By Rochester Falcon Watcher Carol P.

It was cold (temps in the 20’s), really, really cold!  My watch started with a bit of sun and clouds and ended with a blizzard.  C’mon Spring, move over Winter!  I’m really ready for some warmer temperatures.

I could see on my phone that Beauty was on the eggs.  I looked everywhere for Dot.ca, but could not find him.  So, I parked on the Broad St Bridge, where I had my best view of the area.

At 10:05 am, Dot.ca flew in with food and brought it to Beauty at the nest box.  Beauty came out and grabbed it.  She took it to the base of the Mercury statue.  Dot.ca went into the nest box to take his turn on the eggs.

<— Beauty with food on base of Mercury.

It took Beauty about 10 minutes to eat her fill.  She cached the remainder of the prey on the base of the Mercury statue and then flew over to the top Ibeam on OCSR.

<— Beauty on OCSR.

10:50 am – Beauty returned to the nest box and Dot.ca came bombing out, kakking.  He chased something around the Wilder Bldg, but I couldn’t see what it was.  After chasing it away, Dot.ca returned to the top of the Mercury statue.

<— Beauty to the nest box.

<— Dot.ca on Mercury.

It started to snow, really hard.  It quickly went from sunshine to white out conditions.

<— Dot.ca in a blizzard!

It was snowing so hard, I could hardly see Dot.ca.  Of course that’s when he decided to take off, heading west.

I waited until the snow stopped before ending my watch.  Before leaving, I saw that Dot.ca had returned to the top IBeam on OCSR.

<— Dot.ca on OCSR.

On my way home, I drove along the lake.  There were huge amounts of Turkey Vultures flying through.  Some high, some low.  Some landing in trees and some on the ground.  I love watching the migration.  It’s a beautiful sight!

<— Turkey Vulture migration!

By Rochester Falcon Watch Carol P.

*Click on any pictures to enlarge them.*

It was a very cold Easter morning.  This is a day I always like to check on our falcons.  Bad things have happened in past years.  Thankfully, all was peaceful and quiet this morning.

When I first arrived downtown in the hole, aka Aqueduct St, I spotted a falcon up on the Wilder green strip.  The bird was facing away from me and I thought it was Dot.ca.  It wasn’t until the falcon turned around that I was able to see the black over green band.  It was Beauty.

<— View from the hole aka Aqueduct St.

<— Beauty on Wilder green stip.

<— Beauty on green strip.

Beauty took off, first heading east, over the river.  She looped around and landed on the nest box platform.

<— Beauty on the nest box platform.

She entered the nest box and Dot.ca left.  It was her turn to be on the eggs.

Dot.ca flew overhead and landed on the top Ibeam on OCSR.  He did a hunting stoop over the river and returned.  It was time to preen.

<— Dot.ca on OCSR.

It was time to end my Easter morning watch.  At 11:oo am, I texted that I was leaving.  Just as I was pulling out, Dot.ca took off and flew over to the Times Square Bldg.  He landed under the northeast wing.  Directly above the nest box.

<— Dot.ca on the NE wing ledge of the TSB.

As I was leaving, I could hear him softly wailing from above.  Letting Beauty know he was nearby.  Everything was peaceful and quiet for our downtown falcons this Easter sunday.

On my way home, I quickly scanned the Seneca Towers area, but could find no falcons there.

Yesterday, Kathy, Lisa and I drove to Syracuse to spend the day with Pigott and George.  I hadn’t seen them since last year.  Their nest box was relocated due to renovations on the State Bldg.  They have not been see at the new location.  We found them over on an abandoned apartment bldg.  They were hanging out on different balconies, hunting the neighboring pigeons.  We did not see them mate.  Due to their behavior, we don’t believe they have laid any eggs.  Here are some pictures from our visit.  Enjoy!

<— The State Bldg, Pigott and George’s relocated nest box.

<— Pigott

<— Black over Black Banded Pigott

<— Unbanded George.

<— Pigott, George and the Neighbors.

By Rochester Falcon Watcher MAK

It was a sunny brisk morning with a temperature of 37 degrees (F) 3 (C) and a cold breeze

Click on the pics to see the full version

This will be my final Falcon Watch report as I will be moving to Arkansas this week. It’s been an honor and a privilege to share space with our resident Rochester Peregrine Falcons Beauty, DC, Billie and Seth and all the rest that have graced me with their presence over the years. I’ve met a lot of wonderful folks through our shared love for the birds and I will miss everyone more than I can express.

Last weekend I got some shots of Billie and Seth on the Veteran’s Memorial Bridge-she was eating and he was watching her.

<Seth> Billie>

Today, as I started out at the Northridge Church at East Ridge Rd. and St. Paul St. I spotted Seth on his favorite north window ledge spot. He was looking down toward the river  a lot and when I broke away to tweet out my findings he flew off without me seeing him. I have seen very little of him and his mate Buffalo Billie as of late since they are no doubt sticking close to their nest.

Seth didn’t return so I headed downtown where some watchers met with me in the hole. Joining me for the last time were Dan, Larry and his dog Zeke, Linda King (Braveheart), Jeanne, Joyce and her dogs Casey and Abby, DebbieH with her dog Blaze. I do love dogs!!!

Dot.ca (DC) was under the northeast wing of the Times Square building (TSB) and Beauty was with her eggs in the nest box.

DC did some alarm calling a couple times and flew off after a Red-tailed Hawk. We watched him dive bomb the hawk over in front of OCSR before chasing it to the north and out of sight. He returned to the wing ledge. Beauty came out to the deck and was nibbling on something before flying off to the north. DC being egg incubating lover that he is went down to the nest box to be with his eggs. The Beautyful one returned and landed under the northeast wing ledge.

<Beauty

Beauty flew out and came to rest on pan cam. DC flew out from the nest box and back up to the northeast wing ledge. They both gave me a final rouse (shaking their feathers).

<DC

Beauty then went down to the nest box and that was all she wrote. I ended my watch at high noon feeling fulfilled for both Beauty and DC gave me a wave goodbye during the watch. Keep smiling everyone- I know I will once I get past the sadness of leaving these magnificent creatures and all my peeps! 🙂

Click on the links below to see snippet videos of Billie and Seth and Beauty and DC. Also, the final solo video of my girl the Beautyful One 😉

https://youtu.be/9ctyh_1Ybdw

https://youtu.be/dsou87VvwUw

https://youtu.be/5Ht2cFKkhXc

By Rochester Falcon Watcher Carol P.

As we wait patiently for Beauty to lay her first egg………

*Be sure to click on the pictures to see them full size.*

My watch started at the Seneca Tower (ST) location at 9:15 am.  From Maplewood Park, I could not see any falcons on the building.  As I was driving towards downtown, MAK tweeted that she had seen both Billie and Seth this morning.

Downtown, from the Broad St Bridge (BSB), I found Beauty at the Times Square Bldg (TSB) nest box.  I was unable to find Dot.ca (DC) at first.

<— Beauty at the TSB nest box.

<— My view from the Broad St Bridge.

At 10:15 am, DC flew up to the nest box platform.  Beauty took off.  I was too far away to see if Dot.ca brought Beauty a food gift.  By the time I arrived in the hole (aka Aqueduct St) for a closer look, DC had taken off and was now on the top IBeam of OCSR.  He was looking very white in the sunshine.

<— Dot.ca on OCSR.

Dot.ca and I waited patiently for Beauty to return.  She did, at about 10:50 am.  Beauty landed on the TSB nest box platform with a very full crop.

<— Beauty on the TSB Nest Box Platform.

<— Click to see this pic!

A few minutes later, Beauty walked into the nest box and Dot.ca took off heading west.  I next time I saw him, he was circling above, keeping their territory clear.

I ended my watch at about 11:00 am.  Beauty will hopefully, soon lay her first egg!

By Rochester Falcon Watcher Carol P.

*Be sure to click on any pictures to enlarge them.*

It was a beautiful, end of Winter, Sunday morning.  Lots of sun and blue sky.  A wonderful day for a falcon watch.

I left my house at about 8:30 am and first checked out the DSS and BS locations.  I had no luck finding a falcon at either.  Yesterday, Joyce and Brian H had reported seeing an unbanded juvie Peregrine Falcon at the Brighton Site.

On my way downtown, fellow watcher Larry O, was texting that he was watching Dot.ca hunting from the top of the Times Square Bldg.  He also had Beauty at the nest box.  By the time I arrived and parked on the Court St Bridge (CSB), Larry was gone.  But, Dot.ca was still up on top of the Times Square Bldg (TSB) on the SW wing ring.  I could not find Beauty.

<— DC hunting from the top of the wings on the Times Square Bldg.

I moved down to the “hole” (aka Aqueduct St.), where I had a nice view of DC and the nest box.  At 9:24 am, Dot.ca took off and flew down to the nest box, where Beauty joined him.

<— Beauty and Dot.ca meet at the TSB nest box.

While Beauty watched from the platform, Dot.ca entered the nest box and did some scraping.  Ten minutes later, Dot.ca flew out of the nest box and ended up on the ledge under the NE wing, which was directly above.  Beauty took a turn doing some pre-egg preparation on their scrape.

<— Dot.ca on the NE wing ledge.

An hour later, they both remained where they were.  The pigeons were quite active during this time, flying here and there.  Dot.ca watched with interest from above.

<— The neighbors.

I had a nice view of Beauty, when she moved out of the nest box.  At this point, all was very quiet and peaceful.

<— Beauty and Dot.ca on the Times Square Bldg.

Ten minutes later, Dot.ca took off when I wasn’t looking.  I had no idea where he went.  Beauty remained in front of the nest box, throwing her head back every few seconds, attempting to rid herself of a pellet.

At 11:00 am, Dot.ca returned, carrying a food gift for Beauty.  It was a small, dark bird.  Beauty vocalized her approval quite loudly and grabbed DC’s offering.  She took off and landed with it on the SW corner of the Wilder Bldg.  Feathers were flying almost immediately.

<— Dot.ca brings a food gift to Beauty at the nest box.

Dot.ca remained at the nest box, patiently waiting for Beauty to finish her meal.

<— Dot.ca on TSB and Beauty on Wilder.

It took Beauty only 15 minutes to finish.  She turned towards the TSB and vocalized to Dot.ca above.

<— Beauty finished her meal.

Dot.ca was quickly off!  He flew to Beauty and mated with her on the corner of the Wilder Bldg.

<— Beauty and Dot.ca mate on the Wilder Bldg.

Afterwards, Dot.ca took off leaving Beauty on Wilder.  I have no idea where he ended up.

It was time for me to end my watch.  I left Beauty, soaking up the sun on a cold, winter morning.  Spring will be here before we know it!

<— Beauty on Wilder.

On my way home, I did check out Seneca Towers from Maplewood Park.  I was not able to find either Billie or Seth.  But I wasn’t worried, since MAK had reported seeing both of them this morning.

I’ll leave you with a falcon mute! 🙂

By Rochester Falcon Watcher Carol P.

It was a cold morning (temps in the 30’s), but the sun and clouds were taking turns across the sky.  Except for my frozen fingers, it was an almost perfect morning for watching the Rochester Falcons.

My first stops were at the DSS bldg and the Brighton Site (BS).  I found no falcons at either location.

While I was driving, I received a text from Ei.  Dot.ca was currently at the Times Square Bldg nest box.  At 9:30 am, I found Dot.ca on top of the pan cam (camera #1), just where Ei reported seeing him on camera.

*Click on any pictures to enlarge.*

At 9:40 am, Dot.ca took off, heading north.  He landed on the north end of the Cross Rds Bldg.  His soft wailing filled the air.  I kept thinking Beauty had to be nearby.

I drove over to the Andrew St Bridge, where I had a better view of DC on Cross Rds.  At 10 am, I looked away for just a second.  Looked back and he was gone.  Poof!  With my broken down binocs, I finally found a falcon.  There was one on top of the Mercury Statue.  Off I went.

From Broad St, I had a nice view of Beauty on top of Mercury and Dot.ca, who was sitting on the platform in front of the Times Square Bldg (TSB) nest box.

At 10:20 am, Beauty flew up to the TSB nest box and both she and Dot.ca entered the nest box.

This is the only picture of Beauty and Dot.ca bonding inside the nest box, captured by our main camera.

Five minutes later, Beauty and Dot.ca left the nest box and landed on the Wilder Bldg green stripe.

<— Beauty on Wilder

<— Dot.ca on Wilder

At 11:05 am, Beauty couldn’t resist taking off and chasing a flock of pigeons that flew too close.  Off she went!

A minute later, Beauty returned and landed on top of the fire escape ladder at the top of the Wilder Bldg, just above Dot.ca.

At 11:40 am, Beauty took off from the top of the ladder, over the top of the Wilder Bldg heading north.  Dot.ca knew she left and kept looking up for her.

About 10 minutes later, I spotted Beauty flying high above in the ozone.  I caught this one picture of her soaring above.  So beautiful.

Dot.ca took to the sky.  Following Beauty.  They were either on a hunt or on patrol of their territory.  It was a wonderful way to end my Sunday morning watch.  🙂

Oh, one more thing.  On my way home, I stopped at Maplewood Park to check out Seneca Towers (ST).  Sadly, I saw no falcons while I was there.

Enjoy the rest of the weekend everyone!

By Rochester Falcon Watcher Carol P.

Yet another winter storm is hitting the east coast.  Thankfully we won’t be getting too much snow here from this storm.  But others are being hit hard.  Keep safe and warm everyone!

Now that watchers have witnessed Beauty and Dot.ca mating on the Frontier Communication tower, we can officially say, let the season begin!  Our dynamic duo have also been seen over at the Times Square nest box.  They have been quite busy over there, digging out a very large scrape.  Last year, Beauty laid her first egg on March 23rd.

A few of the Rochester Watchers have been out, keeping an eye on the Rochester Falcons.  Both pairs have been seen over the winter months; Beauty & Dot.ca and Billie and Seth.

Here are a few pictures from my Winter Watches over the past month.  Enjoy!

*Please click on any pictures to enlarge them.*

2/17/18 (Billie and Seth at Seneca Towers – From Maplewood Park.)

2/17/18 (Beauty and Dot.ca on the Kodak Tower.)

2/23/18 (Beauty and Dot.ca on OCSR, Mercury, Wilder and Powers Bldg.)

2/24/18 (Beauty on Frontier Communication Tower, just after mating with Dot.ca.)

3/3/18 (Dot.ca in the Times Square Bldg nest box.)

Pat here, posting just my second Falcon Watch Report ever, so bear with me. It’s really short.

I brought my camera to work yesterday and managed to catch a Beauty meal on the Mercury statue. As usual, Dot.ca begged her to share, but she was having none of that. He did get the leftovers, though. And that’s all she wrote.

By Rochester Falcon Watcher MAK

It was a bit breezy with a few snowflakes in the air and a temperature of 26 (F) -3 (C)

Click on the pics to see the full version

So I thought it was time I did an actual falcon watch and write a report instead of just checking on our beloved falcons on my way to and from walking Bella. I began my watch at Seneca Towers where I was happy to see both Billie and Seth on the north end of the building. She was on the northwest corner below the railing with her back to me and he was on his favorite spot on the north window ledge.

<Click it

I didn’t spend too long with them as I had to give a friend a ride to the Federal building downtown. Once there, I spotted both Beauty and Dot.ca (DC) on the top I-beam southeast side of OCSR. They were facing each other at first with about 9 windows between them.

<Click

DC flew off after a few minutes heading south over the river and returned about a half minute later to land near the south corner of OCSR where he was closer to the Beautyful one about 3 windows from her.

<Beauty  DC> <Click

They both flew off soon after heading west and disappearing behind OCSR from where I was parked at the Rochester Riverside Hotel (formerly the Radisson Hotel). I drove over to Bragdon Place where I could see that DC had gone to the top I-beam northeast side of OCSR and Beauty to the north end of the Crossroads building.

I left at this point to walk Bella and check the Brighton site and DSS building but found no falcons at either location. Upon returning to downtown I found Beauty and DC were right where I left them and while I was tweeting, Beauty snuck off and flew around to the top I-beam southeast side of OCSR with DC remaining on the north side. He stretched, pooped and settled in, showing me his back and then I had to leave to pick up my friend from her hearing at the Federal building.

<Beauty<DC (click it)

When I got home Seth was on the northwest corner of Seneca Towers to greet me. As always, I ended my watch with a smile after sharing space with our resident Rochester Peregrine Falcons! 🙂

Click on the links below to see today’s videos

https://youtu.be/f9p9ryspPQg

https://youtu.be/ZahxuFef2Y8

By Rochester Falcon Watcher Carol P.

Time for another Sunday morning falcon watch.  It was cloudy and dreary, with a wet snow falling.  Before I arrived downtown, falcon watchers Larry O and MAK had reported falcon sightings.  Larry had seen Beauty on the top Ibeam of the north side of OCSR and MAK had reported seeing both Billie and Seth at ST on the north side window ledge.

I found Beauty on the same spot Larry had reported seeing her, on the north side of OCSR.  I drove all over downtown looking for Dot.ca, but couldn’t find him.  I returned to keep watch on Beauty.

<— Beauty on OCSR.

While I was watching Beauty, she started to vocalize.  She was announcing the arrival of Dot.ca.  I looked up just in time to see him fly up into the OCSR elevator shaft.

<— Dot.ca in the OCSR elevator shaft.

<— Beauty and Dot.ca on OCSR.

I was happy to see both of them doing well.  It was time to move on.

My next stop was Seneca Towers (ST).  From Maplewood Park, I could see both Billie and Seth were still on the north end window ledge where MAK had reported seeing them.

<— Billie and Seth at ST.

It was time to end my falcon watch.  On my way home, I did check the Charlotte area, where I found no falcons.  But, I found Abbotts still closed for the season.  Soon, there will be a long line waiting for yummy ice cream!  🙂

More cold temps and snow expected here in Rochester.  Hope everyone is keeping warm!