The webcam focused on a nest monitored by Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust had received almost 1 million views already this season, with numbers boosted by extraordinary developments within the nest in recent weeks.

Back in March the resident female falcon laid two eggs, only to disappear, feared dead. She was subsequently replaced by a new female which has also laid two eggs.

Since the changeover in females there has been much speculation as to whether the original clutch of eggs would hatch and now the first chick has arrived, viewers and those directly involved in the nest cam project are waiting with baited breath to see how many more chicks hatch in what could turn out to be the most extraordinary year for the popular nest site.

Speaking on behalf of Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust Head of Communications Erin McDaid said: “This nest is always popular with viewers but the disappearance of our successful female caused a lot of concern but the sad news that she has almost certainly died has been tempered by the arrival of a new female in her first breeding season. There has been much debate as to whether any or all of the eggs would hatch and only time will tell. For now we’ve got everything crossed, hoping that the new arrival will be the 40^th chick to fledge from this important nest site.”

Under normal circumstances the original eggs should have hatched some weeks ago and it is still likely that they will prove non-viable but like many birds, peregrines usually delay full incubation of their eggs to ensure that chicks arrive at a similar time. If full incubation had not been triggered prior to the disappearance of the original female there is an outside chance they could still hatch.

Following the disappearance of the resident female a dead peregrine was found in the City Centre. The Wildlife Trust believes that it is highly likely to have been the female and is now awaiting results of a postmortem to see if a cause of death can be identified.

Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust has been working in partnership with Nottingham Trent University (NTU) for the past two decades to protect the nest site and high definition cameras were installed in 2012 – enabling the footage to be shared via the internet for the first time. Whilst the first chick to fledge this year would be the 40^th from the nest, since cameras were installed viewers have seen 28 chicks fledge successfully.

Earlier this year the NTU team installed new cameras to ensure that viewers got the best possible views.  

Speaking on behalf of Nottingham Trent University, Head of Sustainability, Charmaine Morrell said: "The events that have unfolded over the past few weeks have been fascinating for so many, including myself and now we have the delight of watching the first chick of this season.  Whilst it is still unknown whether all the eggs will hatch, it appears that P9 and Archie are so far doing their best to ensure their new arrival is given the best start possible”.