Peregrine falcon rescued after 'premature' flight

The female bird was rescued and checked over before being released from the top of the nest site building

A peregrine falcon has been rescued following a "premature" first flight that saw it end up on the ground.

The young falcon flew to the new Pembroke College development in Cambridge, and has since been checked over and released from the top of the nest site building.

It is the second of two fledglings, which are thought to be male and female. The male falcon has been flying over the city successfully after it took flight on Tuesday.

A group of bird watchers said they were lucky to witness where the female landed.

It is expected that the birds will stay in the city for a few months before dispersing

Saimon Clark said: "The first bird spent time on the edge of the nest site flapping and strengthening its wings which indicated to me that it was going to be a good fledge.

"But we think the second bird may have gone prematurely so we are waiting for it to have a decent flight and not end up on the ground again."

He added that the birds were much bigger than people often expected.

Their size has been used to indicate their gender.

"We think the first is male because he is smaller and bigger one in the nest is likely to be female. On average, the females are a third bigger than the males."

Since the female falcon was rescued, bird watchers said she had flown "confidently" towards the guildhall.

The male had been seen flying "extremely well" and was perched above the juvenile female when she left.