here is somthink to think about on the rspb sites i have read that there are 1404 pairs of peregrines in the uk on 1 site another site says 2000 pairs did not cheack on other birds of pray but if you work on 1404 pairs thats 2808 birds they eat 3 to 4 dirds a day ok so if they eat 3 a day that is 8424 aday how long will there food chain last and with all the other birds of pray eating birds now wonder the birds are going its a bit like fishing boats out at sea catching fish soon ther wil be none
life is to short
Karl, there have always been birds of prey. They are not something new. Yet we still have our birds. This is why they lay so many eggs and produce so many babies. It's all part of the circle of life.
Cheers, Linda.
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I suspect not as most birds of prey don't have the luxuary of having the time to wait! They have to eat quick and if that means tucking in when the prey is still alive then so be it, if they don't start eating as quickly as they can they more they may lose should a competitor such as a crow arrives to attempt to steal the kill.
And as for "too many birds of prey", predators are limited by the amount of prey they have available, not the other way around. Most hunts don't even end in a kill, the prey usually escapes. Predators actually help bird populations by removing the old, sick and weak animals which later competition for others of the same species in more difficult times - such as what we are having now, and prey are adapted to cope with natural losses from predators, bad weather etc. The reason why so many birds are declining is because of people, not because of the predators that they have co-existed with long before we appeared to destroy their habitats. Most birds of prey are recovering from extreme persecution, followed by the devestation of DDT so of course we are seeing more, we should be this shows that their population is starting to recover after we nearly wiped them out. Birds of prey are something wild birds have always lived with and to accuse them of damaging bird populations is, in my opinion, nothing more than an attempt to place blame on another species for the results of our actions.
Millie & Fly the Border Collies
I couldn't agree with you more, KaiTai. It's worth remembering that most birds eat other animals at some point in their lives - I don't suppose snails "enjoy" the experience of being smashed repeatedly against a stone by a song thrush, for example.
I've been lucky enough to see birds of prey make kills on a few occasions, and in the vast majority of cases the unlucky victims actually do not last for more than the few seconds it takes for the raptor to bear its prey to the ground. Small birds and mammals are usually killed almost immediately by the talons, or dispatched by the beak within seconds. For real cruelty and indifference no animal on earth can rival humans. Think of a hundred live parrots stuffed in a suitcase and smuggled halfway around the world with no light, air, food or water, or a puffin drowning in an oil slick.
Sparrowhawks are one of the only birds of prey that eat their quarry alive - probably because they are relatively small themselves and don't kill on impact as a peregrine normally does. I guess that the peregrine had either killed the seagull earlier and eaten its fill but couldn't carry the carcass away (too heavy), so was waiting around for a second meal. It may also have been scared off temporarily ( as someone said), or even been dining on carrion in hard times.
birdnuts said: Sparrowhawks are one of the only birds of prey that eat their quarry alive - probably because they are relatively small themselves and don't kill on impact as a peregrine normally does. I guess that the peregrine had either killed the seagull earlier and eaten its fill but couldn't carry the carcass away (too heavy), so was waiting around for a second meal. It may also have been scared off temporarily ( as someone said), or even been dining on carrion in hard times.
PS It is also possible that the seagull, being a big bird, didn't die immediately on impact, so you could be right in that the peregrine was wating to feed safely. This is unusual though and it must have been hungry to take on a seagull.
dear pauwen most birds of pray kill there victim but some small birds of pray wait for
there pray to die.
In the peregrines case it probably had already killed the sea gull and just had not finished eating
or something else killed the sea gull.
Happy birding!
Have a look at this:
A couple of pics of a juvenile peregrine.
Who didnt have much luck after catching a blackbird a buzzard stole it then the peregrine got mobbed by a sparrowhawk .
I go to this reservoir but not much about in this weather.
http://www.surfbirds.com/blog/Belvide84/
www.youtube.com/user/Wildlifevideosuk