Peregrine chick hatches ride on Manchester’s big wheel

10/06/2009 17:44:04 Manchester Peregrine chick fledges

A plucky young peregrine chick has fearlessly taken one of its first flights straight onto a cab on The Wheel of Manchester, the northern answer to the London Eye. The chick stayed on the ride while it did two full rotations, sitting happily on the roof of the cab for at least ten minutes.

It then flew among the wheel's 48 cabs, sometimes within feet of the passengers, before landing on the struts of the structure for a well earned rest.

Matthew Capper of the RSPB in Manchester said: "We all held our breath as four Manchester peregrine chicks started to fledge. We hoped and prayed their first flights would be successful. But we obviously didn't need to worry with this one as it has become so confident it is taking rides on the big wheel.

"There are almost 50 cabs on the ride and it flew off a neighbouring building, landing causally on top of one of them. The wheel is about 60m high but even at the top you could just about still see it, sitting there happy as Larry enjoying the views of the city. As the wheel went round and stopped to let people off it got closer and we got a great look at its first fairground ride."

4 Peregrine chicks in central Manchester
The chick is one of four young peregrines to hatch in Manchester's Exchange Square this year, and local shoppers have been watching their progress through the RSPB's Date With Nature Scheme.

The fledging peregrine leaving Manchester's big wheel. Credit Adrian Dancy.

City centre predators
Peregrine chicks have also now hatched at a number of other Date With Nature projects around the UK, meaning even more of us could see the young ‘feathered concordes' in the sky soon as they start to fledge. They are seen on iconic buildings such as the Tate Modern in London, cathedrals in Lincoln and Chichester and Cardiff clock tower.

1500 Peregrine pairs in UK
Peregrine populations hit an all-time low in the 1950s due to the use of pesticides in farming. Breeding pairs dropped to just 360 pairs in the UK but the RSPB believes there are now 1500, making their appearance in cities even better news.

They have traditionally been associated with wild crags or lonely sea cliffs but changing landscapes mean they have adapted to living in more unlikely places. All they ask for is a place to breed and a food supply they can catch.

To a peregrine, a tall building like an office block or church offers the same benefits as a cliff face - it is high, safe from danger and the surrounding areas offer ample prey. Surrounding parks, and urban pigeons in particular, offer a ready supply of food.