• Welcome to BirdForum, the internet's largest birding community with thousands of members from all over the world. The forums are dedicated to wild birds, birding, binoculars and equipment and all that goes with it.

    Please register for an account to take part in the discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.
ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Just how common are Peregrine falcon? (1 Viewer)

Agreed mate:t:

The European populations followed a similiar pattern fortunately the problem was identified. Although the Organochlorines concerned were banned and production in Europe and the US stopped that wasn’t the end of it. Manufacturers merely sold their unusable poisons to ‘3rd World markets’ which led to localised population crashes of species like African Fish Eagle in sub-saharan countries. DDT is still used in small quantities for local malaria control although it has long been acknowledged that continued use merely leads to short-term gains whilst resistant individuals outbreed and survive to pass on their genes...

As Ian Malcom said in Jurassic Park ‘nature finds a way’.

India is the only country manufacturing DDT i don’t know about Dieldrin or Aldrin but Buzz is still with us and nudging 90;)

The insidious use of anti-inflammatory drugs has led to a worldwide crash in Vultures and something that is being slowly, very slowly, addressed - of concern is pressure on the EU to allow countries like Spain to use them:C The crooks in Bussels already passed legislation forcing farmers to ‘clean up’ dead animals that succumb to natural causes - how idiotic is that? Griffons around Gibraltar are supplemented at designated feeding stations now - roll on Halloween...

Finally (i hear a collective sigh of relief) - these rich and powerful chemical companies e.g Bayer, BASF etc care for nothing but profits for shareholders same as Monsanto etc and we are all guinea-pigs for this crap whether it was the old-fashioned contact pestcides or the new fangled hormone insecticides etc and i speak as a licensed PA sprayer. I highlight the German ones because their track record from people like IG Farben is not good - Zyklon B was developed as a ‘pesticide’ and that didn’t end well..........for several million people:C

Laurie -
 
Hi Laurie,

The insidious use of anti-inflammatory drugs has led to a worldwide crash in Vultures and something that is being slowly, very slowly, addressed

Yes, that's depressing ... while the recovery of the Peregrine population is absolutely wonderful, it would have been even more wonderful if mankind had learned something from the disaster instead of repeating this kind of mistake just a few decades later! :-(

Regards,

Henning
 
The UK Peregrine population is still severely compromised by continuing rampant illegal killing by gamekeepers in the uplands. Fortunately, urban birds are doing much better.
 
The insidious use of anti-inflammatory drugs has led to a worldwide crash in Vultures and something that is being slowly, very slowly, addressed - of concern is pressure on the EU to allow countries like Spain to use them:C

Laurie -

Agree this needs to be addressed urgently on an EU-wide level - the problem as I understand it is there is no current EU-wide ban (and never has been), so it is currently down to individual member states to legislate. France currently bans veterinary use, Spain doesn't.

The crooks in Bussels already passed legislation forcing farmers to ‘clean up’ dead animals that succumb to natural causes - how idiotic is that? Griffons around Gibraltar are supplemented at designated feeding stations now - roll on Halloween...
-

This is old news I'm afraid - the 2002 legislation was modified in 2009 under pressure from (amongst others) Bird Life International.

The relevant bit of the legislation (Regulation (EC) No 1069/2009) states:

(49)
Regulation (EC) No 1774/2002 allows for the feeding of Category 1 material to endangered or protected species of necrophagous birds and other species living in their natural habitat, for the promotion of biodiversity. In order to provide an adequate tool for the preservation of those species, that feeding practice should continue to be permitted under this Regulation, in accordance with conditions laid down to prevent the spread of diseases. At the same time, health conditions should be laid down in the implementing measures permitting the use of such Category 1 material for feeding purposes in extensive grazing systems and for feeding to other carnivore species, such as bears and wolves. It is important that such health conditions take into account the natural consumption patterns of the species concerned as well as Community objectives for the promotion of biodiversity as referred to in the Communication from the Commission of 22 May 2006 entitled ‘Halting the loss of biodiversity by 2010 – and beyond’.


As far as looking forward to Halloween goes, all I would say is be careful what you wish for....
 
As far as looking forward to Halloween goes, all I would say is be careful what you wish for....
Could get large scale colonisation of UK by vultures, with all the corpses for them to feed off . . .



Worth noting that vultures' digestive systems are so powerful that they can kill off most, if not all, disease organisms, including botulism and (IIRC) anthrax. So having them around makes for good hygeine.
 
Could get large scale colonisation of UK by vultures, with all the corpses for them to feed off . . .



Worth noting that vultures' digestive systems are so powerful that they can kill off most, if not all, disease organisms, including botulism and (IIRC) anthrax. So having them around makes for good hygeine.


Hey guys, I wasn't trying to start another Brexit debate, the thread was about peregrine populations, and quite logically led from talk about pesticide residues to effects of Diclofenac on vultures.

I thought it was necessary to clarify Laurie's earlier post about EU animal health legislation and its effect on vulture populations. He made a valid point about the unintended consequences of the 2002 legislation, but that has now been addressed by the EU, so don't continue to blame them for things they have fixed.
As far as Diclofenac is concerned, I agree we need an EU-wide ban - but the EU aren't forcing people to use it, France have been able to ban its use without the 'crooks in (sic.) Bussels' telling them not to.

As we are presumably (hopefully) all pro-conservation, it would be great if we could discuss conservation problems and their solution without bringing in emotive terms based on our own particular political prejudices. And for sure some of those problems arise from EU policies, not least the CAP.

FWIW I'm not shedding any tears over Brexit, I'm an Irish citizen and can look on with a degree of detachment at the latest instalment of the UK government soap opera, whilst hoping as an English resident it doesn't get too Mad Max come November...

...which brings me on to Nutcracker...I'm sure even the most pessimistic post-Brexit scenario isn't going to significantly increase the availability of human carcasses for avian necrophages...although I have every sympathy with your views, that's not so much Project Fear as Project Terror!

We'll see who is right and who is wrong soon enough, but it would be great if we could play nicely in the meantime...
 
Well said kb57 :t: This is a bird & nature forum not somewhere to spout off personal views about a bunch of lying, forty-faced scumbagging cheats and their policies :C *not a big fan of politics* :-O


I've yet to find or see Peregrines inland but get regular sightings, especially in the winter months, along the coastline :t:
 
Could get large scale colonisation of UK by vultures, with all the corpses for them to feed off . . .



Worth noting that vultures' digestive systems are so powerful that they can kill off most, if not all, disease organisms, including botulism and (IIRC) anthrax. So having them around makes for good hygeine.

I suppose that makes sense if your main diet is carrion. On a recent visit to the vulture house in Jonte Gorge France it was interesting to learn that the four species (Griffon, Black, Egyptian and Bearded) can between them completely remove a carcass, with each specialising in different parts, including in the case of the latter the bones. Another reason that's makes their persecution back in the day, and the recent poisonings that have been reported more baffling.
 
I suppose that makes sense if your main diet is carrion. On a recent visit to the vulture house in Jonte Gorge France it was interesting to learn that the four species (Griffon, Black, Egyptian and Bearded) can between them completely remove a carcass, with each specialising in different parts, including in the case of the latter the bones. Another reason that's makes their persecution back in the day, and the recent poisonings that have been reported more baffling.
And amazingly quickly, too - a dead sheep can be completely gone in about half an hour.

Very often they were the 'collateral damage' of poisoning aimed at other species (most often wolves or foxes). But ivory & rhino poachers in Africa are deliberately targetting vultures so there's none around to alert rangers to new kills. Despicable.
 
...which brings me on to Nutcracker...I'm sure even the most pessimistic post-Brexit scenario isn't going to significantly increase the availability of human carcasses for avian necrophages...although I have every sympathy with your views, that's not so much Project Fear as Project Terror!

We'll see who is right and who is wrong soon enough, but it would be great if we could play nicely in the meantime...
My remark was tongue-in-cheek, and I definitely hope it won't happen - but the risks are there, and real:
https://twitter.com/nickreeves9876/status/1167426968373137408?s=20
 
Hey guys, I wasn't trying to start another Brexit debate, the thread was about peregrine populations, and quite logically led from talk about pesticide residues to effects of Diclofenac on vultures.

I thought it was necessary to clarify Laurie's earlier post about EU animal health legislation and its effect on vulture populations. He made a valid point about the unintended consequences of the 2002 legislation, but that has now been addressed by the EU, so don't continue to blame them for things they have fixed.
As far as Diclofenac is concerned, I agree we need an EU-wide ban - but the EU aren't forcing people to use it, France have been able to ban its use without the 'crooks in (sic.) Bussels' telling them not to.

As we are presumably (hopefully) all pro-conservation, it would be great if we could discuss conservation problems and their solution without bringing in emotive terms based on our own particular political prejudices. And for sure some of those problems arise from EU policies, not least the CAP.

FWIW I'm not shedding any tears over Brexit, I'm an Irish citizen and can look on with a degree of detachment at the latest instalment of the UK government soap opera, whilst hoping as an English resident it doesn't get too Mad Max come November...

...which brings me on to Nutcracker...I'm sure even the most pessimistic post-Brexit scenario isn't going to significantly increase the availability of human carcasses for avian necrophages...although I have every sympathy with your views, that's not so much Project Fear as Project Terror!

We'll see who is right and who is wrong soon enough, but it would be great if we could play nicely in the meantime...

Same old, same old.
 
Last edited:
Many cities I know of have Peregrines utilising tall buildings now, sometimes just wintering birds but others breeding. I regularly see them around Birmingham City Centre and in the last few years around the centre of Wolverhampton too. Also seen them at a football match in Stoke. Most major cities in the Uk will I suspect, have wintering Peregrine's these days.
 
A male that overwintered and left in May has returned to the Delph flats at Brierley Hill:t: The tower blocks and the lower lying Fens Pools, Withymoor and the plentiful supply of pigeons bodes well for brightening up dull days around here...

Laurie -
 
Many cities I know of have Peregrines utilising tall buildings now, sometimes just wintering birds but others breeding. I regularly see them around Birmingham City Centre and in the last few years around the centre of Wolverhampton too. Also seen them at a football match in Stoke. Most major cities in the Uk will I suspect, have wintering Peregrine's these days.

They breed every year on the Nottingham Trent University, Newton Building every year too and have done so for probably 15 years?

I've also seen them on Lincoln Cathedral.
 
Warning! This thread is more than 4 years ago old.
It's likely that no further discussion is required, in which case we recommend starting a new thread. If however you feel your response is required you can still do so.

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top