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The peregrine falcon is the fastest animal on earth. In a stoop — a dive from height onto prey below — a peregrine can reach 240 miles per hour. At these speeds, the impact of the strike kills instantly. The bird hits its prey with its feet, not its talons, using the force of the impact rather than the grip to kill.
This is not an abstraction. In the Lake District, peregrines nest on the crags of the central fells and can be observed hunting in the valley airspace during the breeding season. If you see one — a compact, dark-backed bird with a distinctive moustache-like marking on the face, folding into a stoop from several hundred metres — you will not forget it.
Peregrines nest on the high crags of the Lake District, particularly in the Borrowdale area and on the quarried and natural rock faces of the central fells. Numbers collapsed severely in the mid-20th century due to organochlorine pesticide poisoning (DDT and related compounds, absorbed through the food chain via prey species), and by the 1960s the British population had been reduced by over 80%.
The banning of organochlorine pesticides and intensive conservation work by the RSPB and other organisations allowed the population to recover. The Lake District population is now healthy and growing, though the birds are still protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and nest sites are monitored during the breeding season to deter disturbance and egg theft.
Peregrines are resident in the Lake District year-round, but are most visible during the breeding season from March to July. The pairs return to established nest sites (eyries) in early spring and can be seen displaying — high, fast, spectacular aerial chases between the male and female above the nesting crag — from February.
The chicks hatch in May or June and fledge in late June or July. The period from fledging to autumn is when peregrines are most often seen hunting in open airspace — the juvenile birds practice their hunting skills repeatedly, and their attempts at stooping (often unsuccessful at first) are some of the most extraordinary aerial behaviour available to watch in Britain.
In winter, peregrines are present but less conspicuous. They continue to hunt year-round, but the breeding season drama is absent.
Peregrines in flight are compact and powerful — broader-shouldered than a kestrel, with pointed rather than rounded wingtips. In normal flight they have a strong, regular wingbeat with occasional brief glides. The distinctive moustache marking is visible at close range.
The stoop is the definitive identification: a bird that folds its wings almost completely and drops vertically (or near-vertically) at extraordinary speed, sometimes from a height of several hundred metres. The sound of a peregrine stooping — a rushing, tearing sound as it accelerates — can sometimes be heard before the bird is seen.
The RSPB runs peregrine watch programmes at several sites in the Lake District during the breeding season, with telescopes and volunteer wardens available to help visitors observe the birds. Check the RSPB website for current locations.
Peregrines are occasionally observed on our tours, particularly on the 8 Lakes and The 10 Lakes Full-day Tour routes which cover the high fell areas of the central Lakes. Your expert storyteller will point them out if they are active.