'Clint' and 'Gryke' - hatched at Malham Cove in 2006
Photo: Carl Watts/RSPB

PEREGRINE falcons will once again be one of the main attractions for visitors to Malham Cove in the Yorkshire Dales National Park during the coming spring and summer.

The birds – dubbed the fastest animals on earth – have been crowd-pullers for the past few years as they play out their daily lives against the awesome backdrop of the Cove.

Each year thousands of people come to Malham just to look at them through powerful telescopes at a special peregrine watch viewpoint set up by the RSPB and the National Park Authority (YDNPA).

And this year there will be even more information available thanks to a new website created by the Authority and the RSPB at www.yorkshiredales.org.uk/peregrines. It is packed with stunning images, facts about the project and information about the peregrines and all the other birdlife likely to be seen in the Malham area.

In addition, for the first time, there will be an on-line peregrine blog that will be updated every week with the latest feathered goings on.

Ian Court, the YDNPA’s species officer, said: “A pair of peregrines is already wowing visitors and we are expecting another busy season this year, especially if the birds follow the pattern of previous seasons and rear young.

“Last year nearly 30,000 visitors came to the peregrine watch area and that was despite us losing many viewing days through appalling weather.

“This year, if the weather stays fine, we hope even more people will be able to enjoy spectacular views of the peregrines.”

The Peregrine watch site will be manned from 10.30am until 4.30pm everyday (weather permitting) from 21 March until 27 July and again from 23 to 31 August.

Matthew Capper, the RSPB’s People Engagement Officer, said: “The stunning backdrop of Malham Cove is an ideal setting within which to watch these magnificent birds in action.

“We just hope that – as in previous years – people take advantage of the facilities we and the National Park Authority have laid on so they can see the birds close up.”

The project is part of the RSPB’s Aren’t Birds Brilliant! programme of events, which make rare and spectacular birds accessible for everyone to see. As well as the peregrines, visitors to Malham can expect to see green woodpeckers, little owls, redstarts and cliff-nesting house martins.

More information about the project is also available at www.rspb.org.uk/brilliant.