AUGUST 2022
1 Aug – the first activity is the arrival of the male at 12:25. He quickly checks the box, sits on the ledge, and leaves ten minutes later. TJC lands at 13:05 and preens and dozes on the ledge, remaining until 14:35. The female flies in with very fresh Feral Pigeon prey at 17:55 and is quickly followed by the male. He watches the female with her meal for 15 minutes. He then moves in and tries to snatch the meal from her! She mantles the pigeon but the male is undeterred and continues to tug at the pigeon. After a few moments, she relents and they both feed on the same meal. This is something I have not seen before – the female would normally be dominant and fend off the male, but this pair seem to have a slightly different relationship. They feed together for ten minutes, then the female moves to the ledge and watches the male feed! At 18:45, she decides he has had his fill, and she tries to grab the prey from him. He flies off with it and she feeds on scraps. She moves to the ledge at 18:55 and he joins her two hours later. The pair remain on the ledge for the rest of the evening.
2 Aug – the pair remain on opposite sides of the ledge until 6:05 when they fly off together. The male is back at 12:35 and sits on the ledge until 14:15. The female lands ten minutes later remaining until 15:20. She returns at 19:30 carrying fresh Feral Pigeon prey. She does not feed but protects it whilst sitting on the ledge. She is joined by the male at 20:40. He tries to steal her meal and initially she mantles it, but he persists and eventually manages to get a share before she forces him from the feed. He moves back to the ledge. He has another attempt at 21:15 and the female relinquishes and moves to the ledge leaving the male to feed. He flies off with the meal ten minutes later and returns at 21:35. They remain for the rest of the evening.
3 Aug – the pair remain on the ledge until 5:10 when the male moves into the box and is joined by the female. After a very brief bond, she quickly returns to the ledge, and he leaves. He flies into the box at 7:25 and is greeted by the female. She returns to the ledge whilst he picks at scraps in the box, makes a scrape and preens for ten minutes, then moves to the ledge. The female searches for scraps at 9:00, then returns to the ledge. The male flies off at 11:20 and the female goes into the box to sleep, returning to the ledge at 13:30. The male is back 20 minutes later, and the pair go into the box but the female leaves quickly. He flies off at 14:00. TJC arrives at 15:50 and remains on the ledge until 17:10. The female returns with very fresh Feral Pigeon prey at 20:00. The male lands on the ledge ten minutes later and joins in the plucking and feeding – there is an acceptance from the female. Five minutes later, TJC arrives and muscles in on the meal. The male retreats and there is a tug-o-war with the female. She lets TJC have the meal who drags it into the box. At 20:20, the female attempts to take the meal from TJC but the juvenile barges through the female and flies off with the pigeon. First the female, then the male search for scraps in the box, they return to the ledge. The male flies off at 21:05 whilst the female leaves 15 minutes later.
4 Aug – the female flies in at 4:20 and remains on the ledge until 6:35 when she leaves. The next activity is not until 13:40 when the male arrives, remaining until 15:00. He is back 55 minutes later but leaves after just ten minutes. He returns carrying very fresh Feral Pigeon prey at 17:05 and is quickly followed by TJC. He plucks the meal, but the juvenile soon snatches the pigeon and drags it into the box and feeds. The male flies off. TJC sits on the ledge well fed at 18:30 and falls asleep. The male returns at 20:35 and feeds on the pigeon remains despite TJC’s protestations. At 21:00, TJC steals the scraps the male is feeding on and forces him to fly out. The female lands five minutes later and picks at scraps but TJC pursues her around the box and forces her to leave at 21:15. TJC flies off ten minutes later.
A photograph of a juvenile seen at Cropston Reservoir at 9:30 on 4 August, would appear to be TJC. Barry Ingram said: “Despite numerous attempts, the corvids could not get the better of the juvenile Peregrine.”
5 Aug – the male arrives at 7:20. He checks the box out then flies off at 7:35. TJC arrives at 11:30 and sits on the ledge with a full crop. It remains dozing until 14:55 when it flies off. The juvenile returns at 15:25 and remains on the ledge for two hours, then flies off. There is no further activity today.
6 Aug – the first, and only, activity of the day was the arrival of TJC at 15:10 remaining on the ledge for 25 minutes.
7 Aug – TJC arrives at 8:55 and sits on the ledge with a full crop. It finds some shade in the box at 9:55 just as the male flies in. He looks around the box then flies out. TJC watches him go then finds a bit of shade again. It lies on the platform until 11:20 when it flies off. TJC is back between 13:05 and 15:20. The next activity is when the female arrives at 23:15 remaining for the rest of the evening.
8 Aug – the female goes into the box at 00:45 and falls asleep. TJC arrives on the ledge at 3:25 but leaves five minutes later. The female moves to the ledge at 5:30 and flies off. The male arrives at 5:45, checks out the box then sits on the ledge until 7:00 when he flies off. TJC is back at 13:25 and remains on the ledge until 15:10. The male returns with Feral Pigeon prey at 16:25 which he plucks and feeds on. The female flies in at 17:00 and tries to snatch the meal from him. There is a short tug-o-war, but the male retains his meal. The female sits on the ledge whilst he feeds. She has another attempt 15 minutes later but again, the male repels the attempt, and the female returns to the ledge. He has finished feeding ten minutes later, and she takes over the remains; he flies off. She feeds until 17:35, stashes the remains then sits on the ledge. The male flies into the box at 19:15, and moves to the ledge a few minutes later. At 19:25, he is knocked off by the incoming juvenile that snatches the stashed pigeon and flies out with it. The female remains on the ledge until moving into the box at 23:05 where she stays for the rest of the evening.
9 Aug – the female moves from the box to the ledge at 1:30. The male flies into the box at 5:20 and is greeted by the female. He picks up a small scrap of food which she snatches from him. He sits on the ledge whilst she feeds, then sits opposite him. He goes into the box at 5:45, checks for more scraps, then returns to the ledge and flies off at 6:00. TJC arrives an hour later, and the female flies out; TJC follows. The juvenile is back briefly at 14:30. The female returns at 16:50 and falls asleep on the ledge. At 19:15, something attracts her attention in the sky above and she flies out. Immediately, TJC lands carrying fresh Feral Pigeon prey and is followed by the female. She steals the meal from the juvenile and starts to pluck and feed. TJC sits on the ledge with a full crop already looking well fed. The female takes her prey into the box and continues feeding. She falls asleep on her meal 15 minutes later. She resumes feeding after ten minutes, then once again stands on her meal and dozes. TJC is also asleep on the ledge until 20:50 when it flies off. The female keeps hold of her meal until 23:35 when she stashes it and sits on the ledge, remaining until midnight.
10 Aug – the female goes into the box at 1:15. She moves onto the platform at 3:55 and checks her stashed meal, then returns to the box. She moves back to her meal on the platform at 5:15. She starts feeding at 5:25 and is quickly joined by TJC – she mantles her meal. She allows TJC to take her meal ten minutes later but rather than feed, TJC calls protectively at the female, flying out with the meal at 5:55. The female flies out at 7:10. The next activity is when the male flies in at 13:30 quickly followed by the female. They go into the box and the female falls asleep. The male soon flies out but the female remains in the box trying to keep cool until the male returns at 15:55. He goes into the box and she moves to the ledge; he quickly leaves. The female remains on the ledge until 17:05 when she walks into the box. The male lands briefly at 17:40 and the female moves back on the ledge where she remains for the rest of the evening.
11 Aug – the female remains on the ledge until 5:40 when she flies off. The male lands at 9:50 and goes into the box at 10:25. TJC lands at 10:40 and the male flies out; TJC quickly follows. The female is back at 15:10 and sits in the box looking out. She moves to the ledge briefly then returns to the box. She flies out at 19:35 and there is no further activity.
12 Aug – the male flies in at 6:40 with fresh Feral Pigeon prey which he plucks and feeds on the platform. The female arrives at 7:00 and snatches his meal from him. She does not feed but stands on the pigeon. He recovers his meal at 7:50 and resumes feeding. She tries to take it back from him at 8:15 and he flies off with it; she follows. She is back a few minutes later without the meal and goes into the box and feeds on scraps. She remains in the box and the male flies in at 14:45 until 17:40. She moves to the ledge at 20:20 and then on to the platform. At 23:35, the male arrives carrying Teal prey. The female tries to take it from him and he lets go. It is still alive and runs into the back of the box. The male flies off. She sits on the platform whilst the Teal remains in the box until midnight at least.
13 Aug – the Teal makes a break to safety at 1:50 whilst the female sleeps on the platform. She moves into the box at 3:00. She greets the male when he arrives at 5:55 and goes into the box; he leaves a few minutes later. TJC lands at 8:25 and calls to the female who ignores it and flies off; TJC soon follows. The male flies in at 12:15 looking well fed, and leaves at 14:05. The female is back at 16:25 and goes into the box. The male lands at 17:50, checks out the box, sits on the ledge for a few moments, then leaves. The female remains in the box for the rest of the evening.
14 Aug – the female remains in the box throughout the day – she is looking unwell. The male arrives at 7:40 and sits on the ledge for ten minutes. There are no more visits from the male or TJC today.
15 Aug – the female remains on the platform until 1:45 when she falls off trying to scratch herself. Her body is found below the platform later in the morning. The male arrives at 5:15 and remains for 15 minutes. TJC arrives at 11:55 remaining until 15:00. There is no further activity on camera.
16 Aug – the juvenile flies in at 5:10 and sits on the ledge for 15 minutes. The male arrives at 7:05 but leaves ten minutes later. TJC is back at 9:30 and appears to be showing some of the symptoms that the female had a few days earlier. Its left eye is mostly closed, and it is frequently scratching the neck. Its head looks too heavy for it to control. At 15:45, TJC walks around the box looking for food, then returns to the ledge. Its eyes are closed most of the time. It flies out and hour later having spent over seven hours on the ledge. There was no further activity today.
Note: We had become concerned about the health of the adult female who was spending more and more time in the box and didn’t appear to be feeding particularly well, despite the opportunities. She was becoming lethargic and very sleepy. Whilst initially this was considered to be due to the extreme temperatures we have been having, her posture was beginning to look strange and unnatural. Unfortunately, she fell from the platform in the early hours of 15 August. Her body has been found and will be collected by DEFRA to determine the cause. We have had notification that there is an outbreak of Avian Influenza in the city, and may be identified as the cause. This is yet another dramatic twist in the history of the Leicester Peregrines, but it is only through the monitoring of sites like ours that show how precarious the life of a Peregrine is. Our fingers are crossed that both the male and juvenile TJC will remain healthy.
17 Aug – the male lands briefly at 7:15. He looks to have fed which is a good sign. He checks out the box then flies off. There is no more activity today. Unfortunately, we were notified that juvenile TJC had been found dead near the LRI and De Montfort University. The body was collected by the RSPCA and is awaiting collection by DEFRA.
18 Aug – the first activity was the male arriving ay 16:15. He looks to have fed well and sits on the ledge. Currently, he is not displaying any symptoms. He checks the box at 17:55 before returning to the ledge and flying off. He is back on the ledge at 21:15. At 22:10, he coughs up a pellet indicating that he has been feeding. He remains until midnight at least.
19 Aug – the male falls asleep until 1:00 when he wakens and watches the sky. He flies off 15 minutes later. He is back at 2:10 and falls asleep. He is awake at 5:30 and preens for 20 minutes, then flies off. He returns at 11:00 and goes into the box at 12:15 for 15 minutes, then returns to the ledge. He flies off at 13:15. He is back at 16:35 and his demeanour would suggest that there is another Peregrine, probably a female, in the area. He goes into the box and calls submissively. He watches the sky and calls loudly and flies off a few minutes later. The male brings in fresh Feral Pigeon prey at 19:00. He plucks and feeds until 19:45 when he stashes the remains in the box. He sits on the ledge with a full crop, then flies off at 20:20.
20 Aug – the male lands at 5:30. He sits on the ledge until 7:40 when he goes into the box and feeds on the stashed pigeon. He is back on the ledge at 8:15 well fed, then flies off. He is back at 9:30 still sporting a full crop. He remains on the ledge until 15:35 when something in the sky attracts his attention and he flies off. He returns at 16:40 and goes into the box ten minutes later to feed on the remains of the pigeon. He has finished feeding at 17:25 and flies out.
21 Aug – the male arrives at 5:30, sits on the ledge preening, then goes into the box at 6:00 where he makes a scrape in the stones. He flies out at 6:05. A pair of Stock Dove arrive at 7:25 and pick in the stones for 15 minutes. The male is back briefly at 10:05 and is on the ledge again at 14:15, remaining until 15:30. There is no further activity on camera.
22 Aug – the male flies in with very fresh Feral Pigeon prey at 6:35. He takes it into the box where he plucks and feeds. He has finished an hour later, stashes the remains, and flies out. The male was seen by one of our regular viewers sitting on a Cathedral cross at 9:45 looking well fed. In the box, Stock Doves were feeding on seed left behind by previous pigeons. The male is back at 13:05 and sits on the ledge until 15:30 when he goes into the box to feed on the stashed pigeon. He is back on the ledge at 16:00 after feeding well, then flies off. There is no further activity on camera.
23 Aug – the male flies in at 5:10. He finds the remains of yesterday’s pigeon at 5:35 and feeds. He has finished at 6:20 and sits on the ledge, then flies off. The two Stock Dove are back at 8:00 for ten minutes. The male is back on the ledge at 12:45 then at 13:00 picks at the remains of the pigeon. He flies off 20 minutes later. There is no further activity today.
24 Aug – the male arrives with very fresh Feral Pigeon prey at 7:15. He has finished feeding an hour later, stashes the remains and flies off. He does not return until 18:10 when he sits on the ledge for 15 minutes before going into the box to retrieve the stashed pigeon and flies out at. There is no further activity today.
25 Aug – the male flies in at 7:20 in a manner that seems he is being pursued. He looks out from the box, then moves to the ledge. He is back in the box a few minutes later, then flies out at 7:35. He returns at 9:25 with fresh Feral Pigeon prey. He takes it into the box and plucks and feeds, then stashes it at 10:15 and flies out. There was no further activity on camera today.
26 Aug – the male lands briefly at 7:25. He is back at 9:05 and sits on the ledge with a full crop, then goes into the box. Despite looking well fed, he picks up the stashed pigeon from yesterday and feeds. He stashes the remains at 9:30 and flies out. He is back at 16:35 and goes into the box five minutes later. He feeds again on the stashed pigeon until 17:15 when he flies out. There is no further activity today.
27 Aug – a wet and bedraggled male flies in at 6:45 but leaves after ten minutes. He is back at 8:35 and goes into the box but leaves a few minutes later. He flies into the box briefly at 11:15 and again at 11:20, 11:25 and 11:30. He is back at 12:40 and sits on the platform looking high into the sky and leaves after five minutes. He returns briefly at 16:20. There is no further activity today.
28 Aug – The male arrives at 7:05 but soon leaves. He is back in the box briefly at 7:50, then sits on the ledge from 8:15 for 15 minutes. He is back at 11:05 and goes into the box, returning to the ledge at 11:30. He is back in the box at 12:45 and makes a scrape in the stones, moving to the ledge five minutes later and then flies out at 13:30. He is back again at 16:15 and during the next 30 minutes makes four sorties to/from the box. This would seem to indicate that there is another, possibly female, Peregrine in the area (trying to woo?). There is no further activity today.
29 Aug – the male arrives at 5:15 and sits on the ledge until 6:00 when he goes into the box, flying out at 6:25. He is back in the box at 6:40 for ten minutes, returns briefly at 7:00 and again at 7:25 leaving 15 minutes later. He flies into the box at 7:50 for ten minutes and again briefly at 8:25. Five minutes later he returns with very fresh Feral Pigeon prey and is followed by a Magpie which lands on the ledge that refuses to leave and picks in the stones for ten minutes before flying off. He plucks and feeds on the pigeon then stashes it and flies out at 8:50. He is back at 9:00 for five minutes, and at 12:25 for 15 minutes. He is on the ledge again at 14:00, then into the box where he feeds on the stashed pigeon until 14:25 when he flies off. He is straight into the box at 16:55 leaving at 17:10. He returns at 18:30 and goes into the box, flying out 20 minutes later. He is back five minutes later carrying Feral Pigeon prey when he takes into the box and is on the ledge after feeding at 19:20 and flying off.
30 Aug – the male flies in at 5:00 and sits on the ledge for 40 minutes then moves to the platform calling. He flies off at 6:00. During the next three hours he visits the platform briefly at least seven times – there appears to be a pattern in his visits, trying to attract a female in? He is back again at 9:15 for 15 minutes, then makes numerous sorties over the next two hours. At 11:15 he arrives and is quickly followed by a NEW FEMALE – her first visit to the platform. They go into the box and there is a brief bonding session. She flies off at 11:25 but he remains in the box until flying off at 11:35 quickly returning with the female. For the rest of the day the pair come and go from the box and are still bonding until 20:25. There is no further activity thereafter.
31 Aug – the male lands on the platform at 1:20 then sits on the ledge and falls asleep. He goes into the box at 5:20 as something disturbs him, probably the female. He returns to the ledge and is back in the box at 6:00 when the female lands. There is a brief period of bonding then he moves to the ledge and flies off. She follows a few minutes later. The pair return at 6:20 for a short bonding session. She flies off as he moves to the platform and looks out, then takes a short flight at 6:45 and leaves at 6:50. The pair return together at 7:05 and go into the box for more bonding. He flies off five minutes later and she quickly follows. He is back at 7:55 for ten minutes, and at 9:45 for five minutes when he makes a scrape in the stones. The pair are back in the box at 11:45 for five minutes more bonding; they fly off together. They are back bonding again at 13:55. The male moves to the ledge after a few minutes, and flies off. The female watches from the platform and follows five minutes later. He returns at 15:05 and goes into the box and leaves 25 minutes later but is soon back followed by the female. They go into the box but leave quickly, returning at 17:20 for five minutes. The pair are back bonding in the box briefly at 19:55. He returns to the box at 20:15 for five minutes, then moves to the ledge where he remains until 21:30.