Charles Sturt University’s Dr Cilla Kinross has been co-ordinating the peregrine falcon program for the past four years.

Dr Kinross has been watching the falcons’ progress in their nest through a two-camera video feed that she can pause, rewind and take stills from, which has enabled her to study the birds’ behavioural patterns and diet.

“The female [Diamond] has been sitting on three eggs for a month and they are due to hatch about now - unless there’s a problem, they should hatch tonight or tomorrow night,” she said.

Dr Kinross said the male falcon Bula, which means ‘two’ in Wiradjuri because he is the second male, and Diamond have replaced Beau and Swift, who she studied for the past three years after they set up a nest in the water tower 10 years ago.

She said out of all their eggs in that time, they had one chick fledge in the first year, all the eggs broke in the second year and one of three eggs hatched last year, but the fledgling fell out of the perch and disappeared.

She said studies of the broken eggs revealed thin shells and a concentration of DDT, which she thought could have been a result of the falcons’ diet, which was primarily starlings, known to contain pesticides.

Dr Kinross said the current eggs seemed stronger and although Bula brought in less food than Beau did, he had been calmer and better, and helped incubate the eggs while Diamond hunted.

She said only time would tell what would happen next, but anyone could view the footage online in real time at www.csu.edu.au/special/falconcam/

tanya.marschke@fairfaxmedia.com.au