VOLUNTEERS at a viewpoint overlooking a peregrine falcon nest are eagerly awaiting the first glimpse of newborn chicks.

Two falcons nesting in Malham Cove in the Yorkshire Dales are now spending their time hunting for food for the new arrivals.

But RSPB and Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority (YDNPA) staff and volunteers at the peregrine viewpoint still don’t know how many youngsters there are.

National Park Authority wildlife conservation officer Ian Court said: “It’s fantastic that the eggs have hatched, but we can’t see into the nest so we don’t know how many chicks there are yet.”

Kate Struthers, the RSPB’s Yorkshire people engagement officer, said: “Visitors to the viewpoint over the next few months will be able to watch through our telescopes as the birds stretch their wings and learn how to hunt.”

Peregrine falcons have recorded speeds of more than 200mph – about three times as fast as a cheetah – and have earned themselves the title of the fastest animals on Earth.

The free viewpoint will be open from Saturday to Wednesday inclusive between 10.30am and 4.30pm, weather permitting, until August 2.

As in previous years, visitors are asked to stay away from the nest site and the British Mountaineering Council has imposed temporary, voluntary rock climbing restrictions around it.

Since it started in 2003, more than 184,000 people have visited the viewpoint.

Volunteers at the viewpoint will be providing weekly updates on a special National Park Authority website at www.malhamperegrines.org.uk; on Twitter using @malhamperegrine and on the RSPB’s Facebook pages.