Male or Female?
The information below is a general guide to help distinguish between them.
The male peregrine is around a third smaller than the female. Although this is a useful fact to remember if looking at pictures from the nestcam, it is not usually a great help if you see a single bird flying around or on the cathedral. The male is smaller than the female in many other species of raptors.
The Wakefield male has a ring on his right leg. The number on the ring tells us that he was ringed as a chick in a nest on St. George’s Church, Sheffield on 16th May, 2014.
Markings on the male’s chest don’t extend as high as those on the female’s chest. In addition, the male’s chest usually appears whiter than the female’s, especially when he sits on the spire, catching the sun.
Female peregrines can be easy to identify soon after a meal because they have a distinctive “golf-ball crop”. It is normal for females to have heavier markings on their chests than the males and this is the case for the Wakefield birds.
The female looks more muscular than the male and, because of her greater bulk, her head can appear smaller relative to her body. The male has a smoother, sleeker appearance.
The yellow eye ring of the female is more conspicuous than that of the male. The resident female at Wakefield does not have any rings on its legs.
