Rfalconcam Forum

There is good news today about one of the 2014 chicks from the Woodmen nest. Elsa, a daughter of Hera and Mintaka, banded black/red D/43, has been spotted in western Iowa, some ten miles from the Omaha nest site. Her grandparents are Alley and 19/K at the Lincoln nest; her great-grandparents are Princess and Trey at the Radisson nest in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

She is absolutely stunning. The beautiful photos are by Cary Smithson.

(http://i1195.photobucket.com/albums/aa393/falcoperegrinus1/December%202015%20-%20January%202016/woodmen-elsa-2014-1a_zpsnfs3ol84.jpg) (http://s1195.photobucket.com/user/falcoperegrinus1/media/December%202015%20-%20January%202016/woodmen-elsa-2014-1a_zpsnfs3ol84.jpg.html)

(http://i1195.photobucket.com/albums/aa393/falcoperegrinus1/December%202015%20-%20January%202016/woodmen-elsa-2014-2a_zpslrz4ywuc.jpg) (http://s1195.photobucket.com/user/falcoperegrinus1/media/December%202015%20-%20January%202016/woodmen-elsa-2014-2a_zpslrz4ywuc.jpg.html)

More photos and information on Joel Jorgensen's blog:

http://magazine.outdoornebraska.gov/2016/01/peregrine-falcon-news-from-frozen-and-iowa/ (http://magazine.outdoornebraska.gov/2016/01/peregrine-falcon-news-from-frozen-and-iowa/)

Oh she is a cutie, thanks Alison.

Very sweet face!  :yes:

She is a cutie!  So good to hear of a Woodmen offspring - it so seldom happens.  Thanks for the update, Alison.

Looks like there's been a changeover this year!

http://woodmen.typepad.com/falconwatch/2016/03/woodmenlife-has-some-new-neighbors-in-the-nest.html (http://woodmen.typepad.com/falconwatch/2016/03/woodmenlife-has-some-new-neighbors-in-the-nest.html)

Falconcam link:  https://falcons.woodmen.org/falcon-cam.cfm (https://falcons.woodmen.org/falcon-cam.cfm)

Looks like the first egg for the new Woodmen pair.

        :thumbsup:

Thanks Deb!!  :clap:

Thank you, Deb! Glad to see an egg there!

Thank you for the link to that Typepad entry, Kris! There is no longer a link visible on my screen, so I thought it had been discontinued.

With all due respect to the people at Woodmen, I think they are a little bit confused. 19/K from Lincoln was at the Woodmen nest in February from about the 15th to the 19th, and I also have photos of him in the nest from February 7 of this year.

However, he returned to his nest in Lincoln before the end of February and has remained there with his mate, Alley.

From the Typepad entry:

3/6:  Falcon-watcher "Lisa" got a good picture of both falcons in the nest, and assuming the one IN the nest is 19K, the falcon perched on the side of the nest would be an unbanded female. Charity, our female from 2015, was unbanded as well.

In that picture, the bird perched on the side of the nest is banded. Since 19/K had returned home before the date of the pic, I think this bird may well be Mintaka, and that the bird in the nest is probably Charity.

Joel Jorgensen at the Lincoln site has confirmed that 19/K is in Lincoln with his mate:

http://magazine.outdoornebraska.gov/2016/03/same-pair/ (http://magazine.outdoornebraska.gov/2016/03/same-pair/)

Alison, I do hope we do have Mintaka and Charity again.  They now have two eggs this morning.  :clap:

Woodmen now has 3 eggs.

 :thumbsup:  :thumbsup:  :thumbsup:

The first two Woodmen chicks have hatched this morning.  Two more to go.

Here's a pic of the first hatching, as mom returns to shoo dad off the eggs!

 :clap: Thanks Deb!!

And then there are three hatched, one to go!  :clap:

 :hatch1: :hatch1: :hatch1:

Number four is hatched  :clap:

                 :thumbsup:

 :hatch1: :hatch1: :hatch1: :hatch1: ;D

Yahoo-ey!!!  :heart:

Woodmen Four were banded this morning, as well as mom Charity.  There are three females and one male, just like Rochester!  Let the naming begin.  :happy:

Video of banding..noisy bunch! Cool they were able to get Mom banded too!   :clap:

http://youtu.be/CmYWSVwU1zs (http://youtu.be/CmYWSVwU1zs)

Charity is a great name! 

Thanks for posting the video, Kris!  Mintaka was making noise outside as well.  He and Charity seem to be very attentive parents.

From Fontenelle Forest Raptor Recovery, regarding the male Hunter:

  "Hunter was thoroughly evaluated. Unfortunately he has permanent vision changes in his left eye. These changes will make it extremely difficult for his survival. He will not be releasable. We will work with USFWS permitted organizations to place him as an education or display bird.
  He may not be able to go back to the wild, but he will be able to make a difference by helping to educate the public about the importance of birds of prey like himself."

I am glad they caught this so early in his attempts to fledge.

Awe, how sad! 

http://journalstar.com/news/local/article_d7db2250-a6eb-56be-adec-20b1a847be82.html (http://journalstar.com/news/local/article_d7db2250-a6eb-56be-adec-20b1a847be82.html)  Here's the article 

Oh, carp!  :(

I think Hunter may be staying at Fontenelle Forest Raptor Recovery rather than being placed elsewhere. I came across this short note:

Hunter will remain in our care and will likely become an education bird.

I think he will be a wonderful education ambassador.

(http://i1195.photobucket.com/albums/aa393/falcoperegrinus1/June%202016/woodmen-hunter-june-21-2a_zps8ky5pjxq.jpg) (http://s1195.photobucket.com/user/falcoperegrinus1/media/June%202016/woodmen-hunter-june-21-2a_zps8ky5pjxq.jpg.html)

An update on Hunter's older sister, Charlotte, born in 2015.

She had been found injured after fledging last year, and taken to Fontenelle Forest Raptor Recovery. After spending time in rehab, an attempt was made to release her on the roof of the Woodmen building. Sadly, she was unable to take flight, and the attempt failed.

She has been deemed non-releasable, and is now a permanent resident at Fontenelle Forest Raptor Recovery's new Raptor Wildlife Refuge.

Rescued birds settling in at new $2 million digs at Fontenelle Forest

June 21 2016

Charlotte the falcon can’t see well.

Someone found her on the street one day, far below her home atop the Woodmen Tower. A neurological disorder makes it difficult for her to navigate and find food.

So Charlotte has joined several other birds of prey like her — rescues, unable to survive in the wild — at Fontenelle Forest’s new Raptor Woodland Refuge, which opens to the public July 16.

The $2 million expansion is the Bellevue forest’s biggest project in more than a decade, said Joe Vavak, spokesman for Fontenelle Forest.

The refuge has the capacity to house up to two dozen birds. Visitors will be able to tour the raptor refuge and see the birds living in “mews,” or treehouses. Several are housed high in the treetops and accessible to guests via a suspended walkway.

http://www.omaha.com/living/rescued-birds-settling-in-at-new-million-digs-at-fontenelle/article_4580d32d-bc2b-5739-bb02-b194129f325b.html (http://www.omaha.com/living/rescued-birds-settling-in-at-new-million-digs-at-fontenelle/article_4580d32d-bc2b-5739-bb02-b194129f325b.html)

While it is not the life Charlotte should have had, at least she will be safe and well cared for.

The fact that both Hunter and Charlotte have vision problems may be coincidence, but since they are both offspring of Mintaka and Charity, I wonder if there could be a possible genetic factor.

(http://i1195.photobucket.com/albums/aa393/falcoperegrinus1/June%202016/charlotte-july-7-1a_zpswdoay32h.jpg) (http://s1195.photobucket.com/user/falcoperegrinus1/media/June%202016/charlotte-july-7-1a_zpswdoay32h.jpg.html)

They are both beautiful, very sorry they have vision problems but they are safe and being cared for so that is something to be thankful for.  :happy:

Fontenelle Forest Raptor Recovery is not keeping little Hunter after all.

Today it was announced that he has been relocated to the Teton Raptor Center.

We're excited to announce that Hunter, the non-releasable peregrine falcon who hatched at the Woodmen Tower this year, has reached his new home at the Teton Raptor Center!

Hunter is currently getting acclimated to his new home in gorgeous western Wyoming. He will be an education bird, helping people learn more about raptors and the dangers they face.

(http://i1195.photobucket.com/albums/aa393/falcoperegrinus1/July%202016/hunter-july-25-1a_zpss5aum9uf.jpg) (http://s1195.photobucket.com/user/falcoperegrinus1/media/July%202016/hunter-july-25-1a_zpss5aum9uf.jpg.html)

(http://i1195.photobucket.com/albums/aa393/falcoperegrinus1/July%202016/hunter-july-25-2a_zps27hmha43.jpg) (http://s1195.photobucket.com/user/falcoperegrinus1/media/July%202016/hunter-july-25-2a_zps27hmha43.jpg.html)

I hope everything will go well for Hunter in his new home, and that he will have a long, safe and happy life as an education ambassador.

From Fontenelle Forest Raptor Recovery, an update on Hunter as he settles in to his new home at the Teton Raptor Center in Wyoming:

An update on Hunter (H57) the peregrine falcon that hatched at the Woodmen Tower this year.

Hunter is making himself at home in Wyoming. The good folks at the Teton Raptor Center even invited him to attend their staff meeting this week!

For those who are not familiar with his story, Hunter suffers from vision issues and is not able to be released back into the wild. He will be serving as an education bird for the Teton Raptor Center and helping to educate people about the importance of birds of prey.

What a beautiful little juvie he is:

(http://i1195.photobucket.com/albums/aa393/falcoperegrinus1/July%202016/woodmen-hunter-aug-5-1a_zps2cjb9jas.jpg) (http://s1195.photobucket.com/user/falcoperegrinus1/media/July%202016/woodmen-hunter-aug-5-1a_zps2cjb9jas.jpg.html)

(http://i1195.photobucket.com/albums/aa393/falcoperegrinus1/July%202016/woodmen-hunter-aug-5-2a_zpss8ewe82q.jpg) (http://s1195.photobucket.com/user/falcoperegrinus1/media/July%202016/woodmen-hunter-aug-5-2a_zpss8ewe82q.jpg.html)

He is a cutie!! Glad he's adjusting to his new place and life!!  :heart:

 :wub: