WHAT WE STUDY
What species do we study?
What species do we study?
What species do we study?
A selection of raptor species we study here in Dorset, UK.
Live Hobby nest cameras
What species do we study?
What species do we study?
Images & videos from the 2023 live nest camera with nest sequences.
Working with the data
What species do we study?
Working with the data
What we do with the data gathered from field research into raptor populations and behaviour.
WHAT SPECIES DO WE STUDY?
Hobby (Falco subbuteo)
Peregrine (Falco peregrinus)
Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus)
Secretive and scarce breeder, Schedule 1 protected species, summer migrant.
Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus)
Peregrine (Falco peregrinus)
Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus)
Common species nesting in farmland and towns. Often seen hovering as it hunts voles.
Peregrine (Falco peregrinus)
Peregrine (Falco peregrinus)
Goshawk (Accipiter gentillis)
Large falcon that nests on sea-cliffs and also in our towns on high-rise buildings.
Goshawk (Accipiter gentillis)
Goshawk (Accipiter gentillis)
Goshawk (Accipiter gentillis)
Large and very secretive hunter of woods and larger forests, predator of birds and squirrels.
Buzzard (Buteo buteo)
Goshawk (Accipiter gentillis)
Buzzard (Buteo buteo)
Common, easily visible raptor often seen soaring on thermals as it hunts.
Barn Owl (Tyto alba)
Goshawk (Accipiter gentillis)
Buzzard (Buteo buteo)
The iconic 'white' owl that screeches at night, it nests in holes in trees and old buildings.
This camera showed live footage from a wild Hobby nest in rural Dorset, England. Eurasian hobby (Falco subbuteo).
2023 has been another amazing year on our live camera at a wild Hobby nest somewhere in rural Dorset. With hours of interactions, food passes, interesting prey deliveries, sibling squabbles and all kinds of weather, each year we marvel at how quick these little birds turn from a tiny hatchling, to a fluff ball, and finally into fully feathered young falcons ready to take to the skies.
This is our 2nd year filming at this nest and we think this is the third year the pair has used the same nest site. Given that Hobby mostly over-winter in the southern half of Africa, it’s amazing to know these birds have flown so far and returned to lay their eggs in the same 6 square inches at least 3 years in a row! The camera system was set up well before the breeding season and involves a complex set of cabling, solar panels and wireless bridges across 5km of farmland to send the video to a location with good enough internet to enable live streaming.
3 eggs were laid which is a normal clutch size for hobby. The first chick hatched on 5th July, the second a day later. The third egg was fertile but unfortunately didn’t hatch successfully. The chicks were ringed (banded) on 23rd July. We think one is a male (BF) and the other a female (BD)…..although it is difficult to determine with certainty the sexes of all hobby chicks at ringing. We expect the chicks to take their first flights at about 32 days old. The female could be seen bringing a variety of prey items to the nest to feed the chicks which include birds, bats and dragonflies. We know these are the same two adults as last year because the female has a particular white feather on her crown and the male has a small, metal BTO ring. The male was quite possibly ringed by us in 2019 only a few miles away although we haven’t managed to read the full ring number yet…..working on it.
This camera is provided by http://wildlifewindows.co.uk and is brought to you by Dorset Raptor Study Group and Wildlife Windows.
Our photos from the 2023 season
Incubating
Half-grown chicks
Just hatched!
Just hatched!
Half-grown chicks
Just hatched!
Half-grown chicks
Half-grown chicks
Fully grown & ready to fly
Fully grown & ready to fly
Fully grown & ready to fly
Fully grown & ready to fly
Final meal on the nest
Fully grown & ready to fly
Final meal on the nest
2022 Live Nest Camera
Fully grown & ready to fly
Final meal on the nest
See these great clips from our 2022 Live Hobby Nest Camera that SK Hideaways annotated
WORKING WITH THE DATA
Live Nest Cameras
Colour-ringingScheme
Live Nest Cameras
Two years of footage from our live nest cameras has taught us new things about prey provision and breeding behaviour and we are working on a paper using this data.
Ringing data
Colour-ringingScheme
Live Nest Cameras
Data builds a picture of species population dynamics across our study area. Our data is also given to British Trust for Ornithology and to Dorset Environmental Record Centre.
Colour-ringingScheme
Colour-ringingScheme
Colour-ringingScheme
The DRSG Hobby colour-ringing project had its first resighting of a 2nd year bird from back near its natal area in Dorset. Big thanks to photographer Mark Wright for sharing!
Examples of Hobby nests
A squeeze in this old crow's nest!
Two young chicks right at the top of a pine tree
Two young chicks right at the top of a pine tree
Two young chicks right at the top of a pine tree
Two young chicks right at the top of a pine tree
Two young chicks right at the top of a pine tree
Hobby also happily use artificial baskets
Two young chicks right at the top of a pine tree
Single Hobby chick in a huge old Raven nest
Single Hobby chick in a huge old Raven nest
In an old crow's nest below the canopy layer
Single Hobby chick in a huge old Raven nest
A crow's nest at 30m with lots of exposure!
In an old crow's nest below the canopy layer
In an old crow's nest below the canopy layer
In an old crow's nest below the canopy layer
In an old crow's nest below the canopy layer
In an old crow's nest below the canopy layer
Old crow nest in a small Scot's pine
Hobby will choose to nest on an old squirrel drey
In a tiny nest right at the top of a giant pine
In a tiny nest right at the top of a giant pine
Hobby will choose to nest on an old squirrel drey
In a tiny nest right at the top of a giant pine