good form. The youngsters made a few fleeting appearences - but mostly kept themselves to themselves. The parents were more visable - or at least he was (we think). This bird tookitself off soon after eleven o'clock and didn't reappear for nearly three hours - long enough for us to start wondering if something had happened to it! Meanwhile, the remaining bird sat on the crenellations just beneath the platform and stayed there from about 11.30 to 1.00 before then hopping up on to the platform itself. It certainly made itself very visable for all our visitors!
Soon after 1.00 this bird took off and flew towards the Council House and we wondered if we'd have anything to show people - but we needn't have worried as within 5 mins both falcons reappeared with the falcon settling on the platform and the tiedcel on the water spout by the right hand gargoyle at the top of the tower. They stayed there for about half an hour before the tiercel took off around the tower and within seconds had reappeared with a catch. At first we assumed this was a pigeon but closer viewing through the scopes showed it was more likely to be some kind of finch. The tiercel dropped this off for the falcon to feed to the kids and then flew off towards Jurys Inn.
We finished the Watch Point soon after this at around 2.15pm
A big thanks to Steve and Ann who did a sterling job of explaining about the peregrines and the project whilst Steve rushed around inviting everyone with quarter of mile to come and see the birds.

Please note: the window display in the cathedral cafe window is not working due to IT problems beyond our control...please bear with us while we wait for them to be resolved. (4/6/13). NM

        

Ringing the chicks (and a reminder re. Saturday's Watch Point)

UPDATE: all four chicks were ringed successfully tonight. Full details to follow by tomorrow morning.

We had planned to ring the chicks tonight (Wednesday 29th at about 7-7.30 pm) but the weather looks as though it could prevent us doing so. If you planned to travel to watch from The Green you could have a wasted trip. We won't make a final decision until 6.30 pm or even later if there looks like there could be a short interlude from the rain at some point in the evening! It would be best for everyone if we can get the job done today - but torrential rain will definitely stop us.....
If we postpone we will try again either tomorrow or Friday.
Ringing involves an abseiler (Martin) dropping down on a rope from the top of the tower, collecting the chicks and lowering them in a rucksack to the ringer (Ant) standing on the roof below. The ringer brings the chicks indoors where they can be ringed safely and quickly. They are then returned via the rucksack to the nest. The chicks at this age remain docile and make only feeble attempts to defend themselves. Any older than they are now and they become much more feisty! That is why we need to catch them at about 18-20 days old.
We have ringed our chicks every year since 2006 bar one. It is a straight forward procedure and one which the licensed ringer has done hundreds of times with many different species of bird (his main research work is on the hobby, another falcon that occurs in Derbyshire).
Ant fits two rings; firstly a small metal ring on the right leg. This is the standard type of ring that ringers use for all birds. It has a unique number on it and wording which says 'Inform British Museum London SW7'. The museum passes on details of any rings that people find (eg on dead, injured or re-trapped wild birds) to the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO), the organisation which runs and controls the whole bird ringing scheme in the UK.They report the details back to the ringer and to the finder also.
On the left leg Ant will fit an orange coloured ring with a simple number in a large size (023 for example).
The photos below are from previous years of course.

Fixing a BTO metal ring (2008)

The chicks are returned safely to the nest (2006)

The large feet of an osprey showing both types of (much larger) ring

This coloured ring will enable observers to spot our ringed birds should they turn up elsewhere. The colour orange 'means' the bird was ringed in Derbyshire and the fact that it is on the left leg means it was ringed at the cathedral (all other Derbyshire chicks have the colour ring put on the right leg).
Obviously if someone can read the number through a telescope, then we get to find out exactly which of our chicks they are watching, whether here in Derby or miles away later on. So far we have had no confirmed sightings of any of our chicks at other nest sites elsewhere in the UK...but it could happen one day!
The falcon (the female) obviously isn't happy about an 'intruder' being at the nest (you will see him on the web cams). She flies round overhead making her displeasure known. We should not project our human emotions onto wild animals and birds so to say she is 'angry' or 'upset' isn't particularly helpful in understanding the state of this bird. Clearly peregrines have a built-in behaviour pattern to try to defend their nests and young. What is equally clear is that as soon as we are finished and are out of her sight, she will return to the chicks and show normal behaviour subsequently as if she had completely 'forgotten' the whole episode. (The male by the way tends to stay at a much greater distance, even just disappears!)
In some parts of the world, adult peregrines will dive at anyone near their nests, even clipping them with their talons. This doesn't happen with our birds. The female circles around above the tower top and doesn't get any closer. You can find video clips on You Tube of peregrines attacking (licensed) ringers in the States.
Reminder: the next Watch Point event is this Saturday 1st June (11 am to at least 1 pm) weather permitting (and the forecast is better by then!). If you've not been down yet, we look forward to seeing you soon.
Nick B (DWT)

Watch Points begin - plus Updates

UPDATE: Saturday's Watch Point (25th) was very well attended with some 300 visitors counted in the sunshine. A full account is at the foot of this blog post and another about Monday's Event. The next public Watch Point is this Saturday 1st June, 11am to 1pm and longer if fine.
________________________

Ian Layton, our Engagement Officer writes:
So far so good! We have four apparently robust youngsters (if you are new to this blog please scroll down to read the latest news of our chicks and see photos and a video of them).
Let’s hope the weather is kind to them and we see all four fledge.
Let’s also hope that the weather stays fine so as many people as possible can come along and see what’s happening up on the Cathedral tower. Once again the project will be organising “Watch Points” and encouraging people to use our telescopes to get a close up view and “share the magic” of the peregrines.

This year Watch Points will be run from 11.00am till about 2.00pm each Saturday from May 25th to at least June 29th. As the falcons were late in laying their eggs this year, we may run our Watch Point season a little later too.

Watch Points, as always, are free to attend. Donations are always welcome of course and if you do want to find out more about becoming a member of DWT, then we will have the necessary literature for you.

So it would be wonderful to see you all on Cathedral Green over the next few weeks if you can make it!
In addition to the Saturday Watch Points we are holding our annual Peregrine Event on Bank Holiday Monday 27th May (next Monday!). This will include a Watch Point, hourly Tower Tours taking people to the top of the tower (there will be a charge for this) and a small display and some children’s activities in the cathedral itself. Just turn up at any time between 10.30 and 3pm. Tony Grantham (our cathedral rep.) and I will be there and Nick B will pop in too.

Looking up at the nest with a scope

I have also been busy visiting a range of community groups and encouraging them to come and see the peregrines for themselves. So far we have six group visits to mid-week Watch Points confirmed and we have a further six groups arranging dates. These range from local Brownie groups, through groups of people with hearing or visual impairment – and on to folks from Care Homes. As much as I love seeing the birds via the web cams I’m really looking forward to seeing the expressions of people who have never had the opportunity to see the falcons ‘for real’ before.

We still have some free dates towards the end of June – so if you know of a group who haven’t seen the falcons but might enjoy their magic – please let me know and I’ll get in touch (email peregrines@derbyshirewt.co.uk).

And while you are in Derby (if you get there!) do be sure to catch Nick M’s great display showing the nest platform with eggs (and a monitor with the live web cam view) in the window of the Cathedral café on Irongate, opposite the main entrance to the Cathedral. It’s well worth stopping for a look and indeed going inside for a bite to eat or a coffee/tea!

Hopefully we’ll see lot’s of you at the Watch Points over the coming weeks. Please don’t be shy – introduce yourselves as blog readers or web cam watchers – and let us know what you think of the project and how we might improve it.



The 'wow' factor!

See also the Watch Point tab above for more information about dates - coming shortly.

Watch Point Report for Saturday 25th by WP volunteer Andy Marshall: A fine sunny morning prompted an early start so we were on Cathedral Green at 10 am setting up . The female peregrine was on the platform shading the chicks but the male was nowhere to be seen (earlier he had been perched on the green “spike” above Jury’s Inn).

At 10.50 she flew off briefly, returning to one of the food caches above the nest and dislodging a pigeon which had unwisely settled there - before returning to her chicks.

A Cancer Concern  sponsored bed push plus pushers  stop to see the birds! Photo Sue H

Just after 11 am, the male put in an appearance, perching on the right-hand waterspout. This brought his mate out onto the edge of the nest platform calling to the male who eventually took the hint and flew off again. The female flew up to check whether he’d brought in any prey but flew back to the nest without anything. At 11.40 she flew off and circled over the River Gardens area for some time before returning at midday with prey. She proceeded to pluck it before dropping down to the nest and feeding the chicks.

Feeding over, the female cached part of the remainder of the carcase at the top of the louvres above the nest then flew with another piece before returning to settle down and brood her (no doubt) sleeping chicks. From then until then end of the Watch Point just after 2 pm the most we saw of any of the birds was the females head as she occasionally peeped over the platform edge.
Watch Point and Tower Tours - Monday's event: With another 200 people turning up (or being dragged screaming and kicking off the street) to see the peregrines, a good day was had. The sun

WP Monday 27th - a quieter moment

stayed out and many people went up to the tower top to see the great views of the city and beyond.
The birds showed themselves quite well with some flying about and at least two feeds. Among people who came were some from Spain, Greece, The Philipines and France too. If today was your first experience of the Derby Peregrine Project do watch our birds on line and come back to a future Watch Point. The next one is on Saturday 1st June, 11am until at least 1pm, weather permitting.