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Falcon Watches – 12/27, 28 and 29/13 – Happy Holidays!

By Rochester Falcon Watcher Carol P.

Even during the busy holiday season, the Rochester Falcon Watchers are out and about.  All three Rochester Falcons have been seen over the past few days, reported by Larry O, Kathy O, Lisa McK, Joyce, Dana, Lou, Pat, and me Carol P.  Thanks to you all for taking time to go out and check on the falcons.

On Friday, 12/27/13, I found two adult Peregrine Falcons hanging out on the smokestacks at Kodak Park.  I saw one here last week.  So, are they a pair just passing through?  We’ll definitely keep an eye on this location, which is where we first saw Unity.

Adult Peregrine Falcon at KP 12-27-13Adult Peregrine Falcon at KP 12-27-13*

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On Saturday, 12/28/13, I checked out KP, but could not find any Peregrines.  But there was a smaller falcon there, an American Kestrel.

American Kestrel hunting at KP 12-28-13*

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BS was my next stop, but Pigott was not home.  Later in the day, Joyce found her there.

Downtown, Dana and I found Beauty and Dot.ca on the Kodak Office Tower.

Beauty and Dot.ca on KO 12-28-13*

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They both took off, heading south towards downtown.  We found Beauty on the Widows Walk.

Beauty on WW 12-28-13*

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Beauty took off and we found both Beauty and Dot.ca back on the Kodak Office Tower in the same spots they had left.  They both seemed settled, so we headed down to the lake (Ontario) to see if any Snowy Owls were there. Kathy O met us there and she saw her first Snowy way out on the ice on the other side of the Summerville pier.  We were watching the Mergansers diving between the Mallards.  Every now and then a Merganser would come up right under a Mallard.  Pretty funny to watch.  Fellow Watcher Jeanne joined us and she also was able to see her first Snowy of the year.  Here are a couple of pics of a Merganser that caught a fish, and after a few tries, was able to swallow it.  GULP!

Merganser with Fish 12-28-13Merganser with Fish 12-28-13*

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The ice between the beach and the lake water looked like an alien landscape.

Icy Lake Front 12-28-13Surface of Another Planet? 12-28-13*

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Sunday, 12/29/13

The Watchers were out again and falcons were seen at the BS location (probably Pigott, according to Dana) and Beauty downtown.  We again ended up at the lake to look for Billy at Russell Station (no luck) and Snowy Owls at Charlotte/Summerville.

When I arrived, Kathy was already out on the Charlotte Pier and Dana & Lou were on the Summerville Pier.  There was a Snowy far out on the Summerville Pier.  A jogger ran down to the end of the pier and the Snowy took off, landing near the end of the Charlotte Pier, landing on a railing.

Snowy Owl on the Charlotte Pier 12-29-13*

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The Snowy was scared off again by a passerby, this time flying off to the west.

Later in the day, Dana found a Snowy Owl at Irondequoit Bay.  Kathy O, Joyce and I joined her.  The Snowy was on a dock eating a gull.  We were able to remain in our cars at a far distance.  Thank goodness for zoom lenses and binoculars!  This Snowy Owl found a nice, quiet spot to enjoy its’ meal.  We were joined, for a short while, by a birder named Richard and his friend.  They were thrilled to see the Snowy.

Snowy at IBay 12-29-13Snowy at IBay 12-29-13Snowy at IBay 12-29-13*

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A Kingfisher flew in, vocalizing loudly and landed on a nearby plastic owl.

Kingfisher on a Plastic Owl 12-29-13*

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What a wonderful holiday weekend of birding!

I’ll leave you with this video of the Snowy Owl enjoying its’ meal.  It’s truly amazing that we are being visited by so many of these beautiful birds.  Goodnight everyone!

Just click on this link to my youtube video.  Enjoy!

http://youtu.be/_Ty6PGT4G_c

10 Responses to “Falcon Watches – 12/27, 28 and 29/13 – Happy Holidays!”

  1. carla Says:

    I have enjoyed reading your report.What a wonderful weekend you had.Great video of the Snowy Owl.
    Thanks.
    Greetings Carla

  2. Carol P. Says:

    Thanks Carla! It’s been a joy seeing all the different Snowys passing through the area.

  3. patsy6 Says:

    Great pics and great video, Carol. I was fortunate enough to see the snowy owl that was off the Summerville coast on Saturday. And it’s wonderful that you and Joyce had a eight falcon day on Friday! Now if we could only get the falcons to play well with others.

  4. Paul Says:

    A great day for owls, plastic and otherwise.

  5. Carol P. Says:

    Thanks Pat! 🙂

  6. Carol P. Says:

    Paul – So you noticed the Kingfisher’s perch. lol He was sitting on a plastic owl, watching a snowy owl eating a gull. Thanks for the comment! 🙂

  7. Ginny Says:

    I love the Kingfisher’s perch-LOL 🙂 That almost could be mistaken for a real owl 🙂
    And the Snowy is amazing! I loved the video!
    Thank you Carol and everyone for keeping an eye on our falcons too!!!
    Happy New Year!

  8. Carol P. Says:

    Happy New Year Ginny! Thanks for all your nice comments! 🙂

  9. Alison in Indiana Says:

    So much for putting out plastic owls to keep certain birds away…

  10. Carol P. Says:

    hahaha! Alison – That Kingfisher was not afraid of that plastic owl, but was keeping his distance from the big white owl. 🙂


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