One visit by DC late yesterday:

     

     

Oh no! Poor little Franklin. 

I wonder what happened, and when it happened; a wing fracture is not usually fatal, and his prognosis was supposedly good. 

Thank you for the beautiful picture of Harriet and M .

You are very welcome, Tapper Gal!

Harriet and M15 were back in the same tree a few minutes ago:



I have not seen them at the nest recently, but the nest is coming along well.



Adding one more image:

[Gamekeeper accused of killing peregrine falcons at Lancashire breeding site]

Gamekeeper accused of killing peregrine falcons at Lancashire breeding site

A gamekeeper allegedly killed two wild birds at a breeding ground in the Forest of Bowland.

James Hartley, 33, of Bleasdale Lane, Bleasdale, near Preston is accused of shooting a peregrine falcon and trapping and killing another on April 13, as well as disturbing a nesting site.

He is also alleged to have set a trap to cause injury to a wild bird, intentionally taken a wild bird, possessed a dead wild bird, and caused unnecessary suffering between April 12 and 15 by trapping the falcon and leaving it for several hours.

Hartley faces two further counts he possessed a firearm capable of being used to commit an offence under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981

He is being prosecuted by the RSPB and Lancashire Police.

During an appearance before Preston Magistrates' Court Hartley, wearing a navy suit, denied eight offences said to be committed at a peregrine falcon breeding site on the Bleasdale Estate, Bowland.

Prosecuting, Phillipa White said: " The crown's case is the defendant is responsible for the destruction of two birds and their nest site. It would appear matters came to light after the RSPB sited a camera within the Bleasdale Estate for the purposes of monitoring a pair of peregrine falcons.

"It is alleged whilst this footage was being captured an individual is seen in a camouflage suit attending the nest site. They are seen to remain there for a number of minutes setting what is believed to be a trap/

"The female is seen to leave the nest. Four shotgun discharges are heard and she does not return.

"The male remains at the site all day and, its believed, trapped in the device placed at the location. Later in the evening a person is seen to remove something.

"The following morning the RSPB cameras found the bird had gone."

Hartley's defence lawyer said his client denies he is the person shown in the covert video footage.

He will appear at the same court for his trial on February 12.

The RSPB says peregrines were at a low point in the 1960s due to human persecution and the impact of pesticides in the food chain.

Improved legislation and protection has helped the birds to recover and they have expanded into many urban areas, but they are still persecuted illegally killed to prevent them preying on game birds and racing pigeons.

Their eggs and chicks are sometimes taken for collections and falconry.

http://www.lep.co.uk/news/crime/gamekeeper-accused-of-killing-peregrine-falcons-at-lancashire-breeding-site-1-8778050

[Peregrine falcon 'shot with air rifle' near Cambridge]

Peregrine falcon 'shot with air rifle' near Cambridge

This beautiful juvie was shot in both wings by some idiot with an air rifle.



Photo: Raptor Foundation.

A woman spotted the bird on the ground on 18 September and contacted the Raptor Foundation at Woodhurst in Cambridgeshire.

Its hospital manager Simon Dudhill said the damage to the protected bird's wings is so great it may not fly again.

Cambridgeshire Police is appealing for information.

The vet who treated the bird told Mr Dudhill it had lost so much weight he believed it had been shot between 10 days to a fortnight before its discovery.

Peregrine falcons catch their prey in mid-flight and by the time it was found it was unable to fly.

An X-ray revealed the remains of air pellets in both wings and initially the bird appeared to be recovering well.

I hope this little one will be allowed to survive, perhaps as an education bird.

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-cambridgeshire-41529524

It has not been a good week for peregrines in the United Kingdom.

This beautiful juvie was shot in the Belfast area. 



An owl expert has slammed the 'mentality' of those who shot, and ultimately killed, a protected Peregrine Falcon.

World of Owls director Mike Gibb said the rare bird was shot in Co Antrim on Sunday.

After an X-ray at Craemill Vets showed pellets in its wings, the Belfast man said the "beautiful" creature had to be put down.

"I am absolutely disgusted at the mentality of some people," he posted on Facebook.

"I had to take this beautiful Peregrine Falcon to our vet this morning as some idiot had shot it.

"She had to be put to sleep.

Also from the article:

Peregrine Falcons are offered the highest degree of legal protection under Schedule 1 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.

If that is so, then this so called "protection" is a dismal failure.

http://www.belfastlive.co.uk/news/belfast-expert-slams-mentality-person-13718811

Another article on the Melbourne peregrine pair, which includes an excellent photo of both birds at the nest.



http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victoria/peregrine-falcons-nest-33-floors-up-at-367-collins-st-melbourne/news-story/74aff23417f9ca9c0e2ae6b4fd1834fc

Beauty and DC at the nest box:

     

     

One of the 2013 juvies from the Manchester nest, banded 51/BD,  has been sighted and photographed in the New York area.



Beautiful photo of 51/BD by Steve Sachs.

His report :

This peregrine falcon showed up at the hook mountain hawkwatch on Friday
She is banded-51/BD
I first encountered this bird when she was in juvenile plumage in December 2013 at orchard beach in the Bronx
I then found out she was banded as a 3 week old chick in Manchester, New Hampshire and there were photos of the banding in may of '13 on the Manchester Audubon Facebook page
Fast forward to the fall of 2014 and she showed up at the stateline lookout in full adult plumage but was quickly run out of there by the residents
So now I've found her again
She must be spending the spring and summer somewhere nearby
Need to figure that out to complete the story

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=1813047905391007&id=354352871260525

Dot.ca, looking serious:

     

The two little fluffballs, a parent and breakfast/lunch in the nest together:

WOW!!!! Wonder how long it took to make this spectacular sculpture!

Dot in PA

Jason Heppenstall is the artist who created this sculpture. I knew I had seen something about the time frame elsewhere, but that article had already been deleted.

“He’s a bit of a local celeb in Sheffield, and actually known for crafting animal sculptures out of reclaimed materials,� the creatives said. “As usual in our industry, the timings were tight, so he had to work through the night to do a job that would normally take him three months, in six weeks.�

The full article from IKEA, with many more images:

http://www.adweek.com/brand-marketing/ikea-made-a-giant-falcon-out-of-17000-allen-keys-for-this-store-opening/

[Etobicoke]

Etobicoke

Several visits to the nest ledge today:

Harriet and M15 this afternoon:

The University of Sheffield has had a resident pair of peregrines since 2012, with a nest box and webcam, and the people of Sheffield appreciate the birds.

Now, a sculpture of a peregrine falcon sits outside the train station. This, however, is no ordinary sculpture. Made from 17,000 IKEA Allen keys, the bird has a 23-foot wingspan. The bird has been named Allen, but according to the artist, this is a female peregrine.





http://www.thestar.co.uk/news/incredible-peregrine-falcon-sculpture-appears-in-sheffield-made-entirely-from-ikea-allen-keys-1-8759882