What would they do with the eggs will they just go in the food recycling bins or will they be examined to see why dead.
I don't know, Furby. I think it would be a good idea to examine them to see at what stage the embryos stopped developing. I guess it was the cold and wet weather - it's been really horrible up there on the North Transept this year compared with earlier years and I think the peregrines are lucky to have had one egg hatch never mind all four of them.
Update - the egg on the side of the nest box is broken and only eggshell.
Further update 19:08 - Winnie has brought a dead blackbird for the chick to eat. It's handy it's windy as the feathers are blown away while Winnie plucks them out of the prey before feeding the next bit to the chick.
Like the late Chaircat Midge, I am not always right.
The chick now is too big to be completely covered by Winnie; as there is only one chick she is letting William catch most of its food. The chick will be ringed on Friday and weighed etc and they will try to determine its sex; they think it is a female because of its size, though it is bigger than usual anyway because it is getting all the food.
Like the late Chaircat Midge, I am not always right.
Its a sunny day today but still windy at roof level we can see from all the feathers stuck to the walls waving about. The chick looks almost as big as its mum now and is very impatient trying to eat the meat before it's been chewed properly. I feel a bit sad for the killed bird now nature is very cruel without any laws to stop them when humans aren't even allowed to fight back against really bad humans or even dangerous dogs.
The chick is starting to lose its down; you can see its first proper feathers beginning to emerge on the edge of its wings. I saw it flapping its little stubby wings the other day.
Like the late Chaircat Midge, I am not always right.
I note that Winnie now is at least 15 years old, which is when most female peregrines become infertile. So probably her last breeding year. There's a nice pic of her dozing with the chick. Somehow an entry re sculpture at the Cathedral has intruded, but just keep on scrolling down.
Just had a look and the chick has left the nest box tray. Neither adult peregrine is in camera view, so I guess they are all round the corner of the transept.
Update - somebody has moved one of the cameras so you can see more of the surrounds of the nest box back to the door in the wall. The chick is asleep between the nest box and the door; one parent is on the walkway closer to the door and the other is on the wall.
Like the late Chaircat Midge, I am not always right.
I'm not sure what's going on with the peregrines. Last night I though one of the parents was sleeping near the door to the walkway, but this morning it is still there and hasn't moved. The colouring is indistinct to my eyes, but I don't think it is one of the parents after all. It looks dead. I shall check again later today.
The chick is still in the walkway, huddled against the wall.
Like the late Chaircat Midge, I am not always right.
I keep on changing my mind about the dead bird. The chick keeps on going up to it, and even half lies down by it. I wonder if it is Winnie. I don't know enough about peregrines to guess whether the parent feeding the chick is William or Winnie. I haven't seen both parents on camera together since the dead bird appeared.
Update 11:20 - I've just seen both parents - one is with the chick and the other is perched on the wall.
Like the late Chaircat Midge, I am not always right.
Whatever the dead thing is the chick seems obsessed with it. It must even be a bit smelly by now but the whole balcony to lie in and it picks the bit near a dead bird.
The chick has cleverly moved to the other side of the nest this morning. I couldn't see it and was worried for it earlier but its there now.
The chicks at Norwich cathedral had dead eggs and also dead chicks. The story said the watchers advised defra ( which is required under bird flu rules if you find any dead birds.) But DEFRA didn't bother turning up and the carcasses disappeared so they don't know why the chicks died.
Sometimes when you can't see the chick at all, it has wandered round the corner of the transept out of camera range. Previous chicks have been very good at doing that.
Like the late Chaircat Midge, I am not always right.
Rosie has been hiding from camera a lot. Why don't they do a camera round the corner as well.
It must be worrying to be a peregrine mother. Theres no seatbelts for wall walking or stabilisers for flying is there has to be right first time. And with only one chick too. I hope they have a happy ending. Wonder how they decide which chick inherits the cathedral nest.
Two years ago one of the chicks fell off the wall; it was found down on the grass, unhurt. I understand from the commentary that if a chick falls like that, spreading its wings so that it glides down to the ground is a reflex action.
As to inheriting the nest box.............the parents are territorial about their nest places, so a chick won't inherit it unless it just happens to be the younger peregrine that's there when the parents are too old to defend their territory. IIRC the year Chester died there was another female in the vicinity who looked as if she might like Winnie's patch but nothing came of it.
Like the late Chaircat Midge, I am not always right.
