One of the Malham peregrine chicks from last year. Photo Neil Aldridge

A long running family saga in the Yorkshire Dales is due to be seen by its 100,000th viewer.

The peregrine falcons of Malham Cove will again provide a spectacle for visitors to the 80m (265ft) limestone crag. For the sixth year running, volunteers will run a free Falcon Watch post at the site.

Last year, more than 21,000 visitors used the telescopes set up to view the pair of breeding birds and their chicks. This included 6,000 children. The project is a joint venture between the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.

Ian Court, the park authority’s species officer, said: “This is the sixth year we and the RSPB have run the attraction and we will be welcoming our 100,000th visitor, which shows just how much interest the birds generate among the public.”

Malham Cove

The Falcon Watch site will be staffed every day between 10.30am and 4.30pm from 10 April to 30 August, though this is weather dependent.

Matthew Capper, the RSPB’s People Engagement Officer, said: “We are hoping the Peregrines will be true to form and produce some young again this year.”

The project is part of the society’s A Date with Nature programme of events, which make rare birds accessible for everyone to see. As well as the peregrines, visitors to Malham can expect to see green woodpeckers, little owls, redstarts and cliff-nesting house martins.

There will also be tweets – of the Twitter variety on the malhamperegrine feed, as well as a Facebook group called Malham Peregrine Watch.