By Rochester falcon watcher MAK

Let me begin my report by saying Happy Earth Day to everyone around the world who follows our Rochester Peregrine falcons! Before I left home I checked to see that Beauty was on the eggs. I arrived about 5:55am on the Broad St. bridge. After a quick drive over to the east side to look for Archer I returned and waited with the Beautyful one for him to show up. Finally around 6:35am Archer flew in from behind me and landed on the heel of Mercury.

He flew off when I wasn’t looking and I saw him with prey on the base of Mercury but he didn’t eat any, instead  he flew to the nestbox and relieved Beauty from her egg warming duties. Beauty flew out over the river and then back behind the Old Changing Scenes Restaurant. I thought she was going to the Frontier Communications Tower so I took off down to Exchange St. and as I turned the corner I spotted her flying straight down ExchangeSt. I followed her through the intersection at Main St. where Exchange changes to State St.(thankfully the traffic lights were working with me)It was the coolest thing to have her in my sights in between the buildings while driving after her. I lost her behind buildings when she veered left near Church St. Sure enough when I got to the City Hall parking lot and looked in my binocs there she was big as life on the north side of the Frontier Communications tower under the platform.

Half hour later Beauty flew from the tower headed toward the river so I took off  to find out where she went. I got to the Broad St. bridge just in time to see her land on the base of Mercury and eat a little of the cached food Archer had left there earlier.

After a minute or so Beauty was off again headed toward FCT with her small morsel of food in talons. Once again I took off to follow her to the Frontier Communications Tower. I found her in the same spot as before only this time she was finishing up her breakfast. She then flew up to the platform railing on the north side of FCT and preened  herself for an hour or so.

I just love how she almost always has her back to me. I swear I’d know that back anywhere! Beauty took off very fast in the direction of the Times Square building and so I did too! I arrived on the bridge to see 2 falcons flying above Midtown headed toward me. I didn’t know at the time it was Archer with Beauty. I thought perhaps it was an intruder. They flew over the river and the  Thomson Reuters building where I followed Beauty to the nestbox and lost track of Archer. I called Donna to see when Archer left the nestbox so I could figure out if it was him or another falcon flying with the Beautyful one. My thoughts on what happened was that there may very well have been a hawk or something in the area and Beauty took off after it with Archer joining her to escort it out of their territory. In any case all was quiet when I ended my watch with Beauty on the eggs and Archer headed to parts unknown. Have a great day everyone!  🙂

By Rochester falcon watcher MAK

Friend and fellow watcher Lynda picked me up for a falcon watch this morning. We went directly downtown to see what we could see. Upon our arrival on the Broad St. bridge I spotted Archer just taking off from the top ibeam southeast side of the OCSR building. We jumped out of the car and watched him fly due east. When he didn’t come back we took a ride over by HSBC with no luck. I suggested that maybe he went over to KP and so we headed there next. This was Lyndas first introduction to Lady Pefa and she wasn’t disappointed. I found her on the tall still second railing down.

She soon flew off of there and headed southeast over Mt. Read Blvd. to Ridgeway and back around coming close to flying overhead landing on the still to the east(right) of the tall still. Now mind you Lynda is a very excitable gal and so she was elated to see Lady Pefa fly so close. We had to hug and jump up and down in a happy dance! We stayed there awhile discussing an upcoming trip to Toronto on Monday with Joyce to see Quest. She will be joining us hopefully, along with CarolP and KathyO and possibly Dana.

It was close to lunchtime so we decided to head back downtown in search of falcons on our way to the Highland diner. We saw Beauty fly up to the nestbox and enter it. We left for lunch and returned afterwards to see no more falcons before we ended our watch.  While at KP I took a short video of Lady Pefa which was totally luck that I got her because I could not see her in the camera screen because of the sun shining on it! 🙂

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0VK9zgBx18I

By Rochester falcon watcher MAK

Hello everyone!

I checked the cameras before I left home this morning to see that Archer was on the eggs. The first half hour of my watch I got skunked! After a quick trip around the east side behind Bausch and Lomb,HSBC and Xerox I drove back to the Broad St. bridge. I parked at the east end north side where I could see the Frontier Communications tower the best and sure enough there was a dark figure on the top arm of the FCT. I drove over to city hall to get a closer look and ID it. There she was… the Beautyful one!

I stayed with her there up close and personal for awhile and then I went back to the bridge and watched from afar. She flew off the FCT when I wasn’t looking and I next saw her fly in front of the nestbox and over to the base of Mercury. Archer flew out hot on her trail landing first on the opposite side of the base from her and then up to heel of Mercury. They weren’t there for more than a minute or two when Beauty took off flying in my direction over the river, the Convention Center,South Ave. garage,Midtown and back to the west side(the side facing the nestbox at Times Square) of the Bausch and Lomb building. She appeared to have a small morsel of food with her which I think she had while on Mercury as well. She flew from near the south end of the west side of B&L to the northwest corner.

I lost track of Archer while following Beauty and I assumed he went back to sit on the eggs. Donna confirmed that he had indeed returned to the nestbox to resume his brooding duties. It was time to end my watch and leave them to it! 🙂

By Rochester falcon watcher MAK

I started the first 30 minutes of my watch waiting for Beauty to appear when I decided to take a ride around in search of…  I found the Beautyful one on the HSBC building southeast corner eating prey.

It wasn’t long after, that she flew off to the north(right looking at pic) out around to the other side where I lost sight of her.

I drove back to the Broad St. bridge where I witnessed a crow fly down to and tap 1 of 2 ducks that were flying over the river and then chased them both away from the Rochester Convention Center area. Donna let me know that Beauty and Archer had switched in the nestbox. I then noticed a little white spot over on the OCSR building top ibeam southeast side.

I drove down to Aqueduct St. for a closer look and spotted the little white feather on his right wing…it was Archer and he was plucking feathers and eating something.

He flew off over the river then back between the OCSR and Thomson Reuters buildings out of my view. I thought he went to the nestbox because when I looked in that direction I saw a falcon fly up to and over the nestbox but it looked like Beauty to me judging by size. Meanwhile DebbieH had come by so I was a bit distracted and it was time for me to be getting the truck home for Sue. So when I saw a falcon fly to the base of Mercury and land on the side of it that I couldn’t see I decided to leave before I got a look at who it was for sure. Donna said Archer and Beauty switched at 7:42am so Archer would have been in the nestbox and Beauty the one that flew to Mercury. Phew, sometimes it can be quite challenging to keep track of who’s who and what’s what when they fly behind buildings.   🙂

By Rochester falcon watcher MAK

Hello everyone! This morning I arrived on a windy Broad St. bridge about 6:15am. Donna reported that Archer was in the nestbox sitting on the eggs since 6:15am so I missed the changing of the guard by seconds!

Approximately 8:00am LarryO and his dog Cleo stopped by for a minute to get the scoop. Practically as soon as they left I spotted Beauty. She was flying above the Times Square and Reuters Thomson buildings when she suddenly flew back over the river and stooped on something by the Rochester Convention Center. I lost sight of her momentarily and next thing I knew she was flying above the Rundell Library with another falcon. Up,up,up high into the dark clouds that were moving in. I lost sight again and when they came out of the clouds they were on the east side flying above the Geva Theater and Washington Square Park area. My next sighting was of Beauty circling above me and flying straight up Broad St. eastbound to Midtown and out of sight. After a few minutes she reappeared flying over the river and landing on the top ibeam south side of the OCSR building.

I drove down to Aqueduct St. for a closer look of Beauty and saw that she was nibbling on something small(cached food I thought to myself) for just a few minutes. I decided to end my watch and of course after I left she and Archer changed off on egg sitting duties. Such is the way of a falcon watcher! 🙂

By Rochester falcon watcher MAK

My last report started with me feeling bad for Beauty watching and waiting for Archer from the Frontier Communications Tower. This morning I find myself feeling the same way for Lady Pefa at Kodak Park. When I first spotted her she was on the tall still railing facing and looking toward downtown.

Archer had undoubtedly just left her for I had come to KP looking for him as he was not anywhere downtown that I could see. I had arrived on the Broad St. bridge about 6:15am and after an hour of seeing no falcons decided to check out Kodak Park for Archer and Lady Pefa. Upon my arrival there Donna texted to me that he had indeed showed up at the nestbox on the Times Square building right after I left the downtown area. He is a sneaky little guy that Archer.

From the still Lady Pefa flew to the southwest corner of the blue building and sat awhile.

Lady Pefa flew back to the still and as she landed on the railing I caught a glimpse of a male Kestral which landed on the chain link fence in front of me. He soon took off as I was trying to line my camera up in my scope for a pic.  Shortly afterwards LP stooped off the still and I failed to see her come back up so I waited. She suddenly appeared on the corner of the blue building again. Her next move was to the ibeam in front of the pigeon poop hole(possible nest/scrape site) for a couple minutes and then back to the tall still.

I had to leave for a doctor appointment at this point but when I was done I headed back downtown. I decided to stop on the Andrews St. bridge for a change and it turned out to be a good call for as soon as I got my binocs to my eyes I spotted a falcon flying between the OCSR and Crossroads buildings. It was Archer and he flew to the west corner of the OCSR top ibeam where Beauty was waiting for him. They mated and both flew off around to the south side of OCSR where I couldn’t see them.

I then drove to Aqueduct St. where I found Archer on the top ibeam near the west corner of OCSR. Donna texted to me that Beauty had flown back to the nestbox. After a few minutes Archer flew to the south corner top ibeam of OCSR and that is where I left them as I ended my watch.  🙂

Here’s a link to more pics from my morning watch:

http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/sharing/shareRedirectSwitchBoard.jsp?token=433958312213%3A794327277&sourceId=533754321803&cm_mmc=eMail-_-Share-_-Photos-_-Sharee

By Rochester falcon watcher MAK

This morning I was feeling bad for Beauty. She flew to the Frontier Communications Tower facing north,facing Kodak Park, facing Archer and Lady Pefa. The Beautyful one was waiting and watching for Archer.

This was the first glimpse I had of her in between buildings from the Broad St. bridge. It was a touching and revealing moment for me. Archer should be with her only and she should not have to be looking and longing for him  OR watching the nestbox with their 3 little treasures in it by herself. Well, I guess I had better just get used to it and hope for the best for all involved. The next pic shows Beauty looking back to the south toward the Times Square building toward her nestbox toward her future family.

Archer did show up with a small morsel and they met under the northeast wing to exchange it and a few words. He flew off almost as quickly as she landed next to him. He acts like he’s afraid of her. Wonder why?!  She flew out of sight, he went to the nestbox and I had to end my watch.

I went to visit a friend of mine (Tesa)who needed a change of scenery so I took her and her Golden Retriever (Molly)on a watch. First we went to Russell Station where we watched a Belted Kingfisher hunting from a bush along the waters edge.

Next stop was Aqueduct St. in downtown where we observed Beauty and Archer on the top ibeam of the Old Changing Scenes Restaurant at the south and west corners. Beauty flew around above us giving Tesa a nice little taste of falcon watching. Not bad for her first watch.

We left for Kodak Park where Tesa spotted Lady Pefa on the railing of the west most still. I was impressed and she was all smiles! Perhaps we have a new part-time recruitment for watching. As we sat there we noticed ALOT of dark smoke coming from near the Lake Ontario shore. We decide to investigate before I took her home. We found a blazing fire raging through the marsh reeds and grasses at the west end of  Buck Pond at Edgemere Dr.

I was so shook up I called it Cranberry Pond and not Buck Pond,Edgemere Rd. instead of Edgemere Dr. when I tweeted it out. I couldn’t help but think of all the wildlife that was perishing or losing their home as a result of this tragic event. On the news tonight they mentioned no homes were evacuated and no report of  injuries or deaths. They failed to mention the critters living in the reeds and grasses.:(

Not exactly the best ending for a watch but end it did. 🙂

Here’s a link to my pics of the day

http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/sharing/shareRedirectSwitchBoard.jsp?token=925201212213%3A342015417&sourceId=533754321803&cm_mmc=eMail-_-Share-_-Photos-_-Sharer

By Rochester falcon watcher MAK

Good Monday morning to all! Friday evening I picked up Donna and her daughter from New Jersey at the train station in Rochester.  I had checked before I picked them up and found both Archer and Beauty. We went directly to the Broad St. bridge and found that Archer had snuck out and gone over to his home away from home KP to see Lady Pefa. While down on Aqueduct St. Dawn and Bullet stopped by to meet and greet Donna and Kara. BrianH and Joyce showed up as well

Saturday morning it was only Beauty again but she had dropped her second egg overnite so we were happy for that! Archer finally made an appearance around 9:00am and we were off to the races. There were lots of watchers that came out to join us and meet Donna, Kara and Bobbie from Ireland. Beauty and Archer did not dissappoint by doing alot of flying for the crowd.

Saturday evening I took Donna to Kodak Park for her first visit there to see the lay of the land. Archer was not there but but Lady Pefa was so we watched awhile and visited with Jeanne,SusanC,Brian,Joyce and CarolP.

Sunday morning Archer had his a-game going for sure! He was seen on the eggs at 6:56am Then CarolP reported him flying and mating with Lady Pefa over at KP. After having his fun there he returned to downtown and continued his active ways by stooping successfully 2 times bringing his prey back to the Times Square building under the northeast wing. He and Beauty mated a couple times besides flying around quite a bit he also went after a Turkey Vulture at one point. We were calling him Superman and hoping he can keep it up when there are babies at both nest sites. At the moment it would seem that Archer is up to the task!

Sunday afternoon we went to Wild Wings so Donna and her daughter,Kara could check out the raptors and feed chicadees on the trail in the park afterward. Joyce,Jeanne,LarryO and his mother and Sue Chandler (from Corning) met us there. We got the royal treatment as they brought practically every bird they have out for us to get a close encounter of the best kind! We had a blast there. We were tired and sore after that but we chose to go down to the lake at Charlotte to see the sights. We found BrianH there counting migrating birds. He walked the pier with Donna and Kara sharing his knowledge of raptors and such. Joyce and I stayed back with her dogs Abby and Casey to enjoy the beautiful warm breezes of the day. When they returned we left to get a bite to eat before going home. It was a very busy and eventful weekend with my good friend from Jersey. One that I will never forget for sure!

This morning 4-11-11 it was time for Donna and Kara to go home but before we went to the station we went to the Broad St. bridge for a final watch. Just as she greeted them upon their arrival Beauty bid them farewell on their journey home. I hope Archer has better manners the next time visitors come to our fair city!  🙂

Here’s a link to my pics of the weekend:      http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/sharing/shareRedirectSwitchBoard.jsp?token=942632112213%3A841842042&sourceId=533754321803&cm_mmc=eMail-_-Share-_-Photos-_-Sharer

By Rochester Falcon Watcher Carol P.

If you’ve been keeping up with the tweets left by the Watchers in the field, you know that we’ve been attempting to figure out what was going on at the two possible nest sites in Rochester (NY).  A team of Watchers including Kathy O, Dana, Joyce, MAK, Brian H, Lou, Larry O & Carol P have been out until dark the last few days, some Downtown and some at Kodak Park (KP).  At both locations, two Falcons had been seen.

We were very excited, thinking we had two different pairs.  After awhile, I posted on the forum that we suspected it may have been Archer visiting both locations.  When two were spotted at one location, some of the Watchers would check out the other location.  We were never able to find Archer downtown when there were two at Kodak Park.  We tried hard, driving around for hours looking for Archer, trying to prove that there was a 2nd Tiercel.  No luck.

Yesterday, Joyce took pictures of the Tiercel at KP.  We now believe that it’s Archer visiting both locations.

Tonite, we had two at KP and one downtown.  Beauty was on the Frontier Communication Tower platform, SW corner.  We all ended up at KP, Watching the two there.  Just before it started getting dark, the Tiercel took off from KP and headed south towards downtown.  Dana, Lou, Kathy O and I remained at KP, while Joyce & MAK went downtown to check on Beauty and to see if Archer was there.  They reported that Archer was on the Times Square Bldg on the SE ledge above the nest box and Beauty could be seen at the nest box on the cameras.  Does it prove 100% that Archer is visiting both locations, no.  But we do believe that he is.

We will continue to keep a close eye on the situation and report what we see.  Stay tuned!

by Rochester Falcon Watcher Lou

I did a little falcon watching Saturday afternoon with Dana, Carol, Kathy O, and Dan. Archer and Beauty were very active around the home base (Time Square building), taking advantage of a stiff wind to aggressively chase off intruders who ventured into their air space, including crows and a cooper hawk.

On Sunday afternoon, I returned to do a brief watch with Dana, Carol, and Kathy O. Unlike Saturday however, we had only brief visits by them. I managed to get a few decent shots, playing around with a new camera. Here’s an album with a few pictures from both days.

Lou