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THE FORUM
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20-Apr-23, 08:28:48 AM
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7551
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Other Nature Related Information / Falcon Web Cams / Re: Canada Falcons: All but those hatched in Rochester
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on: 01-Jan-13, 08:40:39 AM
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I GOTCHA!!!!!
December 30, 2012 - Mississauga - Executive Centre
Tracy Simpson Reports:
I have been out at MEC almost once per week since this new female arrived on site. I have struggled, squinted, sweated and sworn that I would get this girl’s band number by hook or by crook. I am convinced that she knows what I am after and has been taunting me from her perch above with glimpses here and there of her band and I have repeatedly asserted that I would not give up!! Sunday was a great weather day for some spotting, so out I went.
The day was bright but brisk so I stopped off at the local used clothing store to pick up a cheap and cozy sweater ( I forgot to bring one ) and as I reached the check out, I heard a deep voice behind me say, “So, have you got that peregrine yet?”. For a split second I thought, “Are you kidding me? Has the bird now hired people to follow and taunt me?”. I turned to find the friendly and familiar face of one of our great supporters on the Garda Security team from the MEC complex. I shared with him the news regarding the recent presence of the pair but that alas, I had nothing new on the female’s identity.
Ten minutes later I was at MEC 3 and met up with Bruce Massey for some recon and we immediately found the male Sante on the roof of MEC 1 just above the nest box and the female on the south side of MEC 3 under the Dejardins sign. I grabbed the scope and headed across the street for a view of the female as her left leg, the one I needed, was facing outwards. The scope had to be angled sharply up so that I could be as close as I could and tightly zoomed in for a read. I set up and waited patiently for the look I needed.
She sat for 20 minutes without moving and then suddenly, Sante became very restless on his MEC 1 perch and alerted the female to something in the air. She turned and slowly put her left leg forward. With the sun just right and the female holding her position, I was able to see her entire band for the first time in dozens of attempts. GOTCHA!!! The right half of the lower digit was muddied with “gack” but the lines and curves were unmistakable. You have to imagine my elation at this discovery and picture the scene. Here I am braced and tipped over to look into the scope at this sharp angle and now gesticulating wildly at Bruce to get over here and confirm what I was seeing. I always like to have a second pair of eyes check and make sure I am reading this correctly. Bruce and I have confirmed the band number on the MEC female with 99% accuracy as Black S over Green D both rotated left. This female is Cass, hatched in 2009 at the Macomb County building in Mt Clemens, Michigan to Nick and Hathor. Nick is the son of Miriam, a female nesting at the Whittier Apartments in Detroit that the CPF released in 2003 as a part of Project Release and Project Track Em. Miriam and her offspring are famous for their ferocity at their nest sites and her grand daughter Cass is following well in their talon steps.
We only had a few minutes before Cass took off to the southwest and then reappeared above the roof of MEC 2 in stealth attack mode. No alarm calling, just full contact strikes on a Red Tailed that was soaring too close to her buildings. Sante had flushed it and it was Cass’s job to dispatch it. The RT hawk flew around the back of MEC 3 with Cass striking and following in hot pursuit. As I rounded the MEC 3 building, Cass was now sitting perched on the roof retaining wall and the hawk was nowhere to be seen.
After months of painstakingly watching this female, she now has a name; Cass. A great way to start 2013!!!
Way to go Tracy! A Macomb gal eh?
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7560
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Other Nature Related Information / Falcon Web Cams / Re: Canada Falcons: All but those hatched in Rochester
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on: 30-Dec-12, 10:17:43 AM
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Female Home at MEC. December 28, 2012 - Mississauga - Executive Centre Tracy Simpson Reports: I was taking a look at all of our web cameras on Friday after the snow storm and when I opened the MEC camera page, I found a box full of snow and evidence of a visit. There were tracks in the snow indicating that one of the adults had been back in the area. I grabbed my camera and decided to head down to MEC for a visit in the hopes of seeing either Sante or the new female on site. I wasn’t to be disappointed. When I first pulled up I couldn’t see anyone but a quick scan of the building revealed the female at MEC 1 on the top retaining wall above the nest box. She sat there for quite some time and preened away. It was only when I ventured back to my car to warm up that she took off. I swear she knows I’m after her band number still!! She flew around to the Symcor sign and perched on the emblem which is one of her favored spots and was looking west with great interest. It wasn’t long before she took to the air and flew west behind the CIBC building and out of view. Her flight didn’t take her out to the left or right. She went directly behind the building and didn’t reappear. Normally I would leave at this point to another site but today I decided to try and relocate her and find out exactly where she’s going. I drove west through Square One shopping mall which after a holiday is a big mistake. I dare say that every car on the roads of Mississauga were in that parking lot at that moment!! On the west side of the mall I found a spot where I could stop and scan the area and I found our girl on the top of a very, very tall condo. I watched her head swivelling madly back and forth as she was clearly on a hunt. She took off of the condo and I tracked her as she made a low pass over the western mall parking area and came up empty to the antenna of another tall condo. She perched on the antenna for about 10 minutes and was off again swooping low over the mall. This time she managed to capture a small bird and took it up to the top of the neighboring building’s antenna to eat. She didn’t stay settled for long after her meal as this was just a snack. She flew from antenna to antenna with no luck but she wasn’t giving up. As I pulled away, I felt satisfied to know that she is in the area and that I had discovered her hunting / hangout area. After not having seen either adult for several weeks, its great to know that they are close. http://www.peregrine-foundation.ca/w/2012/12/sightings/female-home-at-mec/ pics |
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