Saw a falcon carry it's breakfast (pigeon) up to the tower on the church/flats at South Road on my way to the station this morning. Probably a Peregrine..?
Yes, peregrines have been seen there (and sometimes heard!) in recent months. Apparently not nesting there though, as there isn't enough flat space for them.
I seem to recall they used to nest in the tower before the church was converted into flats?
Not a falcon but a tawny owl hooting for about ten minutes in the vicinity of Dunoon Road and Honor Oak Rd at dusk on Sunday. Must be at least 15 years since the last time I heard one here, so great news.
That really is good news. There was a piece on R4 recently from an organisation called something like the owl trust who were asking for reports of sightings (or hearings) of owls so it might be worth contacting them as urban owls must be less common than their rural cousins.
Well I hope the owls and falcons head over to the local allotments and try to keep down the local rat population.
Great picture of the pair. More likely to be keeping the pigeon population under control - though I wondered if they'd fancy tackling the parakeets...
I have heard a Tawny Owl three or four times since August near the Devonshire Road Nature Reserve which suggests it is not just hipsters who having been moving to HOP in recent years.