Shift change

A real good early morning with the peregrines this morning. The main shot is of the female flying from the nest ledge having finished her sift sitting the young.You can see the male bringing in some scraps for the chicks.

The real fun however came later when we had a peregrine visitor, the 1st extra. A year old juvenile with clearly different markings when you compare him to the resident female in the 2nd extra. The juvenile markings are lost after the first moult in the summer but serve to protect the juveniles from attack when crossing established territories. The adults can see they are no threat so call out but not attack them.

The last extra is interesting because it shows the clear reversed sexual size dimorphism often found in raptors. She is the boss.