High Wycombe Peregrines Webcam – All Saints Tower Nest

The High Wycombe Peregrines Webcam looks down from the bell tower of All Saints Church onto the nesting tray of a pair of peregrine falcons, high above the centre of High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire. The tray is a simple wooden shelter with a flat dark roof and a gravel floor, set against the weathered stone of the tower, which fills the right edge of the frame. Beyond it spread the rooftops of the town centre, red brick and white-painted fronts packed close together, with a wooded Chiltern hillside rising behind. A falcon may perch on the front lip of the tray, settle on the gravel or disappear for hours to hunt, and loose feathers from past meals lie scattered across the stones. In spring the same tray can hold eggs and then chicks.

About the High Wycombe Peregrines

Peregrines were first sighted around the town centre in 2019. In early 2020 members of the Buckinghamshire Bird Club climbed the tower to help the birds settle, laying gravel and clearing away pigeon deterrents, but plans for a proper breeding platform stalled when Covid arrived. In 2021 the pair laid a single egg, which proved infertile. In 2022 the club’s volunteers funded and built a temporary nesting platform and installed it on the east side of the tower with help from the church’s tower captains, a job reached only by very narrow, winding steps. The spot is out of the prevailing wind and shaded from harsh sun. Four chicks hatched that year, more followed in 2023, and in 2024 the church opened the live feed that this camera carries. According to the church, the pair eat well on pigeons, moorhens and blackbirds, among other birds.

All Saints is far older than its lodgers. A church here is thought to have been consecrated by St Wulfstan around 1087, though the exact date is unknown, and some of the stone in the outside walls came from the ruined Roman villa on the Rye. The Bishop of Lincoln rebuilt the church in 1273 and lengthened the nave to 34 meters (113 feet). The west tower that holds the nest was probably built between 1521 and 1535, and the architect Henry Keene added its parapet and pinnacles in 1755. After a 1909 renovation the church became the first in Buckinghamshire with a ring of 12 bells, and a 13th bell followed in 1963. The building is Grade I listed.

High Wycombe itself is a town of 83,535 people (2021 census) in the valley of the River Wye, surrounded by the Chiltern Hills and 47 kilometers (29 miles) west-northwest of Charing Cross in London. It made its name on furniture. In 1875 the town was estimated to turn out 4,700 chairs a day, and the local football club is still nicknamed the Chairboys.

Weather and Climate in High Wycombe

Records from the RAF High Wycombe station for 1991 to 2020 put the January average high at 6.6 C (44 F) and the low at 1.8 C (35 F). July averages 21.6 C (71 F) by day and 12.4 C (54 F) at night, and about 817 millimeters (32.2 inches) of rain falls in a typical year. Winter brings a low sun, bare trees on the hillside and short days. Spring is the season to watch closely, as the pair can be on eggs and then feeding chicks through the lengthening days.

In summer the slope behind the town turns a solid green and the evenings stay light until late. Autumn gives this view its warmest colors: in early October the wooded hillside shows gold among the green, and the low afternoon sun picks out the brick and white walls below the tower. Gray, wet days can flatten the hills into a haze. Peregrines often stay around a good nest site all year, so a falcon on the tray in autumn or winter is not unusual.

Things to Do Near High Wycombe

The church stands in the town centre, a short walk from the Guildhall at the end of the High Street, built in 1757 by Henry Keene, the same architect who finished the tower. Wycombe Museum tells the story of the town and its chair industry. The Eden Shopping Centre, completed in 2008, holds 107 shops, and the Wycombe Swan is the town’s large, well-equipped theatre.

The Rye is the extensive riverside park along the Wye and the site of a Roman villa built between 150 and 170 AD, known for its mosaics and bathhouse. Further out, Hughenden Manor was the home of Benjamin Disraeli, and West Wycombe Park and the Hellfire Caves lie at West Wycombe, just beyond the western edge of town. From the streets below, the pair can often be seen flying about the tower and calling to each other.

Similar Webcams You Might Like

More nests, more birds and another view near London:

• Alyth Osprey Webcam
• UMass Amherst Falcon Webcam
• Queen Mary Reservoir Webcam

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is the High Wycombe peregrine nest?

The nest is on the bell tower of All Saints Church in the centre of High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England. The platform sits on the east side of the tower, near the top. High Wycombe is 47 kilometers (29 miles) west-northwest of central London.

What can you see on the High Wycombe Peregrines Webcam?

The camera looks down onto the wooden nesting tray and its gravel floor, with the tower’s stone wall on the right and the town centre rooftops and a wooded Chiltern hillside beyond. A falcon may be perched on the tray, eating, or away hunting.

When do the High Wycombe peregrines lay eggs?

The church does not publish dates, but peregrines in Britain typically lay in spring, from around late March, and chicks are usually on the ledge into early summer before they fly. Spring and early summer are the best time to tune in.

How many chicks have the High Wycombe peregrines raised?

The pair laid a single infertile egg in 2021. Four chicks hatched in 2022, the first year with the nesting platform, and more chicks followed in 2023.

Why is the High Wycombe peregrine nest empty?

Outside the breeding season the tray is only a place to rest and eat, so it can stand empty for hours while the falcons hunt or perch elsewhere. Peregrines often stay around the site all year, so a bird usually turns up again.

Who runs the High Wycombe Peregrines Webcam?

All Saints Church presents the stream as its temporary live feed, launched in 2024. The nesting platform was funded and built by volunteers from the Buckinghamshire Bird Club, with help from the church’s tower captains.

What is the weather like in High Wycombe?

January averages 6.6 C (44 F) by day and 1.8 C (35 F) at night, July averages 21.6 C (71 F) and 12.4 C (54 F), and about 817 millimeters (32.2 inches) of rain falls in a year.

Source: All Saints Church, High Wycombe