JULY 2021
1 July – the female remains in the box from the previous evening until 4:20 when she moves to the ledge. She flies off at 5:00 returning at 6:40 with a full crop and a half-eaten Feral Pigeon which she stashes in the box. A few moments later, the male arrives and steals the stash and flies off; the female follows. She is back at 12:45 and goes into the box and dozes until 15:25 when she moves to the ledge, flying off five minutes later. The male arrives with a full crop at 15:40 and sits on the ledge until 16:20 when he goes into the box when the female flies in. After a few minutes bonding, he moves back to the ledge. He flies off at 16:55 and the female moves to the ledge where she remains until 18:00. She returns at 22:15, goes into the box and falls asleep.
2 July – the female moves from the box to the ledge at 4:05 and falls asleep. She flies off an hour later and returns with the male who goes into the box. There is calling between the pair, then they fly off together ten minutes later still calling loudly – possibly at an intruder. The male is soon back and sits on the ledge until 5:55. The female returns at 12:55 with a fresh Feral Pigeon which she plucks and eats on the platform. She stashes the remains by a column at 13:50 and sits on the ledge with a full crop. She grabs hold of the stash when the male flies in at 14:20 – no doubt learning of his habit of stealing any food left around! He sits back on the ledge and the size of his crop would suggest that he has already fed. She takes the stash into the box and stands on it to protect her meal! For the next three hours there is an uneasy truce as he sits on the ledge, and she stands on her pigeon with the central columns between the pair. He flies off at 17:40 and she resumes eating her meal, stashing the remaining morsels at 18:25. She sits on the ledge with a very full crop until 21:40 when the male arrives. He goes into the box but flies off after ten minutes, whilst she remains on the ledge until midnight at least.
3 July – the female remains on the ledge until 5:30 when the male arrives, and they both go into the box. She quickly returns to the ledge and there is calling between the pair for ten minutes and then intermittently until the male leaves at 6:00; the female follows soon after. He is back at 7:55 and sits on the ledge until flying off at 8:50. The male flies in again at 13:20 and sits on the ledge preening. He flies off at 15:55 returning briefly at 16:30 and is back 20 minutes later. He is off again at 19:25 and back an hour later. He flies off at 21:45 and returns with the female a few minutes later. He goes into the box but soon leaves with the female calling loudly. She settles on the ledge watching the revellers in the streets below celebrating and then falls asleep.
4 July – the female flies off at 00:35 and returns at 1:20 with Little Grebe prey. She plucks and stashes it by a column 20 minutes later and returns to the ledge. The male arrives at 2:00 and she takes hold of her meal and calls loudly. He leaves quickly and she re-stashes her meal. She flies off at 3:50 and returns a few minutes later with the male. She grabs and protects her meal, so he flies off and she starts to eat stashing what little was left at 4:40. The male arrives a few moments later but is too slow, as the female grabs her stash. He leaves and she eats a bit more, then sits on the ledge at 5:10. He is back at 5:15 and she leaves her stash open. He hops over and is just about to snatch it when the female forces him away and he flies off. She stands on her meal and mantles it before leaving with it. The male flies in immediately and looks for the meal but it has gone. After searching the box, he moves to the ledge, starts to preen, then dozes. He goes into the box when the female returns at 9:05 fling off a few minutes later as she sits on the ledge. He is back in the box at 10:45 and eventually falls asleep; the female remains on the ledge. They do not move until 13:15 when the female decides she wants to go into the box; the male goes to the ledge. She then moves to the opposite ledge and calls loudly to/at the male. He flies off at 14:05 and she follows 20 minutes later. The male is back at 14:45 and sits on the ledge for the next four hours. The female then flies in at 21:20 and falls asleep on the ledge remaining until midnight at least.
5 July – the female flies off at 5:00 and is replaced by the male. He leaves at 6:50. A pair of Woodpigeon visit the platform at 7:25 and spend ten minutes pecking at the stones. The male returns briefly at 8:20. The pair are back at 8:35 with the female carrying a half-eaten Feral Pigeon. She flies off with it a few minutes later and the male follows. He is back at 9:25 with a full crop having obviously fed. She lands a few minutes later, also well fed, and goes into the box, makes a scrape and moves some stones around. They preen and doze, at one point the female lying in the stones. At 10:55, she moves to the ledge, and he goes into the box, moving to the opposite ledge five minutes later. The male flies off at 12:50 returning ten minutes later. He is off again at 14:05, flying into the box at 14:35 where he remains dozing until 17:20 when he flies out, the female following a few minutes later. There is a 30 minute visit by a Woodpigeon between 18:50 and 19:20, before the male returns at 19:35. He moves to the box when the female lands at 20:10, then sits on the ledge when she visits the box before she moves to the opposite ledge at 20:25; he flies off five minutes later. She falls asleep on the ledge at 21:50.
6 July – the female has a late-night bathe at 00:05. During a heavy rain shower she opens her wings and tilts them to get wet and lets the rain run down onto her back. She also seems to drink in the rain. She returns to her dozing after 15 minutes. At 4:10, she flies off and is replaced by the male at 4:35 but he leaves at 5:40. He is back at 6:05 and remains on the ledge until 9:20. He is back half an hour later but leaves after ten minutes, returning at 10:15. The female arrives at 11:35 and the pair go into the box. He flies out after five minutes and she remains on the platform looking out over the city until 12:50 when something catches her eye in the sky and she quickly leaves. The male lands on the platform calling loudly, then moves to the ledge at 13:00. He flies off at 13:55 returning at 15:30 and is off again at 16:25. The female flies in ten minutes later and is joined by the male at 17:00. There are a few moments of bonding in the box before he flies out and she returns to the ledge. He is back at 18:35 and she moves to the box but he flies off when she walks up to him and she leaves a few moments later. They are back at 18:55, the female on the ledge and the male in the box hiding behind the central column; they both doze. He flies out at 21:40 and she remains on the ledge until 23:10.
7 July – the male flies in at 1:55 and sits on the ledge. He is displaced by the female at 3:25 who falls asleep until 5:00 when she flies off. The male is back at 6:15 but leaves five minutes later when the female lands with partially eaten Feral Pigeon prey. She stashes her meal by a column and leaves. He is back at 7:25 but ignores the stashed meal as he already looks well fed. He goes into the box at 10:05 when the female returns. He goes to grab the pigeon, but the female snatches it from him. She stands on the platform protecting her meal and at 11:00 starts to eat. She flies off with the leftovers at 11:50 and the male soon follows. The pair are back an hour later, the male in the box, the female on the ledge with a full crop. The male flies out at 16:35 and returns to the box at 17:15. They swap places ten minutes later but the male flies off when the female approaches. The female leaves at 18:45 and does not return this evening.
8 July – the male flies in at 1:30, falls asleep and remains on the ledge until 5:45 when he flies off. He is back at 11:20, looking well fed with a full crop. At 14:35, he goes into the box when the female arrives with a fresh Feral Pigeon. She calls loudly as he hides behind the central columns. She starts plucking ten minutes later and then sets about eating her meal. At 15:05, she takes some time out to call at the male again and mantles her prey, but he remains tucked in the corner of the box sleeping. He eventually leaves at 15:30 and she continues eating. She has finished an hour later and stashes the remains by a column, sits on the ledge and dozes. The male is back at 18:20 and she goes into the box. However, as soon as he moves towards the stash, she snatches it and stands over it, calling loudly. She protects her meal until he flies off at 18:35. She re-stashes it and then returns to the ledge. The male is back at 19:25 and the female, as usual, moves into the box. This time he goes immediately for the stash and snatches it and flies out before the female can react. She does not follow but returns to the ledge, remaining until at least midnight.
9 July – the female leaves the ledge at 01:35. The male flies into the box at 11:00 remaining until 13:35 when he moves to the ledge. He flies off at 16:20 when the female arrives with another fresh Feral Pigeon. Despite the male having left, she holds onto her meal calling loudly for ten minutes before starting to pluck and feed. She finishes feeding and stashes the remains by a column at 18:30 and sits on the ledge with a full crop. At 19:20, she goes into the box as the male arrives. Quick as a flash he steals her meal before she can react and flies off. She watches him go but does not pursue and remains on the ledge until midnight.
10 July – the male flies into the box at 4:00 and the female calls loudly from the ledge. He leaves after a few minutes and she checks for stashed prey by the columns before returning to the ledge, then flying off at 4:55. The male is back at 6:50 and sits on the ledge preening. At 8:25, he flies off and returns a few moments later with the female. He leaves and she spends some time in the box, before moving to the ledge. He is back at 10:15 and she goes into the box but they quickly swap positions. She calls loudly and incessantly before dozing. He flies out at 12:20 and the female leaves at 13:40. The male is back on the ledge at 14:20 looking well fed. He leaves at 18:00 but is back on the ledge preening ten minutes later. At 21:30, he is forced into the box by the returning female and then leaves quickly. She settles on the ledge and falls asleep.
11 July – something flies above the female at 1:05 and after a few minutes she flies off. The male flies in at 2:45 and sits on the ledge until 6:00 when he goes into the box as the female arrives with fresh Feral Pigeon calling loudly until he leaves. She plucks and eats her meal on the platform and stashes the remains an hour later. The male flies in and tries to steal her prey but she grabs it before he can reach it. He sits on the ledge, and she flies off with her meal. He leaves 30 minutes later, returning at 8:45. He must have managed to steal the female’s food as he sits on the ledge with a full crop. He flies off at 13:00 and the female is back at 14:20, calling loudly. She goes into the box before moving to the ledge still looking well fed. At 17:20, she flies off. The male returns at 17:40 and remains on the ledge until 20:10. The female flies into the box five minutes later and is soon joined by the male but he leaves after a few moments bonding and she moves to the ledge. Something quickly attracts her attention, and she follows. A few moments later the pair are back in the box. The female then sits on the ledge whilst the male remains in the box until 21:15 when he takes a short flight. On his return, he lands heavily and goes into the box and the female follows for a bonding session. He flies off at 21:25 and the female sits on the ledge until midnight at least.
12 July – the female flies off at 2:40. The male lands at 4:50 and falls asleep on the ledge. He flies off at 6:30 and the female returns at 7:25 and she falls asleep. At 7:50, she spends a few minutes in the box, then returns to the ledge flying off at 8:25. The male is back at 10:05 and stands on the platform looking over the city until 12:45 when he leaves. The female flies in with fresh Feral Pigeon prey at 14:50. She is panting and out of breath from the chase and sits on the ledge for ten minutes before starting to pluck her meal. The male flies into the box at 15:10 and the female stops feeding and calls loudly at him. She resumes feeding at 16:00 despite the male still being in the box and turns her back on him to protect her meal. She finishes feeding at 16:50 but stands on the remains and calls loudly. She flies off with the remains at 17:05 and the male quickly follows. He is back at 20:00 but does not look to have fed and so pecks at some scraps on the platform before settling on the ledge. He flies off at 23:25.
13 July – the male returns to the ledge at 3:25 and falls asleep. He goes into the box briefly at 6:20 anticipating the arrival of the female but flies out soon after, returning at 10:20. He is off ten minutes later and is replaced by the female carrying another Feral Pigeon meal. She soon starts to pluck and eat her prey. She has finished at 11:05 and stashes the remains by a column and flies off. The male immediately arrives and picks the stash and feeds on it on the platform. He stashes the remains 40 minutes later and flies off. The male is back at 17:20, looks at the stashed prey and grabs it but before he can do anything with it, the female flies in, snatches it from him and the pair fly off. She returns a few minutes later and re-stashes the prey and sits on the ledge. At 19:05, the female grabs the stash as the male flies in; he quickly leaves. She feeds on the pigeon for 15 minutes before stashing the prey once again. She flies off at 19:35 and the male flies in, sees his opportunity and gets hold of the remains. He feeds for 30 minutes until there are just scraps left; he flies off. The female returns at 23:50 to settle on the ledge.
14 July – the female remains on the ledge until 4:30 when she grabs the remains of yesterday’s meal and picks at it. She goes into the box when the male arrives at 5:00. He joins her and there are a few moments of bonding before she moves to the ledge and then flies off; he sits on the ledge dozing. At 7:10, he moves into the box anticipating the arrival of the female. She does not fly in until 7:25 and he flies out. She remains in the box for 30 minutes before moving to the ledge. She is back in the box at 8:40, moving to the ledge at 10:30 and flying off ten minutes later. Immediately, the male flies into the box remaining until 11:15 when he is joined by the female. They bond for a few moments then he moves to the ledge, flying off at 12:25. She remains in the box until 16:15 when she flies out. The male is back on the ledge at 17:10 until 18:50. He is back ten minutes later calling loudly, leaving after just a few minutes. He returns at 19:10 and in the box briefly at 19:55. He settles on the ledge again until 20:45 when the female returns and he goes into the box, then flies out. She picks at scraps on the platform then sits on the ledge. The male flies into the box at 21:50 and there is calling between the pair. He flies out at 22:10 and she falls asleep on the ledge.
15 July – the male flies into the box at 4:30 whilst the female remains on the ledge until 4:45 when she flies off and the male takes her place. He leaves at 6:20 and she returns 15 minutes later with fresh Feral Pigeon prey. He flies into the box, and she mantles her meal and calls loudly. She starts plucking and eating ten minutes later. He watches from the box until she has finished eating at 7:55 when he snatches the stashed item and flies off. She watches him go then settles on the ledge with a full crop until 9:25 when she moves into the box and falls asleep. She stays in the box for the next four hours then moves to the platform. The male flies in at 14:30 and she moves to the ledge whilst he goes into the box. She flies off a few minutes later and he follows soon after. The female returns at 16:10 but leaves ten minutes later. Neither of the pair return to the platform this evening.
16 July – the male lands at 4:20 and settles on the ledge. He goes into the box at 6:40 on the arrival of the female. There are a few moments of bonding before he flies out and after searching the usual stash places for food, she moves to the ledge, then flies off at 7:15. The male returns at 9:00 and dozes in the box. He is joined by the female at 10:10. They both doze in the box until the male moves to the ledge at 11:45. They remain like this until the female moves to the opposite ledge at 14:00 and flies off ten minutes later. The male flies off at 14:45 and the female returns at 15:25 and lies on the platform until flying off at 16:35. Neither bird return this evening.
17 July – the male flies in at 4:40 and after checking the box, sits on the ledge preening; he flies off at 6:00. The female arrives with fresh Feral Pigeon prey at 6:15 and starts to pluck and feed on it. The male flies into the box at 6:35 and the female mantles the prey and calls loudly at the male. She continues feeding at 7:00 with the male secreted out of view behind the central columns. He checks her progress at 7:20 but is too early and she calls loudly again, so he returns to the box. At 8:00, she flies off with her meal and he follows. He is back on the ledge briefly at 8:20 and returns at 10:10. He shades himself from the heat of the sun and goes into the box. He is back on the ledge at 12:10 and moves into the box at 14:00 when the female flies in. He returns to the ledge whilst she sits in the corner of the box preening and flies off at 14:40. At 14:50, she lies down in the box with her head tucked between the two central columns – possibly this area is slightly cooler? She remains like this for 50 minutes, stands up for a few minutes, then resumes the position. She remains lying in the stone sleeping with her head by the central columns until 18:35. She preens for the next 45 minutes, then resumes her position before moving to the ledge at 19:50, flying off five minutes later.
18 July – the male arrives at 7:10 and goes into the box. The female flies in at 10:00 and goes into the box pushing the male moves to the ledge. There is a lot of loud calling by the female and the male moves to obscure himself beside the central columns. He is panting in the heat and has his wings open trying to capture some breeze to keep himself cool. He goes into the box at 10:25 but is forced out by the female and so flies off. She moves to the ledge but returns to the relative cool of the shade in the box at 10:40. She preens and dozes until moving to the ledge at 11:55. At 12:20, she lies in the stones on the platform and at 13:40 she stands and preens until 14:15 when she lies on the platform again but flies off ten minutes later. The male is back at 15:00 and sits on the ledge until 17:55 when he flies off. The pair return at 20:10, the female carrying fresh Feral Pigeon prey. She mantles her meal and starts to pluck and eat ten minutes later watched by the male from the box. He checks her progress at 20:45 but returns to the box. After feeding, she stashes the remains by a column at 21:10 and moves to the ledge. No sooner has she stood on the ledge than the male rushes forward, grabs the remains and flies off. She watches him go but sits on the ledge contented with a full crop and falls asleep.
19 July – the female remains on the ledge until the male arrives at 4:30. She moves into the box calling loudly as he stands on the platform. She is back on the ledge a few minutes later and he goes into the box. She flies off at 4:55 and he settles on the ledge until 7:30 when he leaves. He is back at 10:35 and goes into the box. The female returns at 13:10 and takes his place; he moves to the ledge. She walks towards him calling loudly at 13:30 and he flies off. She moves to the ledge 15 minutes later and flies off at 16:10 to be replaced by the male who leaves at 17:00.
20 July – the male arrives at 4:50 but leaves just ten minutes later. He is back at 6:20 with a full crop and falls asleep on the ledge. He moves into the box at 7:25 and is joined by the female at 10:20 he soon flies out. She settles in the shade behind the central column and at 12:05 lies down in the stones by the column. She stands up to preen at 15:10, then flies off 15 minutes later.
21 July – the male flies into the box at 5:00. He moves to the ledge at 5:40 and flies off 15 minutes later. He is back at 7:05 for ten minutes and on the ledge again at 8:55 for 20 minutes. The female flies in at 9:25 with very fresh Feral Pigeon prey. She plucks and feeds on it on the platform and is joined by the male at 9:55. He goes into the box, and she calls loudly until he is hidden by the central column. She drags her prey into the box at 10:10 and stands protecting it. She continues eating 20 minutes later. She drops a small morsel at 11:10 and it is immediately snapped up by the male. She in turn flies off with her meal and he cleans up the scraps. He sits on the ledge at 11:20. The female returns at 11:30 and the pair go into the box. He then moves to the ledge whilst she remains in the box, lying down in the stones. He flies off at 11:55 but she remains in the box until 18:30 when she flies out.
22 July – the male flies into the box at 5:15, then moves to the ledge, flying off ten minutes later. The female flies into the box at 9:40 and dozes. The male joins her at 11:30 and there is an uneasy truce as they both shelter from the sun in the shade of the box. He is forced to the platform by the female at 11:45 and moves to the ledge an hour later. She checks the box for stashed food at 14:00 and starts calling loudly when there is none. After then minutes she is back in the box preening; he sits on the ledge facing away trying not to catch her eye. She moves to the ledge at 16:20 and he immediately goes into the box. They fly out together in tandem after she notices something above her; an intruder perhaps. She is back for a few minutes at 17:00 but neither bird returns later this evening.
23 July – the female flies in with fresh Feral Pigeon prey at 5:40 and immediately starts to pluck and feed. The male flies into the box 30 minutes later and she stop feeding for 15 minutes, then feeds again until 5:45 when she stands on the pigeon protecting her meal. The male moves forward an hour later to see if there was an opportunity for a brief snack. He then moves to the ledge, but she will not give up her prey, so he moves back into the box at 8:10. She starts feeding again at 8:30 and he moves forward to watch the female ten minutes later, but she flies off with her meal. He follows a few moments later but is soon back in the box searching for the female or her meal and flies off when he finds nothing. She is back with the remnants of her meal at 9:05 and she stashes the remains by a column. The male flies in, sneaks behind her through the box and snatches the stash then flies off. She watches him go then moves into the box for ten minutes, then sits on the ledge briefly before flying off. He does not return until 20:20 when he checks the box and then leaves.
24 July – there was no activity caught on camera today.
25 July – the only activity of the day on camera is the female flying in at 13:35. She goes into the box until flying out at 14:00.
26 July – the pair fly in at 5:05. The male goes into the box whilst the female sits on the ledge calling loudly (again). They swap places five minutes later and he soon flies off. She walks to the ledge and watches him go, leaving at 5:25. The female returns at 11:20 and goes into the box to preen. Twenty minutes later, she lies in the stones with her feathers raised trying to keep cool and falls asleep. She remains there until 14:20 when she flies out calling loudly. The male returns at 20:30 and goes into the box. He is joined by the female with a full crop at 21:10 who goes into the box and he flies out. She moves to the ledge and remains until midnight at least.
27 July – the female remains sleeping on the ledge until 5:40 when she flies off. She is replaced by the male until 6:00 when he leaves. There is no further activity on camera today.
28 July – the male arrives at 5:45, goes into the box then moves to the ledge. He flies off at 6:30 when the female flies in with fresh Feral Pigeon prey. She immediately starts to pluck and feed. She has finished eating an hour later and stashes the remains by a column and flies off 15 minutes later. Surprisingly, the male does not come into retrieve the remains which means either that he has eaten well and does not need anything or is unaware that the female actually brought prey in. The pair return together at 15:05 but the male soon leaves as the female resumes feeding on the stash. There is nothing left but feather when she finishes eating at 16:25 and settles on the ledge. The male returns at 18:35 and goes into the box but flies out soon after. The female flies off 20 minutes later but is back after 15 minutes and goes into the box until 20:25 when she flies off again. she returns at 21:35 and remains on the ledge until midnight at least.
29 July – the female remains on the ledge from the previous evening and the male flies into the box at 2:30. He flies off at 5:05 and the female leaves 15 minutes later. The male returns to the ledge at 5:40 until 6:10. The pair fly in together at 7:20, the female carrying very fresh Feral Pigeon; the male goes into the box. The female stands protecting her prey, calling and does not start to feed until 7:50. At 8:00, the male walks to the ledge and the female mantles her meal and calls loudly. He returns to the box but she does not resume feeding. He walks to have another look at the progress at 8:50, but the female has still not resumed feeding and mantles her meal again and calls loudly. He sits on the ledge watching but she does not resume feeding until he flies off at 9:05. She stops eating at 10:05, then stashes the remains and sits on the ledge with a full crop. She moves into the shade of the box at 10:45 and dozes. The male flies in at 11:20 and quickly steals the stash. The female continues to doze in the box until 14:40 when she flies out. This is the last activity on camera today.
30 July – there was no activity today until 17:45 when the female flew in, picked up some scraps and watched the pigeons fly by. She leaves five minutes later and is replaced by the male who looks around the box before flying out. The female returns at 22:25 and settles on the ledge for the evening, falling asleep.
31 July – the female remains on the ledge sleeping until flying off at 5:45. Just over two minutes later she returns with fresh Feral Pigeon prey, preceded by the arriving male. He goes into the box whilst she mantles her meal and calls loudly at him. He flies out and she starts to pluck and feed. [of interest: 20 of the last 21 prey species caught on camera have been Feral Pigeon]. The male is back in the box at 6:30 but quickly leaves. The female continues feeding and finishes at 7:50 stashing the remains by a column. She flies off with a full crop a few minutes later and is immediately replaced by the male who finds the stash and starts to eat. He flies off with the remains at 8:25 as the female almost lands on top of him. She sits on the ledge looking well fed and dozes. She remains there until 16:05 when she walks onto the platform and picks at some scraps; surely, she cannot be hungry as her crop is still full. She looks around the box before returning to the ledge. The male flies in at 16:50 and she goes into the box. There is calling between the pair and after a few moments bonding, he flies out and she returns to the ledge. She flies off at 17:35 until 21:20 when she picks at scraps before settling on the ledge for the evening.