APRIL 2026
1 Apr – the male arrives on the ledge at 3:40 and falls asleep. The first changeover is at 6:10 when the female flies out. She returns at 10:05 to resume incubation. She flies out at 11:35 and the male returns. Something catches his eye a few minutes later and he runs to the platform and looks up. He checks the sky but moves back to the eggs. The female flies in at 13:05 and the male relinquishes. He lands on the ledge at 15:15 for ten minutes, then brings in some scraps at 17:30, and she leaves with them as he covers the eggs. She returns at 20:00 and remains until midnight.
2 Apr – the female flies out at 5:55 and the male takes over. She is back at 10:25 for the next changeover. She flies out at 14:50 returning after ten minutes. The male flies in at 18:15 and the female leaves. He flies out at 19:05 but is back ten minutes later. He flies out again at 19:30 and is replaced by the female who remains until midnight.
3 Apr – the male lands on the ledge at 3:15 and falls asleep, whilst the female remains on the eggs. He flies off at 6:05. She takes a short flight at 8:00, no doubt looking for the male, and quickly returns to the eggs. The male returns to take over at 9:20. The female Is back at 13:20 and the male leaves. She flies out at 19:25 and he lands for a very late incubation session. She flies in at 21:10 and takes over for the rest of the evening, whilst he sits on the ledge and falls asleep until leaving at 23:45.
4 Apr –the male arrives at 4:00 then takes over incubation at 5:55. He flies off at 8:25 and she returns to resume incubation. The male is back at 11:35 but the female remains tight so sits on the ledge. He takes a short flight at 11:45 and the female follows calling loudly – most probably an intruder in the area. He is back a few minutes later and takes over. She returns at 14:45 and he reluctantly allows her to replace him. He is back at 17:30 and she flies out. She lands at 18:50 and sits on the ledge until taking over at 19:05. He remains on the ledge until 19:40 when he flies off. He returns to the ledge at 21:55 and remains there until midnight.
5 Apr – the male remains, mainly sleeping, on the ledge from the previous night until flying off at 5:45. The female looks out from the ledge briefly at 7:05, no doubt looking for the male, then flies out at 8:55 as the male arrives for the first changeover of the day. She does not return until 14:20. She remains until 19:40 when she flies out and the male sits on the eggs, and for the first time this season remains until midnight. Note: This is the first time the male has incubated for more than 40% of the time this year, at 9 hours and 45 minutes.
6 Apr – the male remains on the eggs from the previous evening until 1:05 when the female flies in to take over. The male returns at 4:40 until 5:55. The female remains on the eggs until 11:45 when she flies out looking for the male, but quickly returns. She runs to the ledge at 12:35 as the male flies in with a Feral Pigeon meal. She takes it and flies off and he incubates the eggs until she returns at 15:25. The male lands at 18:55 but the female ignores him, and he leaves ten minutes later, and she remains on the eggs until midnight.
7 Apr – the male flies in at 5:40 for the first changeover of the day. The female is back at 7:30 with a full crop and resumes incubation five minutes later. The male lands at 10:30 but quickly leaves. He is back at 14:00 for the next change until the female returns at 18:40. The male brings in Feral Pigeon prey at 19:55 and flies off. She feeds for five minutes, stashes the meal then returns to the eggs and incubates until midnight.
8 Apr – the male flies in at 5:05 and the female leaves immediately to allow him to take over. She is back at 6:35 and sits on the ledge. She then spots the stashed pigeon from the previous evening and feeds. The male flies out and she leaves with her meal at 6:55 but quickly returns. The male is back at 10:50 and replaces the female. She returns and resumes at 14:55. She flies out at 16:30 and the male lands a few minutes later to take over but he leaves after 25 minutes and she flies in to resume. She flies out at 19:20 just as the male lands with a pigeon meal. She is back a few moments later and snatches the meal from him and he leaves. She flies out with the pigeon a few moments later. She does not return until 20:20. This means the eggs have been left unattended for an hour. Whilst this is not an issue as the ambient temperature was quite high, it is unusual for the eggs to be left defenceless for so long. The female was obviously expecting the male to take over when she left but he didn’t get the message. She remains on the eggs until midnight.
9 Apr – WATCH DAY – the male arrives at 5:35 and the female flies for the first changeover of the day. He leaves at 8:00 and she replaces him five minutes later. When we arrive at 9:30, the male is sitting on a spire cross. At 10:15, the male calls loudly and takes off as one of three passing Buzzards gets too close for comfort. The female walks to the ledge and watches as he dive-bombs the Buzzard out of the territory. He returns to the cross with a shake of triumph and a chortle. The female returns to the eggs after five minutes. The male lands on the ledge at 12:25 and takes over from the female a few minutes later. She sits on a cross on the spire until 13:00 when she flies eastwards. The male flies out at 14:50 and the female returns. The male is back on the ledge at 16:35, but the female ignores him and continues incubation. He flies off at 17:00 and returns at 19:45 for ten minutes. He is back again at 17:45 and this time the female allows him to take over and for the second time this season remains until midnight.