: Amgueddfeydd, Arddangosfeydd a Digwyddiadau

There is no second clutch of eggs despite courtship behaviour from both of the peregrines. They have been avoiding the original nest for some time now and are still using the second nest on the east side of the clock tower as a base.

 The birds have been sitting in the more shady spots because of the hot weather we've been having recently (often, annoyingly, just out of sight of our scopes on City Hall Lawn!) but we've still been getting some great views of them.

 A highlight of this past week was the pair tucking into a pigeon and at one point they both fought over it! 

 The adults will stay around for the whole of the summer and will continue to pose for the camera, which is providing high quality images of the peregrines and is giving us lots of fun with the windscreen wipers!!

There is no sign of second clutch, although the birds continue to spend much of their time around the nest on the east clock face.  The birds are still showing some pair bonding behaviour, spending time together and today putting on an aerial display.    Despite showing this behaviour the birds have not been seen mating.  The longer we wait, the less chance of success.

At last we have some good news to bring you!  Our fantastic new camera is up and running!  It even has its very own windscreen wiper-what will they think of next!  We have much improved views of the peregrines and now have a full screen image to show visitors.  Unfortunately, the new camera image is not yet available to internet viewers (but we're working on it!), so why not come down to the museum to check it out for yourself?!  See you there... 

Another day of interesting behaviour!  Today, (Tues 5^th May) the birds have spent the majority of their time on or around a new (old raven’s!) nest positioned on the east facing clock face.  They have been sitting very close to each other, often both in the nest together, and also have disappeared on hunting trips together.  Such “lovey dovy” behaviour is not the norm for peregrines, except during the pair bonding period, which usually occurs before laying in Feb and March.  The female then spent the afternoon “scraping” the nest.  This is a natural behaviour to create a bowl shaped “scrape” on the nest ledge, which prevents eggs from rolling off the cliff. 

It is unusual, but not unheard of, for peregrines to lay a second clutch of eggs after sitting for the full incubation period.  When it does happen, it tends to occur only in city nesting peregrines, reflecting the greater availability of food in cities later in the year. 

Could Gavin and Stacey be attempting a second clutch??  Watch this space!!

It has been a depressing few days for the PoCT team.  After a completely normal day on Sunday (3^rd May), at about 3.30pm the birds suddenly became very agitated and active around the Clock Tower.  At first we thought their excitement was due to the eggs hatching, which was supported by the fact that the one of the birds appeared to bring food to the nest.  However, no chicks were sighted and the feed didn’t take place.  The birds then left the nest completely unattended for the next hour or so and could be seen perched at the top of the tower.  As I left the site at the end of the day, one of the adults was seen forlornly circling the tower, occasionally landing at the eyrie (but not sitting) and looking generally lost.

Monday (4^th) confirmed our worst fears.  The eggs had failed and the Peregrines had abandoned the nest.  They spent most of the day sitting on the clock tower and ignored the nest that they had been working so hard to incubate.

We had a fabulous event at St Fagans yesterday. The weather wasn't quite with us - damp and overcast - but luckily lots of people were, and very many of them bought copies of the book!

I didn't catch the whole service as I was flitting around with boxes of books, but what I saw was very moving, and it felt intimate and totally natural.

Then a whole load more people arrived for the actual launch. People crowded into the Church and the two main speakers, Garry Owen and Eurwyn Wiliam, both did excellent jobs. Eurwyn spoke about the project from its beginnings, and as he's been involved with the project since its beginning 25 years ago it was a great overview. But, as always, humorous too! Then Garry Owen brought a lovely personal note, as he's a local boy who remembers the Church when it was still by the river Loughour at Pontarddulais. He really emphasised just how iconic the Church was  - and still is - to the local community.

Finally everyone came over to Oakdale, the Workmen's Instititute, for refreshments and we were flooded with people queuing up to buy the book. It was like when you first arrive at a car boot sale! It was also great for me to finally meet some of the book's contributors, people I've only emailed up til now. I guess everybody was enjoying themselves as by 5.30pm some people didn't seem to want to leave!

The rest of the work for me is now to make sure all the relevant bookshops and retail outlets know about it. And making sure it's on the relevant websites. And sending out review copies... In a way, producing the book is only half the job: now we've got to sell it!