: Hebogiaid ar dŵr y cloc

It's official - the Peregrines on the Clock Tower have successfully produced young - the first since 2008.  On Thursday 22 April at 2.40pm the female bird Stacey was seen at the nest with a fresh kill, carefully distributing pieces of it in the nest - but annoyingly we couldn't actually see any chicks. 

However, our suspicions were confirmed over the next few days as we saw a white fluffy head appear in the nest....then another on Tuesday 27 April, then finally one more today!  Today the male seemed to be doing a good job of bringing lots of food for the chicks, before taking a well earned rest right on the top of the tower - the rain wasn't going to spoil his kip!

The chicks are expected to fledge in late May, but will remain at the nest for several months, relying on their parents for food while they learn how to fly and hunt.  As the parents teach their young the awesome flying and hunting skills that peregrines are renowned for, it will mean fantastic aerial displays and some amazing views for us down on the ground.

The Peregrines on the Clock Tower viewing scheme is now open. 

The RSPB will be showing you the Peregrines on the live nest camera in the main hall of the National Museum Cardiff from now until the end of August.

On certain days there will also be an information marquee outside the museum, where you can get an even closer view of the birds with telescopes.

Don't miss out on any of the action! 

The female peregrine has been showing signs of incubating eggs the last couple of weeks. In fact, we think she started incubating the first egg on Wednesday or Thursday 17th/18th March.

After last years disappointment they have decided to use the nest on the east side of the tower which will be much better for viewing with our camera.

Fingers crossed the eggs hatch!

The peregrine camera has just been reinstalled on the roof.

Despite the building works going on here we have managed to get the camera up on the roof. With a little ingenuity and the construction skills of a colleague in the Department of Industry the camera has been mounted on a purpose built metal support.

All being well the camera will be live by the end of next week.

The Peregrines have been very visible around the clock tower all winter. In fact apart from a short period in the autumn when they were probably moulting they have been around continuously since their nesting attempt failed last summer.