Have You Seen Buster the Peregrine Falcon Chick?
Appeal for help finding young bird missing from Charing Cross roof
TV naturalist Simon King is appealing to people living in the Hammersmith, Fulham and Barnes area to keep an eye out for Buster, a vulnerable young Peregrine Falcon which has gone missing from the roof of Charing Cross Hospital.
Simon runs the Wildlife Whisperer online community which includes a number of webcams, including one on a ledge at the back of Charing Cross overlooking Margravine Cemetery.
The webcam streams live images of Peregrine Falcons, Charlie and Tom and their family, which this year consists of three chicks, Buster, Amy and George.
Buster, who is seven weeks old, learned to fly a week ago and has now been missing for several days.
Simon's appeal is joined by Nathalie Mahieu, who has a website called Fulham and Barnes Peregrines dedicated to the local Peregrine Falcons, and who has been out with a team of volunteers hunting for Buster around Fulham Palace Road.
One of the team, a blogger who calls herself Wino Wendy, wrote about the search for Buster here.
Nathalie told the Fulham Chronicle: " Buster has been missing since Saturday and as it was within the first week of him learning how to fly we are really worried.
" The first week of flight is a really dangerous time for these birds as they haven't quite learnt how to coordinate their wings and their feet yet.
" He may have dropped in to a garden so we are really appealing to residents in Hammersmith surrounding the hospital to check their gardens for him.
"He is in danger from foxes and crows if he is on the ground."
If you do spot Buster, you are asked to call 07956 866 617, email fabperegrines@gmail.com or tweet @FaBPeregrines.
Simon King says: " If you are in the Hammersmith/Fulham/Barnes area and come across a young peregrine you think is in distress, please tweet @FaBPeregrines."
June 13, 2013
