Thanks to the Cleveland Museum of Natural History staff, the FalconCams are all up and running, giving us an up-close view of peregrine nesting activities. Here is the Museum staff at work on camera set-up inside the skyscraper.
She missed Mr. Webster, then flew to the nestbox to guard it. Don’t look down, Mr. Webster!
SW and Ranger, like many other peregrine couples, nest on a skyscraper. However, throughout most of their natural history, peregrine falcons have nested on high, remote cliff ledges that are difficult to reach. The nestsite or "eyrie" (also spelled "aerie") really is not a nest but a shallow depression, or "scrape," in the rocks and soil. The following photo from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service shows what a peregrine nestsite looks like on a rocky cliff.
Right now during courtship, the birds spend more time in the nest. You can count the frames in the FalconCam archive to see what fraction or percent of each hour is spent in the nestbox. It’s also a good idea to begin a Falcon journal and record each day’s activities.
As you know, Ranger is SW’s new mate – and he is very young. Two questions Falcon fans have about him are whether he is old enough to be a father and whether he knows how to hunt well enough to provide for his family. During “courtship feeding”, the male catches prey and presents it to the female to prove to her that he will be a good provider. This activity also gives the female an extra nutritional boost that she will need to lay healthy eggs. Before she lays her eggs – which we hope will be soon - she becomes too heavy to hunt on her own. SW looks well-fed and healthy.
Mr. Harvey Webster, Director of Wildlife Resources at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, stepped out onto the ledge to install the FalconCam……..
And SW flew in to attack……
Click here to read what happened earlier
As humans began to build skyscrapers in the 20th century, peregrines adapted to the cliff-like buildings and found cities to their liking. At first, peregrines would lay their eggs on a skyscraper ledge and the eggs would often roll off the building during bad weather. Humans have helped nesting peregrines in cities by building nestboxes to avoid this problem. If you have been watching the FalconCam, you may have noticed Ranger and SW have scraped an indentation in the nestbox gravel just as they would on a rocky cliff in the wild. Here is Ranger with his nestbox on the 12th floor ledge of their skyscraper home.
Ranger is doing a good job of making a scrape for his family.
Volunteer nest monitor, Mr. Scott Wright, tells us: "Eggs will be laid every other day until SW is done, with up to 2 days between eggs. In my many years of nest monitoring, I have noticed every other day the average." Active incubation (male and female taking turns sitting on the eggs) often does not begin until the 2nd or 3rd egg, because the eggs are inert until they are incubated. Last year the first egg arrived after dark on March 10th.
Our thanks to the Cleveland Museum of Natural History for sponsoring the FalconCams.
Photos are courtesy of Scott Wright, volunteer peregrine nest monitor. They may be used by children for school and/or personal projects, but please give Mr. Wright photo credit. All others must contact Mr. Wright directly for permission to use his photos.
