A PEREGRINE falcon hatched on Winchester Cathedral has been spotted in Farnham.

The young bird hatched in 2019 and has flown 35 miles to Surrey and taken up residence on St Andrew's church in the town centre

Keith Betton, chairman of the Hampshire Ornithological Society, was delighted at the discovery: "This is great news! At least half of Peregrine chicks die in their first year so it is great to see this male has got through that challenging phase and hopefully he will settle and find a mate.

"Peregrines learn a lot from their parents, so it is no surprise that this bird has now decided to live on a church. To a Peregrine it is the nearest thing they can find to a cliff, and I am pleased to say that the Rector has agreed to a nest tray being placed in a quiet corner of the roof. It will be the same size as the tray on the Cathedral so hopefully our bird will recognise it as a good place to raise chicks. There is a single female Peregrine nearby in Aldershot, so I am hoping that will find each other soon!"

Mr Betton was instrumental in getting a nest tray installed on the cathedral in 2018 following the demolition of the falcons previous favourite nesting site, the Hampshire police headquarters on Romsey Road.

He knows it is a Winchester bird as it has a colour ring on his leg (orange with code TBF) attached when he hatched nearly two years ago.

Now Mr Betton is working with St Andrew's church to encourage peregrines to nest.

Peregrines suffered a serious decline in numbers because of habitat loss and farming changes until a revival this Millennium.