UK urban peregrines

Crowthorne

Crowthorne

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10+ year member
Recent years have seen a increase in peregrine falcons nesting in UK urban centres. Many towns and cities have a church or cathedral, or just tall buildings, that are perfect nest sites for these naturally cliff-nesting birds, and the numerous populations of urban pigeons are an excellent food source, so it's not surprising that the urban peregrine population is booming.

Many of these nest sites are monitored by wildlife groups, and nestlings routinely ringed by the BTO. A large number are also watched by webcams, which can be watched from anywhere in the world.

Some of the nests that I follow I'll list below, please feel free to add your own to this thread.

St Albans Cathedral - Boudicca (F) and Alban (M). This cathedral has only recently been adopted by a peregrine pair in the last few years, most probably because it doesn't have a spire and the surrounding city isn't very built up. They were named by public vote. 2024 is their third year nesting at this site.
Peregrine Live Cam

Leicester Cathedral - peregrines have been present in the city centre since 2014, as there are a large number of tall buildings in the city. A nesting box was placed in the cathedral spire in 2016, which has been used ever since. The 2023 season was particularly bad due to bird flu, so here's hoping for a better season this year.
Leicester Peregrines - Monitoring the Peregrines of Leicester Cathedral

There is also another pair that live around the Attenborough Tower at the University of Leicester, north of the city centre.

St Dionysius Church in the nearby town of Market Harborough was adopted in 2018 by one of the Leicester Cathedral 2017 female fledglings. This church now has a dedicated nest box which currently has an active pair.

Cromer Church - Poppy (F) and Henry (M). a dedicated nest box on the church spire, with views of the North Sea.
https://www.cromerperegrineproject.co.uk/

Norwich Cathedral - monitored by the Hawk and Owl Trust.
Norwich Peregrines live Camera feed - Hawk and Owl Trust

St John the Evangelist's Church, Bath - a rather vertiginous platform for this pair, high up on the church spire
Bath Peregrines live Camera feed - Hawk and Owl Trust

Worcester Cathedral - Peggy (F) and Peter (M)

Nottingham Trent University - located on one of the University buildings
Peregrine Nest Cam | Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust
 
Crowthorne said:
Recent years have seen a increase in peregrine falcons nesting in UK urban centres. Many towns and cities have a church or cathedral, or just tall buildings, that are perfect nest sites for these naturally cliff-nesting birds, and the numerous populations of urban pigeons are an excellent food source, so it's not surprising that the urban peregrine population is booming.

Many of these nest sites are monitored by wildlife groups, and nestlings routinely ringed by the BTO. A large number are also watched by webcams, which can be watched from anywhere in the world.

Some of the nests that I follow I'll list below, please feel free to add your own to this thread.

St Albans Cathedral - Boudicca (F) and Alban (M). This cathedral has only recently been adopted by a peregrine pair in the last few years, most probably because it doesn't have a spire and the surrounding city isn't very built up. They were named by public vote. 2024 is their third year nesting at this site.
Peregrine Live Cam

Leicester Cathedral - peregrines have been present in the city centre since 2014, as there are a large number of tall buildings in the city. A nesting box was placed in the cathedral spire in 2016, which has been used ever since. The 2023 season was particularly bad due to bird flu, so here's hoping for a better season this year.
Leicester Peregrines - Monitoring the Peregrines of Leicester Cathedral

There is also another pair that live around the Attenborough Tower at the University of Leicester, north of the city centre.

St Dionysius Church in the nearby town of Market Harborough was adopted in 2018 by one of the Leicester Cathedral 2017 female fledglings. This church now has a dedicated nest box which currently has an active pair.

Cromer Church - a dedicated nest box on the church spire, with views of the North Sea.
https://www.cromerperegrineproject.co.uk/

Norwich Cathedral - monitored by the Hawk and Owl Trust.
Norwich Peregrines live Camera feed - Hawk and Owl Trust

St John the Evangelist's Church, Bath - a rather vertiginous platform for this pair, high up on the church spire
Bath Peregrines live Camera feed - Hawk and Owl Trust

Nottingham Trent University - located on one of the University buildings
Peregrine Nest Cam | Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust
Click to expand...

Lovely to see so many! I've watched the Norwich ones before (I like the backdrop of the city) I didn't realise there were such a lot. Amazing birds. Great thread.
 
Crowthorne said:
St John the Evangelist's Church, Bath - a rather vertiginous platform for this pair, high up on the church spire
Bath Peregrines live Camera feed - Hawk and Owl Trust
Click to expand...
A very easy to spot (and hear) pair as well - I have fond memories of hearing them from my halls as a fresher. I've also seen them chasing pigeons down Dorchester street, bus-height, which is fairly incredible to watch. Definitely a change from the kites, buzzards and kestrels I grew up with in Hampshire.
 
cerperal said:
A very easy to spot (and hear) pair as well - I have fond memories of hearing them from my halls as a fresher. I've also seen them chasing pigeons down Dorchester street, bus-height, which is fairly incredible to watch. Definitely a change from the kites, buzzards and kestrels I grew up with in Hampshire.
Click to expand...
There was a breeding pair at the top of Birmingham University clock tower, couldn't be certain if there is a pair these days.There is definitely a pair currently at Worcester Cathedral
 
Not sure if this is still the case, but in 2019 a few Peregrine Falcons would be found on the Charing Cross Hospital in London, and hunt in the marshes of the WWT London Wetland Centre directly opposite the Thames. It was indeed at the Centre, looking towards the Hospital from the Headley Discovery Hide, that I saw my first Peregrines. Some visitors even reported close-up views of them hunting on the marshes earlier in the day. Hopefully they can still be found there, as I would love to spot them when I next return to WWT.
 
The nearest urban peregrines to me are, I believe, in Colchester. They have nested every year since 2016 on the Jumbo Water Tower just beyond the Roman-era Balkerne Gate.
As a little aside, the tower is named after the famed London Zoo elephant of the same name, originally as a term of derision in 1882. Apparently, the tower's weathervane is also of an elephant, but I cannot find any photographs where I can actually identify what the weathervane is.
 
There also used to be a pair near or on the Arndale Centre in Manchester where the RSPB did engagement days with the public.
 
Little off-topic.

Urban nesting peregrines are spreading trought continental Europe. Germany has +400 pairs of them. First Czech pair nested on human-made structure in 2010 (near German border) and they slowly spread further southest with currently 34 pairs in our country.

Interesting interactions are seen on some web cams where peregrines fight with intruding sakers for artificial nest platforms. To ease these tensions, over 100 platforms were installed late last year on high voltage power pilons within or close to known saker falcon territories in CZ.
lukrativni-adresa-dravci-svadi-souboj-o-hnizdeni-na-jaderne-elektrarne-02.jpg
 
oflory said:
The Chelsea ones are my favourites!

https://twitter.com/FaBPeregrines
Click to expand...

Kalaw said:
Not sure if this is still the case, but in 2019 a few Peregrine Falcons would be found on the Charing Cross Hospital in London, and hunt in the marshes of the WWT London Wetland Centre directly opposite the Thames. It was indeed at the Centre, looking towards the Hospital from the Headley Discovery Hide, that I saw my first Peregrines. Some visitors even reported close-up views of them hunting on the marshes earlier in the day. Hopefully they can still be found there, as I would love to spot them when I next return to WWT.
Click to expand...

They are still there!
 
Jana said:
Little off-topic.

Urban nesting peregrines are spreading trought continental Europe. Germany has +400 pairs of them. First Czech pair nested on human-made structure in 2010 (near German border) and they slowly spread further southest with currently 34 pairs in our country.

Interesting interactions are seen on some web cams where peregrines fight with intruding sakers for artificial nest platforms. To ease these tensions, over 100 platforms were installed late last year on high voltage power pilons within or close to known saker falcon territories in CZ.
lukrativni-adresa-dravci-svadi-souboj-o-hnizdeni-na-jaderne-elektrarne-02.jpg
Click to expand...
Fascinating to see how this plays out in regions with another large native falcon species. Are there many urban pairs of sakers in CZ? Is there much niche overlap in other aspects of their ecology, such as preferred prey for example?
 
Also see Winchester Cathedral: Winchester Cathedral | Peregrines


Crowthorne said:
Recent years have seen a increase in peregrine falcons nesting in UK urban centres. Many towns and cities have a church or cathedral, or just tall buildings, that are perfect nest sites for these naturally cliff-nesting birds, and the numerous populations of urban pigeons are an excellent food source, so it's not surprising that the urban peregrine population is booming.

Many of these nest sites are monitored by wildlife groups, and nestlings routinely ringed by the BTO. A large number are also watched by webcams, which can be watched from anywhere in the world.

Some of the nests that I follow I'll list below, please feel free to add your own to this thread.

St Albans Cathedral - Boudicca (F) and Alban (M). This cathedral has only recently been adopted by a peregrine pair in the last few years, most probably because it doesn't have a spire and the surrounding city isn't very built up. They were named by public vote. 2024 is their third year nesting at this site.
Peregrine Live Cam

Leicester Cathedral - peregrines have been present in the city centre since 2014, as there are a large number of tall buildings in the city. A nesting box was placed in the cathedral spire in 2016, which has been used ever since. The 2023 season was particularly bad due to bird flu, so here's hoping for a better season this year.
Leicester Peregrines - Monitoring the Peregrines of Leicester Cathedral

There is also another pair that live around the Attenborough Tower at the University of Leicester, north of the city centre.

St Dionysius Church in the nearby town of Market Harborough was adopted in 2018 by one of the Leicester Cathedral 2017 female fledglings. This church now has a dedicated nest box which currently has an active pair.

Cromer Church - a dedicated nest box on the church spire, with views of the North Sea.
https://www.cromerperegrineproject.co.uk/

Norwich Cathedral - monitored by the Hawk and Owl Trust.
Norwich Peregrines live Camera feed - Hawk and Owl Trust

St John the Evangelist's Church, Bath - a rather vertiginous platform for this pair, high up on the church spire
Bath Peregrines live Camera feed - Hawk and Owl Trust

Nottingham Trent University - located on one of the University buildings
Peregrine Nest Cam | Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust
Click to expand...
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Crowthorne said:
Recent years have seen a increase in peregrine falcons nesting in UK urban centres. Many towns and cities have a church or cathedral, or just tall buildings, that are perfect nest sites for these naturally cliff-nesting birds, and the numerous populations of urban pigeons are an excellent food source, so it's not surprising that the urban peregrine population is booming.

Many of these nest sites are monitored by wildlife groups, and nestlings routinely ringed by the BTO. A large number are also watched by webcams, which can be watched from anywhere in the world.

Some of the nests that I follow I'll list below, please feel free to add your own to this thread.

St Albans Cathedral - Boudicca (F) and Alban (M). This cathedral has only recently been adopted by a peregrine pair in the last few years, most probably because it doesn't have a spire and the surrounding city isn't very built up. They were named by public vote. 2024 is their third year nesting at this site.
Peregrine Live Cam

Leicester Cathedral - peregrines have been present in the city centre since 2014, as there are a large number of tall buildings in the city. A nesting box was placed in the cathedral spire in 2016, which has been used ever since. The 2023 season was particularly bad due to bird flu, so here's hoping for a better season this year.
Leicester Peregrines - Monitoring the Peregrines of Leicester Cathedral

There is also another pair that live around the Attenborough Tower at the University of Leicester, north of the city centre.

St Dionysius Church in the nearby town of Market Harborough was adopted in 2018 by one of the Leicester Cathedral 2017 female fledglings. This church now has a dedicated nest box which currently has an active pair.

Cromer Church - a dedicated nest box on the church spire, with views of the North Sea.
https://www.cromerperegrineproject.co.uk/

Norwich Cathedral - monitored by the Hawk and Owl Trust.
Norwich Peregrines live Camera feed - Hawk and Owl Trust

St John the Evangelist's Church, Bath - a rather vertiginous platform for this pair, high up on the church spire
Bath Peregrines live Camera feed - Hawk and Owl Trust

Nottingham Trent University - located on one of the University buildings
Peregrine Nest Cam | Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust
Click to expand...
Nottingham Trent University peregrine currently have four eggs
 
Some that I know of;

Salisbury Cathedral.(Wiltshire)
Christchurch Priory (Hampshire)
Lansdowne building (Bournemouth).
Barclays Bank building, Poole (Dorset)
 
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