Whilst filming over Mountsorrel Quarry, I got photo-bombed by this fellow. Anybody know what it is? A Kestrel?
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Looks like a young peregrine falcon..
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That’s a Peregrine Falcon.
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Some nice toy diggers in the background 
Cheers 
Hugh
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Fastest animal on Earth, over 200mph in a powerdive. If it wants to f*ck your drone, fake an orgasm
We have one that roosts locally, went to the tower where it resides to shoot some photos for a rtf challenge a while ago, decided not to fly didn’t want to disturb it (it was snacking on a pigeon).
Pity it wasn’t a fucking seagull… you know what, I’ve moved on, but it’s the principle. They followed it down and then, when they’d finished killing it, they came over, as a mob, and laughed at me. That stung. I’ve made my reluctant piece with gullery in general, still hate the fuckers but it is what it is. If, however, I were to in some way come across any of that particular mob, and knew it was one of them, and I had any means of killing it, preferably slowly and painfully… I generally don’t bear grudges, but that SE2 hadn’t hurt them.
Peregrines are magnificent creatures. Place to go for them in my neck of the woods is Symonds Yat, spectaular location even with the birds, but I came across one about 20 years ago, hillwalking in what is now the Bannau Brycheiniog, specifically the ridge above Torpantau, not far from the Wellington crash site. There were a group of lads up there hanggliding off the precipice, and this bird was sort of flying up and down that length of escarpment, clearly attempting to show them the proper way to go about it…
Don’t know if you’ve ever read Geraldus Cambrenis’ Journey Around Wales, a sort of 12th century travelogue chronicling a tour he did ‘preaching the cross’ that is, recruiting for the Crusade.; he was Dean of Brecon cathedral at the time. It is a much more entertaining read than that sounds, and as well as describing the journey, has all sorts of enlivening little local anecdotes, stories, myths, some obvious bullshit but fun anyway stuff that he’s picked up en route and written down. He goes off-topic and rambles, you can see why I like him. Anyway, one of these rambles is about eagles and ravens, both birds of myth & legend, and he is recounting what an *Eryru’ shepherd has told him about the local birds, and is this, that eagle knows when it will get it’s dinner, but not where, and a raven knows where it will get it’s dinner but not when. Therefore an eagle flies high, covers territory, looking for the least movement from a couple thousand feet up, then down he comes and 'as it. The raven, on the other hand, cruises up and down the same stratch all day until his victim appears. Thought you like to hear about that, Seadog!
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