By Rochester Falcon Watcher Carol P.

Hello Falcon Fans!  Here is a report and some pics from my weekend watches.  Both days, Beauty and Dot.ca were seen, and Billie and Beau too!  Plus some other exciting sightings.

Saturday, February 15, 2020

Early Saturday morning, I received a tweet from Watcher Larry O.  He had both Beauty (B) and Dot.ca (DC) on the Times Square Bldg (TSB).  Beauty was on the NE wing ledge and Dot.ca was on Cam 1 (aka Pan Cam).  By the time I arrived, DC was gone, but Beauty was still up on the NE wing ledge.

<– Beauty on TSB.

Soon after I arrived, Watcher Dana joined me in the “hole” (aka Aqueduct St).  I checked the RFalconcam pics to see if Dot.ca was around.  One picture showed a falcon on top of the Mercury statue.  My first thought was Dot.ca, but it seemed small.  Dana and I were surprised to find a Merlin siting on top of Mercury’s moneybag.

<– Merlin on Mercury.

The Merlin didn’t stay long. S/he took off and attempted to hunt the nearby pigeons with no luck.

Dana had to leave, so I headed over to High Falls for a quick look.  It was so cold over there, so I didn’t stay long.  Here are a few pics of my quick visit.

<– High Falls.

On my way home, I stopped at Maplewood Park and spotted both Billie and Beau on ST.

<– Billie and Beau at ST.

Sunday, February 16, 2020

I went out again Sunday morning.  When I arrived at the “hole”, the first thing I did was put down some seed for the pigeons that lived next to the Times Square Bldg.  I try to do this every weekend.

<– Pigeons in the “hole”! (This is for you Lynne! – lol)

From the “hole”, I could see that Dot.ca was at the TSB nest box, sitting on Cam 4.  Thanks to all those on-line watchers that let me know that it was Dot.ca.  (Linda, Joyce and Shaky)

<– Dot.ca at nest box.

While I was on the Court St. Bridge checking out the Mighty Genesee, Dot.ca took off.  I found him with Beauty on the north side of OCSR, top IBeam.

<– Beauty and Dot.ca on OCSR.

On my way home, I spotted a dark bird sitting on an apartment building, half way between downtown and ST.  I found a parking spot and was able to see that it was an unbanded juvie Peregrine Falcon.  Hmmmm, could this be one of Billie and Beau’s little ones???

<– Unbanded Juvie.

I left the juvie, who was settled in and had a very large crop.  Based on size, I’d guess this was a female.  I was really hoping it had been Lakota or Jupiter.  I wonder how they’re both doing.

At Maplewood Park, I spotted both Billie and Beau on ST.

<– Billie and Beau at ST.

From there, I drove to Charlotte and along the lake.  At the old Crescent Beach Restaurant, I saw a very large bird in a tree nearby.  It was a juvenile Bald Eagle!  So gorgeous!

<– Juvie Bald Eagle near Lake Ontario.

What a wonderful way to end my weekend watches!

By Rochester Falcon Watcher Carol P.

After Rochester was hit by a snow storm over the past couple days, I could not wait to get downtown to check on our pair.  We got quite a few inches, with some icy rain in-between.  I really can’t wait for spring!

My morning watch was a short one.  After feeding the pigeons in the “hole”, I looked everywhere for Beauty and Dot.ca.  I wasn’t able to find Dot.ca, but I did find Beauty on the Kodak Tower.  She was tucked in on the arch ledge above where the old Mariah and Kaver nest box used to be located.  It was very cold, and I’m sure there might be some heat leaking from the top of the building.

As you can see in the first picture, many of the Kodak buildings that I worked in for many years, have been taken over by Monroe Community College.  Nice to see them filled again, but it is very bittersweet.

On my way home, I stopped at Maplewood Park for a look at Seneca Towers (ST).  I was very happy to see both Billie and Beau on the railing on top of the building.

Here are some pictures from the nest box cameras that I thought you’d like to see.

The first two are of Beauty visiting the TSB nest box on 2/4/20, before the snow storm hit.

Here are the nest boxes after the storm.

Enjoy the snow and keep warm and safe!

By Rochester Falcon Watcher Carol P.

Well, here we are.  It’s 2020 and January has ended.  Hooray!  We always used to be so excited when February came, especially February 14th.  That was the date that Kaver returned home every year to join Mariah.  The Rochester Watchers would be out on that day just to see their reunion.

With Beauty and Dot.ca, it’s different.  Dot.ca remains in Rochester through the winter.  Most days we see them interacting with each other year round.  I and other watchers have been out keeping an eye on our Rochester pair.

Today I arrived downtown around 8:30 am.  After driving around for a while, I finally found Dot.ca on the north end of the Cross Rds bldg.

<– Dot.ca on the Cross Rds Bldg.

I was parked on State St, keeping an eye on DC, when he took off and landed on the building above me.  I got out of my car and looked up.  lol

<– Dot.ca above me on the Ellwanger & Barry Bldg.

I turned around and parked on the other side of the street.  DC was on the Ellwanger and Barry bldg.  I could see his black over black band and the “Y”.

<– You can see most of Dot.ca’s band here.

I got out of my car to get a better view.  From further down the street, I could see the American flag from the Powers Bldg, waving behind Dot.ca.  I love these pictures.  🙂

<– Dot.ca and the flag.

Dot.ca took off and came back to the same corner.  When he returned, he started chupping softly.  I could hear a responding chup coming from the building.  Beauty was up there somewhere.  He took off again and landed on a lower ledge.  There she is!

<–Dot.ca joins Beauty on the ledge.

Beauty had been up there the whole time eating breakfast.  It was time for Dot.ca to get a bit of what remained.  He approached her and grabbed a small piece.

<– Dot.ca taking a small piece of Beauty’s leftovers.

Dot.ca took his small morsel back up to the corner of the building, while Beauty watched from the ledge.  She was surrounded by feathers (pigeon) and had a full crop.

<– Beauty on the Ellwanger & Barry Bldg.

After a few minutes, Beauty took off and flew north.  I found her on top of a nearby church’s cross.

<– Beauty on a Church Cross.

She took off heading towards OCSR while Dot.ca continued to eat above me.

<– DC with food on the Ellwanger & Barry Bldg.

I drove over to the Andrew St Bridge.  From there I could see Dot.ca finishing his meal.

<– DC finishing his meal on the Ellwanger & Barry Bldg.

After he finished, he joined Beauty on the top Ibeam on OCSR.  It started to snow, so it was time to end my morning watch.

<– Beauty and Dot.ca on OCSR.

On my way home, I stopped to check out Seneca Towers.  I could see one falcon on the north west corner of the building.  Yesterday, I saw both Billie and Beau up there.

Can’t wait for the start of our falcons nesting season!!!