Ravens are causing a ruckus in Ruchill!
In the Spring of 2025, I was contacted by Anna Wood, a Ruchill resident and SOC member. Anna told me that she had started watching the nesting attempt of a pair of Ravens on the Ruchill Water Tower in north Glasgow.
Anna is also a founder member of the newly formed Glasgow Women’s Birding Group. Her insightful observations coupled with her dedication, laid the groundwork for an excellent collaborative project. The project combined the SOC Clyde Branch, Glasgow Peregrine Project, Glasgow Women’s Birding Group and a commercial partner, Bellway Homes. Bellway are one of the most prolific house builders in the UK.
The Ravens had been nesting on the splendid 165-foot tall Ruchill Water Tower, a large red sandstone Victorian structure, since 2024 and possibly earlier. The tower, designed by Alexander Beith McDonald, was completed in 1900 to supply pressurised water to the former Ruchill Hospital. The hospital was closed in 1998 and the site cleared in 2012 to make way for housing, but the disused tower survived courtesy of its Category A listing. It’s an impressive building which stands sentry over north Glasgow and is now the centre piece of the new Ashlar housing development. The water tower provides a safe nesting location for the ravens which, due to their behavioural ecology, the Scottish Raptor Study Group (SRSG) regards as an honorary raptor.
Anna is also a founder member of the newly formed Glasgow Women’s Birding Group. Her insightful observations coupled with her dedication, laid the groundwork for an excellent collaborative project. The project combined the SOC Clyde Branch, Glasgow Peregrine Project, Glasgow Women’s Birding Group and a commercial partner, Bellway Homes. Bellway are one of the most prolific house builders in the UK.
The Ravens had been nesting on the splendid 165-foot tall Ruchill Water Tower, a large red sandstone Victorian structure, since 2024 and possibly earlier. The tower, designed by Alexander Beith McDonald, was completed in 1900 to supply pressurised water to the former Ruchill Hospital. The hospital was closed in 1998 and the site cleared in 2012 to make way for housing, but the disused tower survived courtesy of its Category A listing. It’s an impressive building which stands sentry over north Glasgow and is now the centre piece of the new Ashlar housing development. The water tower provides a safe nesting location for the ravens which, due to their behavioural ecology, the Scottish Raptor Study Group (SRSG) regards as an honorary raptor.
Raven (© John Simpson)
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Raven (© John Simpson)
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Anna and I met to look over the site and formulate a plan to monitor the breeding attempt. We discovered that the ravens were well known to the locals when several of the construction workers came over to tell us about their own experiences with them. I then approached the sales team in the show house complex and asked about the possibility of erecting cameras at the nest. The sales team loved the idea of nest footage being beamed into the sales office for residents and prospective buyers to enjoy, so I submitted a full proposal to the Bellway Homes Headquarters. They also loved the idea and endorsed the plan. With permissions in place, the work commenced.
A site visit was arranged with Graeme Kerr (Design Manager) and Jim McGregor (Senior Site Manager). Jim is an award-winning site manager with Bellway Homes and no stranger to our Ravens. Jim recounted many observations of their movements and went on to be pivotal in the success of the project. Climbing the tower was quite an experience. There is only a dimly lit old, steep and rather rickety wooden staircase, but eventually the three of us got to the top where we were met by one of the best views in North Glasgow. We had excellent views of the Gilbert Scott Tower of the University of Glasgow where the peregrines have been nesting.
This was important as I strongly suspected that the Ravens nesting here were the ones which were displaced by the peregrines at the University. This makes the involvement of the Glasgow Peregrine Project particularly important. The first year that Ravens were recorded nesting was at the water tower was 2024 though it may have been even earlier. However, photographs from many sources of the water tower, showed no nesting Ravens in 2020-2022. The peregrines moved into the University and displaced the Ravens that had been nesting there up to 2022, so it’s perfectly possible that the displaced Ravens flew north and settled on the safe, stable and secure nest site provided by the disused water tower. Both structures are in line of sight from each other at a distance of 1.4 miles.
A site visit was arranged with Graeme Kerr (Design Manager) and Jim McGregor (Senior Site Manager). Jim is an award-winning site manager with Bellway Homes and no stranger to our Ravens. Jim recounted many observations of their movements and went on to be pivotal in the success of the project. Climbing the tower was quite an experience. There is only a dimly lit old, steep and rather rickety wooden staircase, but eventually the three of us got to the top where we were met by one of the best views in North Glasgow. We had excellent views of the Gilbert Scott Tower of the University of Glasgow where the peregrines have been nesting.
This was important as I strongly suspected that the Ravens nesting here were the ones which were displaced by the peregrines at the University. This makes the involvement of the Glasgow Peregrine Project particularly important. The first year that Ravens were recorded nesting was at the water tower was 2024 though it may have been even earlier. However, photographs from many sources of the water tower, showed no nesting Ravens in 2020-2022. The peregrines moved into the University and displaced the Ravens that had been nesting there up to 2022, so it’s perfectly possible that the displaced Ravens flew north and settled on the safe, stable and secure nest site provided by the disused water tower. Both structures are in line of sight from each other at a distance of 1.4 miles.
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© John Simpson
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© John Simpson
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Once we had climbed the tower, we opened the French windows on each of the four sides so that I could inspect the old nests. Interestingly, the birds had built a new nest each year which is unusual as Clyde Area Ravens will often build upon existing nests. Ravens are incredibly intelligent and their croaking calls and frequent flights around the tower told us that they were aware of our presence. After a very quick inspection, the resources assessed, we were ready to come back well before the breeding season started. The site was perfect.
Whilst Anna continued with the day-to-day observations, I was joined by Callum Leonard of the Central Scotland Raptor Study Group (CSRSG) who helped install the cameras overlooking the 2025 nest. The hope being that they would not build a new nest as they had done in previous years but would add to the 2025 nest and the cameras would be installed well in advance, thus negating any disturbance. It was worth a try but of course, they decided to build an entirely new nest on the other side of the tower! It was important not to cause any unnecessary disturbance to the Ravens, so after conducting the necessary assessment and fieldwork, I decided to wait until the young birds were at least two weeks old before installing new cameras. If the birds were any older this could encourage premature fledging and the young birds could jump. At this stage, the bond between both adults and chicks would be strong so I monitored the movements of the adults, noting flight lines away from the nest. To my surprise, the main guard perch was a pylon on the opposite site of the tower. A blind spot!
Armed with my observations, I paid the nest containing the well feathered chicks a visit. I placed the two pre-programmed trail cameras on the periphery of the nest, pulled back and secured the French windows. I sat back at ground level to see how the chicks and adults would react. Ravens are highly intelligent and inquisitive. They pecked at the new photographic additions, but they accepted them and were not phased. Throughout the visit, the young birds sat passively in the nest. All four pointing out from the centre of the nest like some corvid compass!
The chicks eye view obtained gives an excellent perspective. The cameras are the start of a process, familiarising this pair of Ravens to technology that will give birders and local communities a wonderful window into a world that would otherwise remain unseen. Many residents who we spoke to during this time have expressed their excitement about being able to see the ‘goings on’ in the nest high above them on the iconic water tower.
The tower will now be handed over to a factors firm, and we’ll probably have to renegotiate access, but if all goes well, the cameras will go in again in time for the new breeding season. Hopefully we’ll capture all aspects of the nesting behaviour of this fascinating species.
From the four chicks, three eventually fledged. They could be found sitting on the rooftops and perching on garden fences. The young birds were even seen hoping along following children making their way to school. The Raven family are no strangers to the construction workers, often sitting on the neighbouring pylons and scaffolding watching the tradesmen at work.
Whilst Anna continued with the day-to-day observations, I was joined by Callum Leonard of the Central Scotland Raptor Study Group (CSRSG) who helped install the cameras overlooking the 2025 nest. The hope being that they would not build a new nest as they had done in previous years but would add to the 2025 nest and the cameras would be installed well in advance, thus negating any disturbance. It was worth a try but of course, they decided to build an entirely new nest on the other side of the tower! It was important not to cause any unnecessary disturbance to the Ravens, so after conducting the necessary assessment and fieldwork, I decided to wait until the young birds were at least two weeks old before installing new cameras. If the birds were any older this could encourage premature fledging and the young birds could jump. At this stage, the bond between both adults and chicks would be strong so I monitored the movements of the adults, noting flight lines away from the nest. To my surprise, the main guard perch was a pylon on the opposite site of the tower. A blind spot!
Armed with my observations, I paid the nest containing the well feathered chicks a visit. I placed the two pre-programmed trail cameras on the periphery of the nest, pulled back and secured the French windows. I sat back at ground level to see how the chicks and adults would react. Ravens are highly intelligent and inquisitive. They pecked at the new photographic additions, but they accepted them and were not phased. Throughout the visit, the young birds sat passively in the nest. All four pointing out from the centre of the nest like some corvid compass!
The chicks eye view obtained gives an excellent perspective. The cameras are the start of a process, familiarising this pair of Ravens to technology that will give birders and local communities a wonderful window into a world that would otherwise remain unseen. Many residents who we spoke to during this time have expressed their excitement about being able to see the ‘goings on’ in the nest high above them on the iconic water tower.
The tower will now be handed over to a factors firm, and we’ll probably have to renegotiate access, but if all goes well, the cameras will go in again in time for the new breeding season. Hopefully we’ll capture all aspects of the nesting behaviour of this fascinating species.
From the four chicks, three eventually fledged. They could be found sitting on the rooftops and perching on garden fences. The young birds were even seen hoping along following children making their way to school. The Raven family are no strangers to the construction workers, often sitting on the neighbouring pylons and scaffolding watching the tradesmen at work.
© John Simpson
The project has been a wonderful partnership between ornithology, community and business. I would like to thank Anna for her continued monitoring effort and Callum for his technical expertise and ruining a pair of his good jeans whilst installing the original cameras, the community who have taken a real shine to the Ravens, the staff of Bellway Homes including the friendly sales staff, Graeme Kerr and Big Jim McGregor who facilitated the visits to the tower and the Directors of Bellway Homes who gave their enthusiastic permission.
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John Simpson
SOC Clyde Area Local Recorder Glasgow Peregrine Project Central Scotland Raptor Study Group |
Anna Wood
Glasgow Women’s Birders Group Scottish Ornithologists’ Club |
Further reading:
Anna’s superb and detailed chronology of the Raven’s nesting attempt with supporting images can be found on Anna's Substack.
Read more about Ravens here.