Peregrine v Chough & Kestrel

 On a sunday My wife Heather and I often take a walk along our local stretch of coast line,  We walk from Rosudgeon down through Chiverton farm and Trevean hamlet and come out onto the coast at Trevean Cove which has a memorable and ever changing view of St Micheil's Mount.

Heather takes a carrier bag for collection flotsam and jetsam from the shore,  She is working her way through a three year BA [HONS] Textile Design degree studying  Weave, Mixed Media & Print at Falmouth University and uses all sorts of weird finds in her current Mood board project on a theme titled  'The Sea', 

I take my camera and usually head for the clifftops backing the cove which is an excellent location for picking off images of larger birds hanging off of the up-draughts when the winds range from southeasterly through to westerly. 

The Sky's were very overcast today which tends to turn lots of skyward images into silhouettes but I ended up with some rather surprising shots anyway,  First up was a pair of Noisy Chough which could be heard before coming into view around an easterly headland.  The nearest known pair usually operate around Trewavas Head which is not that much farther around the coast to the east,

Fifteen minutes later I thought they were coming back in the opposite direction only to realise  [ Just in time to grab one chase shot that was in focus ]  that it was in fact a Peregrine in pursuit of one chough which escaped by the skin of its teeth,

I have never seen a Peregrine at this location before and I tracked it as it gained height to hang on the wind waiting for another opportune moment to attack another unsuspecting bird but the tables were turned when a female Kestrel well known to me as Kate came swooping in to side swipe the Peregrine at close quarters catching it off guard,  She came around again but the Peregrine and I were both ready and the kestrel pulled out at the last second which I think was a good call.

The Peregrine departed shortly afterwards in the direction of Perranuthnoe and was not seen again but Kate moved in low over the fields behind me moving up and down the field for thirty minutes until she finally caught a vole,  She providing me with a better set of images with the light coming from behind me which I will use to illustrate another Blog on the Kestrel some time tomorrow

                          She was a smart bird to see off the Peregrine before starting any hovering !!