With no eggs this year at Cromer this will be the final blog of the season. Thank you to each and every person who has spent time to make this blog work and thanks to you for reading this. The final blog of the season was written by Peter, Andrew, James and Brendon.
Thank you all
8:50 The first view is of the falcon preening in the early sunshine. As usual, it is a little breezy at the top of the church tower. The seaward view to the North East is of a reasonably calm sea, steely grey under moderate cloud. Audio is hampered by a significant buzz, together with a female voice reading scripture, as one would expect as it is Sunday!
9:00 The shift starts with the falcon standing towards the front of the platform in the early sun, fluffed up from the breeze and her preening. She looks skyward and calls a few times, but makes no other move.
9:06 The falcon is dozing in the sun, at least one eye closed, which she only seems to open when a gust of wind rocks her as she stands.
9:11 The falcon gives a few quiet calls, but with no great urgency. Whether the tiercel is nearby, I cannot tell.
9:20 Periodic preening continues.
9:43 Although the falcon is apparently dozing, she is evidently still alert, as she looks around her, presumably reacting to sounds.
9:52 Audio is now only a broken buzzing, but as there is no sound from the falcon at the moment, it is not clear if she would be heard if there were any calls to or from the tiercel.
9:54 The falcon turns round slowly and moves into the scrape, where she indulges in a series of scrapes and moves, finally settling down, facing front right as we see her. She begins to pick at stones.
9:58 The falcon gets up from the scrape, and moves to the right of the platform. She stands facing right.
10:05 The seaward camera has shown odd black spots in view for tiny instants. It looks like there are swifts flying around the church today! This fits in with a separate conversation I’ve been having about the arrival of our summer visitors.
10:14 The falcon turns and makes her way slowly to the front right of the platform, stands in the sun, and begins preening around her legs.
10:20 The falcon looks up, presumably tracking the tiercel. She repeats this a few seconds later.
10:23 Some calls start up through the broken audio and video too, and suddenly there is an image of the falcon in two places at once!:-
10:25 The picture has become quite broken, with frozen frames, so that the falcon seemed to shape shift as she moved to the front of the platform. She then left, and after a few seconds the tiercel arrived in a similar stop-motion fashion. Then, after a few moments, the tiercel has also left.
10:59 Sadly, as this shift comes to an end, neither bird is present on the platform, or in view on the North East turret. Audio is also quite broken up, and has been sharing with church service activity for much of the session. Occasional black specks indicate that swifts are arriving for their summer visit, and have been flying round the church tower.
11:00 End of session (and, sadly the season too!).
11.00 No sign of birds on either cam.
11.18 Male in nest box, laying in scrape.
11.24 Male now standing in scrape.
11.26 Cam 2 panning around. No sign of female.
11.52 Male pecking at gravel.
12.00 Male perched on edge of nest box preening.
12.25 Male now laying down in scrape, occasionally standing to resettle.
12.40 Male back on edge of nest box.
12.50 Male back standing in scrape.
13.00 Shift ends with Male sitting in scrape.
13:00 what appears to be the Tiercel sitting tight in the scrape facing outwards
13:01 main camera showing north west pinnacle No sign of other bird.
13:17 bird seems a little agitated looking round at short glance of what appeared to be a falcon flashes past the Northwest Pinnacle.
13:19 bird stood up is turning around in scrape In a lethargic manner.
13:22 bird settled back down facing outwards
13:28 both cameras are moving very erratically
13:39 Falcon arrives facing off the Tiercel who moves past her and fly’s out and leaves the box.
13:40 Falcon walk slowly towards scrape
13:41 Falcon stands on right-hand edge of scrape looking out she now stretches across the scrape and looks forwards..
13:48 standing a little in front of the scrape with feathers outstretched
13:53 bird preening
13:55 bird restless turning and sitting on nest
13:57 Alert and listening out standing in front to scrape
13:58 Falcon now sitting facing left.
14:13 falcon no more alert looking round but still sitting in scrape facing left
14:17 Falcon stood up turned round sat back down and is now facing right sitting in Scrape.
14:20 turned round again and is now facing left
14:31 falcon now stood up looking out.
14:34 digging in scrape facing backwards now flopped down to scrape facing back of nest book
14:38 bird stands up and come to front of a nest box standing facing upwards
14:44 Falcon crouched with feathers spread out facing outwards looking round
15:00 not a great deal to report in this block good ending with a dreamy photograph of the Falcon
15.00 Female in the box in overcast weather
15.12 Female preens and hops onto edge of box
15.40 Female still on the edge of the box
16.03 Female stays put and shakes her feathers
16.24 Female flies off
16.55 Male returns to the platform
16.57 Male makes a scrape
16.59 Male remains on the box
This ends our blog of 2021. Thank you to the amazing team of volunteers for all of the blogs, without you this would not have been possible.