A visitor at the peregrine watch site yesterday asked  if it is the end of  a dynasty for the Falls of Clyde pair? Although it is looking likely that the resident pair are getting too old to produce young. Having repeated the same lonely egg and no eyasses pattern as last year. Things, rather like today’s weather, aren’t looking too bright for the pair.

However, getting back to the dynasty, its certainly not the end of the bloodline. Having mention previously, we know from placing P.I.T tags (Passive Integrated Transponders) and BTO rings on the eyasses at Falls of Clyde, that at least one bird (a female from 2009) has taken on a well known territory near Moffat in Dumfries and Galloway, about 30 miles south of here. Even better we know that last season she laid a full clutch of 4 eggs and all hatched and successfully fledged. Now officially peregrine grandparents I thought it would be a nice idea to look back at the time of the peregrine at the Falls of Clyde.

• It is believed that the original pair moved here in 1997 as a result of repeated persecution at an alternative breeding site upstream
• A low key approach to protecting eyrie in the first 3 breeding seasons. But sadly, the eyasses were killed in 1999 (suspected deliberate human disturbance but no prosecution). This led to 24hr protection from 2000 onwards. 4 eyasses successfully fledged during this period (sexes unknown).
• 2000 – The arrival year of the current tiercel. It is unclear if the original tiercel died in the winter of 1999 or abandoned his territory after the attack the previous year.
• 2000-2003- The current tiercel pairs with original falcon for his first 4 years at the site. 11 eyasses successfully fledged (4 falcons, 2 tiercels, 5 unknown).
• 2004-Arrival of the current falcon.
• 2004-2012. The pair successfully fledged 23 eyasses* (14 falcons, 9 tiercels).
• 2013-2014 – No eyasses hatched  from only 1 egg each year.

*Including 3  fostered chicks in 2010 that had been reared from eggs seized by police at Birmingham Airport en route to Dubai. The eggs had been stolen from eyries in South Wales by a professional egg thief. For further details please click here.

We are hoping to retrieve this years egg and have it tested to see if it was fertile, however there is no confirmed date for this. Our resident ringer has current got his hands full ringing eyasses at other more successfully sites throughout central Scotland. A very good excuse indeed.

We will keep you posted…

Adam Murphy – Peregrine Ranger