Peregrine falcons are breeding at ORLEN Unipetrol production sites and are expecting chicks this year as well. People interested in their nesting can watch it online on three cameras on the starameseosokoly.cz website. A female of this highly threatened raptor is incubating two eggs on the Litvínov chemical plant’s smokestack. In contrast, the number of eggs at Kralupy nad Vltavou and Neratovice remains a big unknown. Peregrine falcons regularly return to their favourite nesting grounds to have their young. Industrial production sites provide them with enough peace and food. The nesting of the peregrine pairs at ORLEN Unipetrol has been monitored by ornithologist Václav Beran from ALKA Wildlife since 2011. So far, 30 young have hatched.
Peregrine falcons nest at five ORLEN Unipetrol smokestacks – two each at Litvínov and Neratovice and one at Kralupy nad Vltavou. For the first time last year, those interested could watch the Litvínov peregrine family in the live broadcast. “Due to the great popularity last year, cameras were also installed on the smokestacks in Kralupy and Neratovice this year. So, in total, we are broadcasting from three locations. We have been supporting the nesting of peregrine falcons at our sites for ten years. Through the live coverage from their nest, the public has a unique opportunity to get to know this precious raptor better. At the same time, ornithologists are gaining valuable knowledge,” comments Katarzyna Woś, Vice Chair of ORLEN Unipetrol’s Board of Directors.
Two nest boxes are located at the Litvínov chemical plant – one on the heating plant’s smokestack and the other on the steam cracker’s smokestack. Both boxes have been installed at an elevation of over 100 metres, as peregrine falcons look for the highest possible locations for their nesting to get absolute peace and an excellent view. Each spring, ornithologist Václav Beran from ALKA Wildlife prepares the boxes for the season: “We gave the nest boxes a fresh coat of paint, a carpet made of artificial grass, and a new layer of clay gravel. It looks as though the peregrine falcons have settled there, and the female on the smokestack of the heating plant is already incubating two eggs. This is where the online camera is installed, so we have an excellent view of the situation. If everything goes well, we could see the young ones at the turn of April and May. And at the second half of May, we will climb the smokestack to ring the young.”
Last year’s inclement weather had a significant impact on the pair’s failed nesting in Kralupy nad Vltavou. This year, ornithologists moved the nest box to a more suitable location. “From the footage of the newly installed camera, we can see that the female and male peregrine falcons are nesting successfully. For the time being, we have no idea how many eggs the female has laid. We will let them have their privacy now and will move the camera closer when we climb up the smokestack to ring the young,” says Beran.
This year, peregrine falcons at Spolana Neratovice have played a trick on the employees. They have been nesting in a box located on the column at the other part of the site for the first time. They took it over from its former tenants, common kestrels, and are therefore out of the camera’s reach. “The female is incubating the eggs. When observed with binoculars, the male was hunting in the area and checking on the female in the nest box. I hope they will have young, albeit not on camera. At any rate, young peregrines might be seen from time to time in the camera-fitted nest box when they start to learn to fly,” concludes Beran optimistically.
The ORLEN Unipetrol Group is the largest refinery and petrochemical company in the Czech Republic. It focuses on crude oil processing and on the production, distribution and sale of vehicle fuels and petrochemical products – particularly plastics and fertilisers. In all these areas, it belongs among the critical players on the Czech and Central European market. The ORLEN Unipetrol Group encompasses refineries and production plants in Litvínov and Kralupy nad Vltavou, Paramo with its Mogul brand in Pardubice and Kolín, Spolana Neratovice, and two research centres in Litvínov and Brno. Unipetrol also includes a network of Benzina ORLEN filling stations in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. With 419 filling stations, Benzina ORLEN is the largest chain in the Czech Republic. Since its entry in 2019 to Slovakia, Benzina ORLEN has been one of the fastest-growing chains and currently has 20 stations in its network. ORLEN Unipetrol employs more than 4,800 people. In 2005, ORLEN Unipetrol became a member of the ORLEN Group, the largest crude-oil processor in Central Europe. In addition to its business development, ORLEN Unipetrol is proud to be a socially responsible corporation. Therefore, it pays an equal amount of attention to initiatives, focusing on the cultivation and support of sustainable development, education, local communities, and the environment.
Contact: Pavel Kaidl, spokesman, telephone: +420 736 502 520, e-mail: pavel.kaidl@unipetrol.cz