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Days 5 and 6 of New Girl

#atitlikeperegrines a hashtag we used for Tom and Charlie a few times over the years, and one that could be used for Tom and New Girl on Saturday: 7 times they did it on the ledge that day, including 3 within one hour (6.32, 6.49 and 7.09am)… ‘Only’ 4 times on Sunday 😉

Tom finally got his wish on Saturday when she joined him for a courtship display inside the nest box 🙂 He was so excited, bouncing all over the nest box, as she appeared on the wall by the nest box before jumping inside the box 🙂 She usually stays put where she is and doesn’t really join in.

Tom paid one of his night visits on Saturday, arriving and going inside the nest box at 3.38am and staying there until 4.51am.

Talking of night time, New Girl has been roosting on the ledge both nights but she gets fidgety at times and moves around a bit. She even spent a bit of time on top of the nest box.

She has been staying on the nest box a bit during the day as well.  I spent a couple of hours on Saturday watching her and Tom. She disappeared from sight and we were wondering where she’d gone. Turns out she’d gone onto the nest box and we couldn’t see her from the old FledgeWatch spot.

Another distinguishing feature is some rather prominent ‘whiskers’.

Tom has kept her very well fed with a good stream of Feral Pigeons.

New Girl quickly figured out the location of the ledge cache.

   

Just a few random shots…

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  • 2 Jan 2019 – courtship

    A couple of attempts at courtship displays today.
    It all started early, before the cameras had switched back from night setting, with Tom landing on the nest ledge, followed by Charlie. Tom went to the nest box.
    capture_03ch_20190102080757

    capture_01ch_20190102080951

    But Charlie preferred to eat.
    capture_01ch_20190102082444
    capture_01ch_20190102084020

    capture_01ch_20190102084036
    After she’d finished eating, Charlie went to cache the remains in their usual spot on the ledge, feaked for a bit and was sitting when Tom decided to go in the nest box and tried to entice her for a display.

    But, it looks like she wasn’t interested.

    capture_01ch_20190102085541

    So he finished the remains instead.
     
    Later in the afternoon, I was walking through the cemetery, when I heard Peregrine calls and saw Tom land on the corner of the nest box. A minute later I saw Charlie arrive from the South, circle a bit and then land on the ledge at the other end. Tom immediately went into the box but Charlie took her time and by the time she got to the nest box Tom had gone on the wall.
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    Her turn to try and entice him and fail 😉

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    “What have I done to deserve this?”

    A great start to 2019!

  • 19 January 2019: 1st mating on camera of 2019

    Early afternoon on Saturday 19th January Charlie arrived on the ledge and after a short while decided to pancake on the wall of the ledge.  I find the following video interesting as it shows her settling, with a better angle than when she does this on top of the nest box as she tends to face the camera there.

    pancaked Charlie

    She pancaked for a few minutes but got up quite quickly and moved to perch on top of the nest box instead.

     

    Charlie relaxing on top of the nest box with a full crop

    There, she decided to pancake again and even have a bit of a snooze.

     

    pancaked Charlie

    pancaked sleepy Charlie

    At 1.48pm, she suddenly got up and started bowing, I thought she was going to have a courtship display with Tom but no. Instead, Tom came and mated with her!  This has to be the earliest mating on camera for this pair. I had been wondering a few times a few days before if it was about to happen, from the way Charlie was presenting herself…

    1st mating on camera of 2019

  • A London bird!

    You may wonder why I am sharing these photos now…
    2 days ago I finished reading New Girl’s ring, that involved a lot of patience and luck but little by little I managed to piece it all together. I immediately submitted the number to Euring (https://euring.org/) and got an email back from the BTO this evening.
    It turns out that I watched (and probably a few of you too) her grow up on a RSPB webcam and then I saw her take some of her first flights! She is no spring chicken, she was born in 2010 in Vauxhall, London, from the Parliament pair. What did she do in those nearly 9 years? We’ll never know as it doesn’t look like her ring was reported in those years.
    So there you go, a London bird 
    And for those of you following the Nottingham Peregrines, it means she’s Archie’s big sister!


    So, she is one of the 4 young on the first shot, at the nest site, could be one of the 2 on the second, and is in one of the circles on the 3rd shot, at Parliament.
     

  • Day 4 of New Girl

    She roosted on the ledge and spent pretty much the whole day there too, she is definitely seeing it as home now I think.
    Tom has tried again without success to entice her for a courtship display inside the box. The only time he managed was by taking prey inside with him. Very cunning! But all she did was come in and grab…


    He’s managed to mate with her more than once today today as they did it 4 times on the ledge…
    One thing I have noticed is that New Girl appears to be a bit messy, Charlie would never have left remains of prey all over the ledge wall…      

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