You go girl! Misty, our star peregrine, has FOUR chicks.
Last week we'd spotted three, but we can now confirm there are FOUR chicks. That's the second year running Misty has successfully hatched four chicks since dumping her old mate, Houdini.
Whether it's her toyboy partner, Bert, or the extra spring she has in her high-speed stoop we'll probably never know. The stoop is when peregrines dive on their prey mid-flight when they can reach speeds ranging from a leisurely 120 miles an hour to a staggering 200 mph.
So, four more little peregrines to add to our growing number of London falcons. In a foolhardy mood I once went through the figures and worked out that from our base of five breeding pairs in 2006, we could reach a dozen breeding pairs of peregrines in the Capital in time for the Olympics. 12 for 2012 is now my battle cry. What better image could you wish for come the Olympics than 24 of the world's fastest living creatures sharing our Capital? A lot could happen between now and then, so it will be touch and go as to whether we reach that goal.
Last week, DEFRA quietly released its latest bird trends by English region. It suggests the Government will struggle to meet the 2010 biodiversity targets it set itself. The report is quite depressing and suggests too litle is being done too late for our wildlife. In London the figures show woodland and farmland birds are increasing. What it doesn't show is that London had started from a low baseline. We're still seeing declines in house sparrows and starlings and both species are noe red listed, meaning they're in desperate straits. Private gardens are also continuing to shrink. We've a long way to go before we can, hand on heart, say that bird numbers in London are increasing. Keep on campaigning.
This week, we're in Dulwich Park to showcase the area's wildlife. There's more in London than you realise. Imagine what spectacular wildlife we could all experience if we each did one thing to improve our balconies, window-boxes, gardens or parks. Come and say hello in Dulwich to find out what you can do to help.
UPDATE.
Misty and Bert have three males and one female on their nest. A repeat of last year's brood. In Dulwich we have seen kestrel, herons, little grebe, woodpeckers and an albino mallard!