NAMES are being sought for Worcester Cathedral’s – now World famous – peregrine chicks which have been viewed on their live YouTube stream by more than 200,000 people.
Cathedral bosses want to name the chicks and the parent pair before they fly the nest and are hoping people will send in their suggestions.
This week the petite peregrines were ringed by the British Trust for Ornithology so they could be put on a national database and their future progress recorded.
As well as the rings, the birds also had their wing spans measured and their weight recorded – which has also been logged on the national database.
Each colour ring has a unique letter code so the individual birds can be identified when seen in future as adult birds. Peregrines can live 15 and more years in the wild.
The chicks are always comfortable during ringing, but usually make themselves heard, so passers-by and YouTube viewers may have heard the commotion around the Cathedral!
The chicks are expected to fledge in June, and their progress can be monitored on the live stream (below)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FE-ZajTeMX4
Chris Dobbs, Worcester Cathedral’s biodiversity advisor, said: “This is fantastic news for the Cathedral and the city as a whole.
“Worcester is an incredibly biodiverse place, and the peregrines are part of that.
“Although peregrines are still quite rare, they are recovering well in the UK, largely due to the new habitats they take up in cities, of which Worcester is a great example.
“The birds love Cathedral towers because they are similar to their natural habitat nesting sites, which include quarry faces, sea cliffs, and mountainsides, as they like to have a high prospect looking over the area of their territory, which Cathedral towers and other tall buildings in cities provide.
“Now we are able to monitor the nest with a live camera, much like many other UK Cathedrals, and this will enable the Cathedral to report back on the progress of the birds over the years for everybody to enjoy.”
With regard to naming the cathedral peregrine chicks, email your suggestions to: [email protected]
The team will then select their four favourite names and announce them in June!
