Peregrine Falcons first nested on Derby Cathedral in 2006. Three web cameras now let you monitor their progress, day or night, all year round.
During last year's breeding season our cameras and "blog" brought all the action and updates to over half a million visitors.
(If you then only see a rotating "image loading" symbol, follow this link to download Flash Player)
Follow this external link to our Peregrine "Blog" for all the latest news from the Peregrine Project Team.
Main News:
Two birds were successfully raised in 2009. The 2010 season is underway. World first for Derby's webcams: video proof that peregrines hunt at night!
Background
Derby lies in the centre of England, and the ancient stone tower of its cathedral dates back over 470 years.
Records suggest that peregrine falcons have roosted and hunted from the tower at many times over the centuries. But then in the mid-20th century their numbers crashed suddenly. They were virtually wiped out from many parts of Britain and the world.
A pesticide called DDT was found to be the culprit. It caused thinning of their eggshells which then cracked during incubation. Only after DDT was banned, and peregrines given legal protection, did their numbers slowly start to recover. They began to return to their former haunts.
In 2006 a young pair showed strong signs of wanting to breed on Derby Cathedral, but there were no suitable ledges. So we built and installed a wooden nest (position shown ringed in the adjacent picture). Three young birds were successfully raised. The following year (2007) staff from Derby City Council's Museum Service installed two webcameras and began a Blog to keep everyone up-to-date with events. A third camera was installed on top of the tower in 2008. It is now possible to watch peregrines all year round at Derby, whether feeding and roosting on the tower, or raising young on the nest ledge from March through to June. Infrared vision lets you watch them at night, too!
The Peregrine Project is a joint partnership between Derby Cathedral, the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust and Derby Museum & Art Gallery. Follow this link for more technical information on how the web cameras work.
Further links on this page:
- Watching Peregrines in Derby - for free
- Pictures and videos
- Further Peregrine Falcon Information
- Links to other peregrine webcams around the world
- Project Partners and acknowledgements
- Supporters (how to make donation)
1. Watching Peregrines in Derby - for free
Adult peregrines can be seen on most days around the tower at Derby's Cathedral Green, or perched high up on the blue lettering of nearby Jurys Inn Hotel. Even outside the March-June breeding season they are often visible via one of our three webcams.
Peregrine Watch Points are usually run on Derby's Cathedral Green from mid-May to mid-June. These are organised by Derbyshire Wildlife Trust, with full details announced on our blog.
Look for birds on the east (rear) face of the tower where the nest platform is located half way up. Or look higher up a ledge of gargoyles near the top. The female peregrine is considerably larger than the male. One or both birds are usually "on guard" prior to egg-laying, but during incubation and brooding the female is rarely seen. She mostly stays out of sight on her nest. That's when the web cameras come into their own.
As the chicks grow rapidly during May there is an increase of activity around the nest, with both birds bringing back food. This increases still further once the birds fledge (leave the nest), and then there are exciting acrobatic displays to be seen by watchers on the ground in Derby city centre. This happens in mid June/early July as the young are taught to fly and hunt.
Cathedral Green is at the rear of Derby Cathedral, near the Silk Mill Museum in Derby city centre, England. The best viewing point is from the very bottom of Amen Alley, or by standing on Cathedral Green. Don't forget binoculars if you have them. You can get further information on Cathedral Green by following this link to a page on our blog.
Follow this external link for a Derby city centre map. It shows the location of Derby Cathedral at the corner of Amen Alley and Irongate (Postcode: DE1 3GP). Do watch out for traffic if crossing Full Street.
Visit Derby. Why not combine a shopping trip to Derby with a visit to our museums, and call in to see our world-famous peregrines for yourself, all in one day? We've great links by road or by rail, and Park & Ride facilities and many great hotel facilities too. Follow this link for Derby Tourist Information.
For beginners wanting an inexpensive but effective telescope, Derby Museums recommends you consider one of the small spotting 'scopes, such as the Opticron Piccolo. Costing around £50, this telescope can be obtained at some local photographic outlets, but you do still need to buy a photographic tripod for it. For the price, its quality is superb though it cannot match those costing many hundreds of pounds. But before you buy, why not politely ask other peregrine watchers if you can try their equipment? Most will be happy to let you look.
Derby Museum & Art Gallery contains an exciting wildlife gallery, showing many of the habitats and species that live here. Come and stand close to a peregrine falcon in the Derbyshire Nature Gallery, then go and watch one flying free over the City Centre! Please note that our specimen is very old and that museums today do not condone or encourage the taking of any bird for display. Follow this link to find out more about peregrine specimens in Derby Museums' collections.
Other nearby birdwatching opportunities include the nearby River Derwent footpath, going either upstream to Darley Park or downstream past the Council House and on to Pride Park. Just 200m from Cathedral Green, a Park-and-Ride bus from Derby Council House takes you to The Sanctuary, a new bird reserve next to Pride Park Football Stadium where many unusual birds can be observed, and where our peregrines sometimes hunt. You can cycle there in just a few minutes along the riverside path. Follow this link to watch a BBC Video on some of Derby's top wildlife spots. Further afield, there are many Nature Reserves owned and managed by Derbyshire Wildlife Trust. Follow this external link for details and map of DWT's nature reserves.
2. Pictures and Videos
2.1. Pictures - Use the image links below to view larger, high resolution photographs in a new browser window. Many more pictures are constantly being added to our "Peregrine Blog" and over a thousand webcam screen captures added to our new Flickr Photo Pool by viewers from around the world.
2.2 Videos 2009: Twenty video clips from the 2009 season can be viewed by following this link to a special video page on the project blog. You can also find them on our YouTube channel. They range from courtship, mating, and egg-laying through to hatching, ringing and fledging. Check out the Blog for regular updates and new videos from the current season.
Videos 2008: - To watch videos please use the links below:
Videos 2007:
An fantastic DVD entitled "The Peregrines of Derby Cathedral" is now available for purchase. It includes a large number of high quality and intimate video highlights from past breeding seasons. Each is described with a commentary by Nick Moyes from Derby Museum & Art Gallery. The DVD lasts about 35 minutes and tells the story of Derby's peregrine falcons and features Chris Packham, well-known as a BBC TV presenter.
The DVD is available to order by post at £9.99 GBP, post free, from the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust office in Belper [see below].
You can also buy copies direct from our Derby Museum shops or from Derby Cathedral.
To pay by debit /credit card and have one posted direct to your home at no extra cost (if you live in the UK) please phone the Wildlife Trust on 01773 881188 (Mon-Fri 9am - 4.30pm). Your copy will be dispatched the same day. UK cheques should be made payable to Derbyshire Wildlife Trust and sent to the Trust at: East Mill, Bridge Foot, Belper, Derbyshire, DE56 1XH. We can post abroad but we'll ask you for an extra 'donation' of £1 GBP towards the higher postage costs.
2.3 Press Coverage
3. Further Peregrine Falcon Information
4. Links to other Peregrine webcams around the world
Other webcam projects, not in English:
5. Project Partners and acknowledgements
The three project partners are: Derby Cathedral, Derbyshire Wildlife Trust and Derby City Council's Museums Service. We work closely together to bring live pictures of the Peregrine Falcons and Watchpoints in Derby City Centre.
For more information about the project please contact:
Derby Museum & Art Gallery
The Strand
Derby DE1 1BS.
Telephone 01332 641901
Email peregrines@derby.gov.uk, or
Derbyshire Wildlife Trust
East Mill, Bridge Foot
Belper
Derbyshire, DE56 1XH.
Telephone 01773 881188
Email enquiries@derbyshirewt.co.uk
The Derby Cathedral Peregrine Project has benefited from the help or support of many people: N. Brown; N. Moyes; N. Evans; T. Grantham; W. Dillon; J. Osborne; K. Brewer; Eco-Watch; T. Cairns; J. Salloway; D. Slinger; M. Mallender; J. Heaton; R. Kilgour; E. Jones; H. Hopkinson; J. Connolly; R. Jones; C. Parkinson; J. Taylor; E. Drewitt; N. Dixon; P. Precey; the BBC, plus the many peregrine watchers and, of course, to the vergers and authorities of Derby Cathedral without whom none of this would have been possible.
Funding or material support for the web cameras came from many sources: Many small donations at Peregrine Watches; other anonymous gifts; Derby City Council's Wild Derby, Development and Tourism, Highways Department and ICT units. The peregrine project partners have high hopes for developing these webcam services in the years ahead as additional resources or sponsorship permit. Please contact either Derby Museums or Derbyshire Wildlife Trust if you would like to contribute to this project.
We are grateful to the following individuals who recently made donations to keep our project and the webcameras running, or have given other support in kind.
- (2010): D.Knight, Canada.
- (2009): T.Akers, Newark; S.Allen, Derby; L.Andrews, Neston; J.Baum, Derby; R.Blackwell, Derby; D.Bond; British Falconers' Club; P.Brooks, Nottinghamshire; T.Chesterman, Northumberland; Cooper, Sutton in Ashfield; S.Davis, London; Derbyshire Ornithological Society; A.Froggatt, Birmingham; C.Henstock, Dronfield; A.Holmes, Shrewsbury; C.James, Kegworth; K.Kolling, USA; J.Mak, Hong Kong; H.Naylor, Alfreton; L.Oagerby, Notts; K.Patrick, Ashbourne; Mrs Sandison, Blyth; J.Sawford, Derbyshire; C.Self, Bristol; R.Sharp, Austria; M.Shaw, Abbots Bromley; G.Smith, Derby; N.Smith, Derby; R.Smith, Belper; Sue in Bucks; J.Taylor, Derby; O.Taylor, Canada; J.White, Belper; D.Wright, Canada; R.Zantvoort, France; plus many anonymous donors at our Watchpoints.
Make a Donation: If you wish to support the Peregrine Project by making a donation, there are currently three options:
Donating from within the UK:
1) Ring Derbyshire Wildlife Trust in office hours on (0)1773 881188 to make a payment using your debit/credit card (please specify Peregrine Project).
2) Send a cheque made out to DWT to Derbyshire Wildlife Trust, East Mill, Bridgefoot, Belper, Derbyshire, DE56 1XH, clearly marking it ‘for the Peregrine Project’.
Donating from abroad:
3) Contact your bank and arrange for a money transfer to DWT. For details of the Trust’s bank, sort code etc please email enquiries@derbyshirewt.co.uk
Do please confirm in writing that you are keen to see any unspent element of your donation carried forward to a subsequent financial year(s). (This simply aids in record-keeping for the Wildlife Trust's accountants.)
Because we do list individual donors' names here or on our project blog, please tell us if you would prefer to remain anonymous.
There's more to Derby's wildlife than you thought. Follow this link for more information on Wild Derby.