There has been rain during the night and we have an overcast morning. 13 degrees, with light NNE gentle breeze
9.00 The falcon is restless and pecking at gravel and hunkering down. The chick I can glimpse, looks well.
9.03 She is settled and facing left.
9.09 She pecks at gravel but keeps her body fairly still. One chick emerges from her rear and it preens.
9.10 Falcon tries to cover emerging chick, meanwhile it excretes. They settle facing right.
9.12 She resettles facing away from the camera.
9.13 She resettles facing left. She uses her beak to nudge the chick into her brood pouch.
9.36 She calls and gets more agitated.
9.37 Tiercel arrives carrying un-plucked prey. Falcon doesn't respond and tiercel flies off with his catch.
9.48 A fly disturbs her.
10.23 A chick wiggles and emerges. She re-covers it.
10.24 She tilts her head listening and watching.
10.46 Falcon is calling and a chick tries to emerge. She calls some more but not eagerly.
10.47 A chick is stretching and struggling to get out of the brood pouch.
10.49 She resettles facing right and then away from the camera.
11.00 Female on chicks. Male comes in with prey. Can’t make out what it is. Male leaves and female starts feeding chicks. Only one chick is upright, accepting food. The other is still laying down.
1105: Female leaves with prey remains.
11.06 The male comes back and settles back down on chicks.
11.08 Female returns and swaps with male. Settle on chicks.
11.13 Female facing back of nest box.
11.19 to 1130 Female alternating snoozing, with fidgeting and looking around.
11.30 Female pecking at gravel.
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1.32 Female settles down for snooze.
11.55 Female alert but mostly still, a chick just visible underneath her.
12.02 Female alert and fidgeting because the male is flying around the spire chasing off an unwanted gull that gets to close to the tower.
12.11 She shifts position. One chick visible and the male is being admired through the Viking telescopes, as his sits on the NE pinnacle, by several visitors to the Watchpoint
12.20 She dozes for a bit as the male flies of West.
12.23 She is alert and calling as the male brings back a startling which he has just caught and begins to pluck on the SE side of the tower.
12.26 1 chick upright and poking out.
12.38 She settles down for another snooze. Chicks out of sight underneath her.
12.50 It’s all been very relaxed with the female occasionally looking around.
13.00 Poppy in attendance, she starts taking in stones to help with her digestion.
13.08 Henry is perched on the N/E pinnacle and continues to try and entice Poppy from brooding activities by flying around the tower with the starling carcass which he has freshly caught.
13.14 One of the chicks wakes up and sticks its head from beneath mum.
13.20 Poppy leaves the chicks home alone for a second or two, comes back with the starling, which she has now retrieved from Henry to feed her young. Unfortunately only one of the chicks got feed.
13.25 She leaves with the remains of the starling carcass.
13.30 Henry, driven to bond with his chicks, takes the carcass from Poppy and brings it back to the nest box. This time the little chick gets feed!
13.34 Henry departs with the prey, leaving the chicks alone once again.
13.36 In comes Poppy to take over brooding her litter one's.
14.25 All gone very quiet with Poppy fast asleep brooding her chicks. The male has flown off to the SE after being refused brooding duties and is gone for over an hour.
15.05 After very little movement, Poppy eventually moves, taking in stones to help with her digestion, then moves anti clockwise settles down facing S/E.
15.08 Suddenly a little white head appears from beneath Poppy.
15.26 The male arrives back at the church as he appears through the heavy sea-mist. He flies around the church before settling on the South side. We can just make him out in the scopes through the mist. A young boy, who has been waiting patiently, flipping from the screen in the church to the Watchpoint is delighted to finally get a glimpse of the teircel through the scope - Amazing.
15.56 She manoeuvres one of her chicks beneath her, then shuffles anti clockwise eventually settles down facing East.
16.00 Falcon facing right and all calm. A sea fret is rolling off the sea and has made the air temperature much cooler.
16.03 One chick emerges from her pouch, turns around and excretes. Falcon shuffles to cover the chick again.
16.21 The falcon looks as though she is sitting on a big white feathery cushion. The other chick manages to excrete.
16.27 The falcon gets up and flies off leaving the chicks unattended. The chicks are in a cosy heap.
16.28 One chick stirs and looks around.
16.30 One chick preens while the other rests. I cannot see the egg, I guess it must be behind the chicks. The sleepy chick wiggles to get upright but its head seems heavy and flops again.
16.34 The falcon brings in what looks like half a pigeon, partly plucked and eaten. She feeds her chicks but once again I cannot see if both chicks get fed as she blocks the view.
16.39 She is still feeding them.
16.42 It's a good feed and still going for it.
16.44 Falcon flies off with remnants of prey. Both chicks look well fed. Tiercel flies in and tries with some difficulty to cover his family.
16.48 Falcon returns and takes some time to huddle completely over her family.
16.58 Falcon facing right. All is calm and still.
A HUGE thanks to our volunteers today for the blog - Debbie, Graham, Andrew and the Watchpoint.