Winchester Cathedral's resident peregrine Mel's eggs scattered

A peregrine falcon nesting at Winchester Cathedral has apparently scattered her eggs overnight.

Mel, who took over as the cathedral's resident female falcon in March, after the previous bird Winnie was found dead, was incubating two eggs.

The eggs were seen pushed out of the nesting tray early on Monday.

Keith Betton of the Hampshire Ornithological Society said they were put back in place but there was only a "small chance" of them hatching.

Mr Betton, who manages the nesting site, said it was not clear how the eggs had ended up out of the nest, but the bird was "clearly stressed".

It meant they were away from the warmth of the mother for four to five hours.

He said he made the "emotional call" to put them back in place after consulting a number of peregrine experts.

"They've got a small chance - rather than just leave them, we took the decision to put them back on the nest.

"She had been trying to incubate them when they were out of the nest, so she clearly wanted to carry on."

Mel was seen sitting back on the eggs again shortly after 12:00 BST.

It is estimated that if the eggs did hatch, it would happen around 18 May.

The eggs will be removed if they do not hatch, Mr Betton said.

Mel, named after 19th Century writer Melesina Trench, who is buried in the cathedral, mated with Winnie's former partner William.

Nothing is known about Mel's age or background as she is not ringed.

Winnie was a familiar sight over Winchester having first nested on the old police headquarters building in 2011 before moving to the cathedral nesting site in 2017.

The peregrine falcon is the fastest flying bird and can regularly reach speeds of more than 100mph.

Numbers have recovered in recent decades, with 1,750 breeding pairs recorded in 2014.

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