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The Peregrine Chick:
Peregrine falcons halt Essex reactor decommissioning plan
BBC Essex /  19 April 2013



Nesting peregrine falcons have halted work to decommission a former nuclear reactor in Essex.  The pair were spotted on the roof of one of two reactors at the Magnox Bradwell-on-sea site, which were about to undergo maintenance work.  Because the birds are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act, the company has had to "pause" the work. 

A spokesman said it had taken advice to ensure other work at the site "would not distress our new residents".

There are about 1,400 breeding pairs of peregrine falcons in the UK. They normally favour rocky cliff tops to make their nests.  However, the two birds have this time chosen to build a nest more than 50m (165ft) up at the industrial site.  It is not the first time peregrines have chosen the reactors as a nesting spot. In 2008 another falcon was filmed in its nest on the reactor.  The latest residents, however, have chosen a less accessible spot and filming the nest has not yet been possible, the spokesman said. 

Steve McNitt, the site's safety and environment manager, said: "It's difficult to know how long the falcons will stay.  We are hoping for a successful brood and are planning on having them around through the summer. Eggs normally hatch after around four weeks, and the chicks begin to fly about three weeks later.  They tend to stay close to the nest and remain dependent on the adult falcons for around a further two months."

Members of Essex Birdwatching Society have confirmed seeing the falcons returning to the reactor nesting site. 

The twin reactors at Bradwell-on-sea are currently undergoing decommissioning work. The site was shut down in March 2002 after 40 years of operation.

The Peregrine Chick:
Where have all the falcons gone? Dramatic decline has set alarm bells ringing among conservationists.
Cahal Milmo / the Independent / 14 Oct 2013

... continued from part one above ...

The row is symptomatic of rising anxiety among conservationists as they see the success stories of bird-of-prey conservation in recent years, such as the widespread return of the red kite across England and a rise in buzzard numbers, offset by problems for some of Britain’s most iconic hawks.  Despite its problems in Bowland, which experts said could be related to natural causes ranging from last year’s harsh winter to competing bird species as well as human intervention, the peregrine falcon has recovered strongly from near extinction in the 1970s due to use of DDT pesticides. There are now some 1,400 breeding pairs across Britain.  Sources told The Independent that many of the abandoned peregrine sites in Bowland were on land owned and managed by energy and water company United Utilities, which is regarded as a model of sustainable moorland management. There is no suggestion of wrongdoing by the company.

But conservationists say the falcon and other species are also markedly absent – or have had numbers dramatically reduced – in areas that coincide with the 850,000 acres of upland moor in northern England where some 500,000 grouse are shot annually in an industry worth £67m a year.  David Morris, the RSPB’s area conservation manager in the North-west, said: “We are deeply alarmed and concerned by this drop in numbers of peregrines in Bowland. We don’t know what is causing it.  “We have seen a pattern elsewhere where commericially-driven grouse moors have in recent years geared up in the intensity of their management of the land. There is no escaping that in these areas species like peregrines or goshawks are just disappearing. They have become absolute black holes for the birds of prey. We are not anti-shooting but grouse shooting has become commercialised to an unsustainable level and that has included rogue gamekeepers on some estates persecuting birds of prey and systematically removing them.”

Some 70 per cent of the 152 people convicted for persecution of birds of prey under the Wildlife and Country Act were employed in the game industry, according to the RSPB.  Among the measures being sought by conservationists to tackle the problem is the introduction of vicarious liability, making the owners of grouse moorland estates responsible for the actions of employees. The introduction of the measure in Scotland last year has seen a sharp drop in the number of poisonings of bird of prey.  Moorland owners strongly denied any systematic destruction of birds of prey, pointing out that it was only because of the habitat created by estate workers, for wild birds including grouse, that species like the hen harrier were present in the first place.  A spokeswoman for the Moorland Association said: “We would condemn any illegal killing of birds of prey. We believe very strongly that there is room in the uplands for the full sweep of birds that should be there. There must be a balance and we are working with all sides to explore ways to manage birds of prey numbers sustainably.”

Link to story:   The Independent - Where have all the falcons gone?

The Peregrine Chick:
Where have all the falcons gone? Dramatic decline has set alarm bells ringing among conservationists.
Cahal Milmo / the Independent / 14 Oct 2013



Once described as the “Switzerland of England”, the Forest of Bowland offers an ideal habitat for the peregrine falcon. With its rocky outcrops and vast tracts of upland, it was until recently home to a thriving population of some 15 pairs of Britain’s fastest bird of prey.  But almost as rapidly as Falco peregrinus sweeps from the sky to secure its quarry, the number of the species in the 880-square-kilometre beauty spot stretching across Lancashire has plummeted. In just five years, the population has tumbled from 30 birds to just a single breeding pair.  The dramatic decline has set alarm bells ringing among conservationists, who point out that there are now more of these graceful predators living in England’s cities than across a vast swathe of the North stretching from the Peak District to the Yorkshire Moors and the Pennines.

The reasons for the disappearance of Bowland’s falcons are still not fully understood. But the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds say that elsewhere the illegal killing of raptors – birds of prey – by rogue gamekeepers on moorland used for shooting red grouse is thwarting attempts to conserve species. Hen harriers, once abundant in the UK, are on the verge of extinction in England after the last two pairs this year failed to breed.  The crisis is also causing strains within the conservation movement, sparking an unseemly row between the RSPB and a group of local raptor campaigners.  The Independent can reveal that the charity, Europe’s largest dealing with wildlife, has used one of the world’s biggest law firms, Clifford Chance, to write to the North West Raptor Group demanding the removal of “libellous” material from its website. The NWRG claims the RSPB has failed to protect the local peregrine falcons, and has not been candid about the scale of their decline.  

Terry Pickford, the NWRG’s founder, accused the RSPB of “intimidation”, saying the group, which had its licences to monitor bird-of-prey nests in Bowland restricted in 2010 by the Government’s wildlife adviser Natural England, was raising legitimate concerns about the decline in peregrine numbers and the safeguarding of the species. The group had previously complained to the RSPB after two of its members were approached by a warden earlier this year while watching a peregrine site and later asked to attend a police interview. The two men were told they had no case to answer but the RSPB said its warden had acted appropriately.  Mr Pickford said: “It feels like the RSPB does not like criticism and is going to extraordinary lengths to stop it. We are a small group in Lancashire who believe passionately in what we do and here we are receiving letters from a giant firm of London lawyers threatening legal action. It’s hard not to see it as anything other than intimidation. It makes us even more determined.”

The RSPB denied its actions were heavy-handed, saying it respected the right of others to criticise but the legal letter had been sent to protect volunteers from what it believed were unsubstantiated and defamatory allegations on the NWRG website. It said Clifford Chance had sent the letter without a fee as part of a “pro bono” charitable partnership. A spokesman said: “Normally we take this type of criticism on the chin but we have a duty of care towards our staff and we must protect them from untrue claims. We are not a litigious organisation and the decision to send this letter was not taken lightly.”

... part two continues below ...

Link to story:   The Independent - Where have all the falcons gone?

The Peregrine Chick:
Injured falcon, found on streets of Detroit, lands new home
By Wayne Peal / Detroit Free Press / 2 Jan 2014

Allegro, a Peregrine falcon found this spring dazed and injured on the streets of Detroit, has a new, permanent home at the Howell Conference and Nature Center.  He had been receiving care at the Marion Township facility since April with the intent of eventually being released back into the wild.  His injuries, however, proved too severe for that to happen and, last month, the center gained U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service approval to make him a permanent resident.  

Even though Allegro only has a slight metatarsal injury, center Director Dana DeBenham said that condition threatens his ability to survive in the wild.  “For us, it would be like having an injured finger, but for a falcon, it greatly impacts their ability to target food from the air,” DeBenham said.

Peregrine falcons, with dive speeds approaching 200 mph, are considered the fastest birds in the sky. Allegro’s speed nearly proved his undoing.  It is believed his injuries came from crashing into a window near his previous nesting place.  At the time of his injury, Allegro was nesting at Whittier Park, a high-rise senior center on the Detroit riverfront.

Allegro at first received received fluids and specialized medication and now exists on a diet of diced mouse parts. He’s bonded with the center’s other Peregrine falcon, Rocky, and staff members believe he’s happy at his new home.  “He’s 14, so he is pretty far along in his lifespan,” DeBenham said. “But we’re hoping to have him for a while.”  Allegro is expected to be part of the center’s education programs.

Peregrine falcons are listed as an endangered species in Michigan, and Allegro was identified from bands on both legs.  The falcons are large birds, with wingspans of up to 4 feet. They are noted for their bluish-gray backs and dark tips on their yellowish bills.

As Allegro survived, the fates weren’t as kind to another rare bird that was found injured this week in Livingston County.  After hearing a loud thump at their door, Coy and Char Wilder were surprised to see an injured Merlin falcon outside their Howell Township home.  They promptly saw to it that the falcon was transported to the nature center, but efforts to save it were unsuccessful.  It it believed that the falcon was on a migratory flight, most likely south from Canada.  “It’s rare that you see them in this part of Michigan unless they are migrating,” DeBenham said.

Smaller than Peregrines, Merlins are best identified by their dark coloring and “mustache”-style striping on their faces. Kept by falconers since the Middle Ages, they were once known as “lady hawks,” according to information on the website All About Birds.

The Howell Conference and Nature Center is the state’s largest care center for birds of prey.

source: http://www.freep.com/article/20140102/NEWS05/301020054/Injured-falcon-found-in-Detroit-lands-new-home-at-Howell-Conference-and-Nature-Center

The Peregrine Chick:
Hmmm, sounds like Ivy and Jules and Smiley and Joli and Ivy and Joli ....  ::)

Ever heard of a peregrine falcon ‘love’ triangle? There’s one in North York
Quest and Kendal were a devoted falcon couple, but fate intervened. Enter Skye, a male teenager falcon.
by Valerie Hauch / Toronto Star / 24 Oct 2013

Older, comely female. Young male, eager to get to know her better.  Two North York peregrine falcons – a mature female named Quest, 5, and a “teenager’’ of about 2, named Skye, have been getting very chummy since last August, according to volunteers from the Canadian Peregrine Foundation who have been monitoring their movements. (Peregrines have an identifying band put on when they’re chicks, as part of a Ministry of Natural Resources program.)

“There’s quite a little love story going on,’’ says Mark Nash, president of the Canadian Peregrine Foundation.

Quest, like all female Peregrines is a lot bigger than Skye and could easily drive him out of her territory. But she seems comfortable with him and they’ve been seen “rubbing beaks together,’’ and occasionally sharing an office tower ledge, directly across the Harlequin Enterprises building on Duncan Mill Rd., where her nest box is, says Nash.

But no sex yet. While there are cases of peregrine copulation in late October (hormone stimulation depends on periods of sunlight), female fertilization doesn’t happen until March, says Nash.  It may be Skye’s first foray into falcon ‘romance.’ But his partner is more experienced. Quest has been nesting at the same place for the last few years, successfully raising broods of off-white fluffy feathered chicks with her previous mate, Kendal, 4.

They were a devoted couple, until the storms of fate intervened. Literally.  Following a terrible deluge last summer, Kendal was found on the ground with fractures on his wrist and wings. He was immediately taken to Toronto Wildlife Centre and treated and then went to the Canadian Peregrine Foundation Raptor Centre in Woodbridge to continue healing and start rehabilitation. He’s now at the Owl Foundation in Vineland where a larger confinement space will allow him to fly more and exercise his muscles.

Kendal’s ultimate fate is undecided. He still has to go through a spring moult. And he has to show that he has recovered to the point where he could survive in the wild, says Nash.  Peregrine falcons are the fastest animals on the planet – they can reach speeds of up to 320 km/hour on a dive. Kendal has to be able “to perform like an F16 (jet fighter),” says Nash. But because of his injuries, he has “lost some symmetry...we don’t know yet if he can hunt like a peregrine and keep himself alive as well as hunt for his family.’’

It will eventually be up to the provincial Ministry of Natural Resources to “make the call’’ as to whether Kendal will be released to the wild. If not, he could be sent to a sanctuary or possibly euthanized, if deemed unsuitable to living in captivity. Some wild peregrines just can’t adapt and it creates huge stress for them, he said.

However, if Kendal is released next spring, there’s likely some drama ahead.  “The first thing he’s going to do is come back to the nest,’’ says Nash. That will mean some sort of clash with Skye — in those situations the female generally hangs back and the “males work it out.’’

Sometimes, these altercations do result in the death of one bird. The Canadian Peregrine Foundation will know if Kendal is released to the wild and will monitor the nest. Quest did show signs of distress after Kendal disappeared, says Nash. And generally, peregrines will mate for life. But when one bird in a couple dies, the one left behind will often accept a new mate.  That seems to be the case here.  

Although Skye is ahead in the courtship game with Quest, it’s still not a done deal, says Nash. Skye will have to clearly demonstrate “that he can protect his territory...chase away all competitors’’ as well as prove his hunting prowess. Nesting pairs stay in Toronto all year, but young unattached peregrines migrate south before winter and then come back towards spring.

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