The Peregrines on Wakefield Cathedral

Peregrines have been present on Wakefield Cathedral for several years but they bred for the first time in 2015, using a nestbox made at the University of Sheffield. An adult female and a male that was still in juvenile plumage arrived unexpectedly after the overwintering pair departed at the start of the season. Despite a late start, they raised three young successfully.

A couple of months after the youngsters fledged, the male moulted into his adult plumage. The ring on the right leg shows that it is the same bird. We’ve since discovered that he was ringed on 16 May 2014 at St George’s Church, Sheffield. As the female was in adult plumage when she arrived, we know that she is at least a year older than the male but we can’t be more precise than that. We have no information about where she came from because she is unringed.

A nestbox was first installed on the Wakefield Cathedral in January, 2013 and peregrines bred for the first time in 2015. In that first season, a young male, still in his juvenile plumage and wearing a ring that was fitted to him as a nestling in Sheffield the previous year, paired with an unringed female and they raised three chicks.

By the end of 2024, peregrines had clocked up ten successful breeding seasons, raising a total of thirty one chicks and caring for one fostered chick. The first pair of adults stayed together for eight years until the female died in 2022 and was replaced by a new mate.

Since 2016, the juvenile peregrines have been fitted with an orange coloured Darvic ring on their left leg and a metal BTO ring on the right leg, except for 2020, when ringing was prevented by covid restrictions. The Darvic rings are readable through binoculars or telescopes, and this has allowed us to get feedback on the subsequent movement of some of the juveniles after fledging.”