1 year ago
79 Pigeons are usually the preferred prey of peregrine falcons successful London, but during the covid-19 lockdown successful 2020, the falcons caught much starlings and parakeets instead
Life 27 February 2023There are thought to beryllium 40 breeding pairs of peregrine falcons successful London David Tipling Photo Library/Alamy
London’s peregrine falcons switched from eating pigeons to parakeets during the archetypal covid-19 lockdown successful 2020, arsenic municipality birds felt the interaction of humans staying astatine home.
Peregrine falcons (Falco peregrinus), the world’s fastest birds, arrived successful UK cities successful the 1990s, attracted by the abundance of their preferred prey, pigeons.
But the covid-19 pandemic prompted a crisp displacement successful the eating habits of immoderate of them.
Citizen scientists moving with researchers from King’s College London utilized unrecorded streams of 42 peregrine falcon nests successful 27 cities successful England to show the birds’ diets during 3 breeding seasons.
The archetypal – betwixt March and June 2020 – coincided with the archetypal coronavirus lockdown successful England. At this clip successful London, pigeons made up 35 per cent of the falcon’s prey, starlings 36 per cent and parakeets 18 per cent.
At the aforesaid clip of twelvemonth successful 2021 and 2022, erstwhile covid-19 restrictions were overmuch little stringent, pigeons made up 49 per cent of falcons’ diets successful London, starlings 29 per cent and parakeets 15 per cent.
Brandon Mak astatine King’s College London says the displacement successful fare was astir apt owed to the effects of lockdown. Without tourists scattering sandwich crusts and crisp crumbs crossed London’s parks and squares, pigeons scattered to the suburbs during lockdown, leaving peregrines to trust connected different prey.
The aforesaid dietary displacement wasn’t observed successful peregrines successful different English cities. That is astir apt due to the fact that the pigeons determination weren’t arsenic reliant connected quality litter for food, says Mak, and truthful lockdown didn’t punctual specified a melodramatic alteration successful behaviour.
Ring-necked parakeets (Psittacus krameri) became established astir London successful the 1970s. The RSPB, a vertebrate conservation charity, is acrophobic the rising colonisation successful south-east England could beryllium outcompeting autochthonal birds for nutrient and nesting sites.
More peregrine falcons could connection a solution. It is thought determination are 40 breeding pairs successful London, making it 1 of the densest populations successful the world.
Since lockdown ended, their eating habits person returned to a normal, pigeon-heavy diet, says Mak. But their increasing numbers could assistance to support pigeon and parakeet numbers successful cheque regardless, helium says.
“Eventually the numbers of the predators would bespeak the fig of prey,” says Mak. “Over time, erstwhile the peregrines scope saturation, you volition commencement seeing little numbers of pigeons oregon parakeets.”
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