Cabin John, MD, Peregrines, 2011

[Bonnie]

        

Again, what a beautiful spot and especially safe for a young fledgling/juvenile.  It is so much fun to have your own, local falcons to watch.  I do miss the Rochester folks, though.

[Paul Hamilton]

Wow, that was awesome. Great video. Was mom trying to entice the little one to fly or mad because she saw you there?

Thanks!  I think it was a warning to stay away from the nest area.  I wouldn't expect them to be encouraging a fledge with people around.  Interestingly, they did not behave like this yesterday.  Both of the parents positioned themself strategically, but neither did any other flying. In fact, they didn't fly at all until Junior decided to head for the other end of the bridge, at which point his father joined him in the air.

Paul

[valhalla]

I wonder if the parents behavior is because of the more rural location, as opposed to urban Rochester??

[Paul Hamilton]

I wonder if the parents behavior is because of the more rural location, as opposed to urban Rochester??

They don't behave at all like either Archer and Beauty or Mariah and Kaver.  For one thing, they never hunt near the nest.  For another, all three of them like to hang out together near or in the nestbox. 

In past years, there typically would be one juvenile at the nestbox and the others would be hunting somewhere downriver.  Last year, I thought that only one of them had survived fledging until Ricardo showed me his notes and photos that showed that, although there was always only one juvenile near the box, it was a never the same one for more than a few hours at a time.

I think that their behavior may have a lot to do with lower prey concentrations than the downtown Rochester pigeon buffet.  The Herberts wrote, of the New York Palisades falcons, that a favorite strategy was to surprise small corvids like Blue Jays over the river, where there were no trees to hide in.
http://elibrary.unm.edu/sora/Auk/v082n01/p0062-p0094.pdf
I know that our pair return from their downriver hunting forays with Blue Jays.  I'm starting to think that the "secret hunting ground" is the airspace over the river itself, rather than Rosslyn or Georgetown.

Paul

[Bonnie]

Our falcons generally appear to hunt in Liberty Marsh or the Meadowlands.  That includes NYC and Jersey.  Someone analyzed the prey remains in the scrapes.  Water St pair hunts in Brooklyn.  ??

[valhalla]

I think that their behavior may have a lot to do with lower prey concentrations than the downtown Rochester pigeon buffet.  The Herberts wrote, of the New York Palisades falcons, that a favorite strategy was to surprise small corvids like Blue Jays over the river, where there were no trees to hide in.
http://elibrary.unm.edu/sora/Auk/v082n01/p0062-p0094.pdf
I know that our pair return from their downriver hunting forays with Blue Jays.  I'm starting to think that the "secret hunting ground" is the airspace over the river itself, rather than Rosslyn or Georgetown.

Paul

They need to come to Courthouse in Arlington, if they are flying to Rosslyn!  Oh such a buffet awaits them 

Kidding aside, both you and Bonnie have provided information that indicates that the hunting ground is much greater than I thought.  Thanks!

[Paul Hamilton]

I'd hoped to find the hunting territory of my falcons this season, but no luck.  The unfortunate result is that I don't get to see any of the forms of spectacular fledgeling behavior like talon tag, food exchanges, and family hunts.  What I was able to see was all three members of the family.  While waiting for falcons to appear, I took some shots of other wildlife, landscapes and structures.  I'll explain why.

It's always a thrill to see the peregrines as they return to their nest area.  The falcons are wise to me; they know where I am long before I see them.  Most of the time, I don't find them -- they find me.  So many times, I've felt I was being watched, dismissed the thought as silly, and then heard kakking overhead or from some hideout. 

That's why I've included some non-falcon images that are very much a part of my falconwatching experience.  I urge everyone who has not watched wild peregrines in person to visit their nearest site.  You can see amazing things on web cams, but it's just a tiny peephole into the peregrine's world.  Rhen, you go to visit them.  After a while, you realize that what you observe while watching them in person is still a tiny fraction of their world, which is played out on an unimaginably large stage.

Here are some pictures related to my experiences yesterday, as this year's peregrine season  enters its last month.  When you look at them, imagine that there are unseen peregrines about, watching.

http://www.kodakgallery.com/gallery/sharing/shareRedirectSwitchBoard.jsp?token=3096810310103%3A526118412&sourceId=533754321803&cm_mmc=Share-_-Personal-_-Email-_-Sharee-_-Top

Paul

[dale]

Paul, for some reason Kodak's server was pouty and didn't want to allow any sign-in when I viewed the album, so I couldn't leave comments. Really beautiful photos of the river and rocks, love the caterpillar too!  She is a beautiful bird. Thanks

[valhalla]

Paul, I experienced the same problem that Dale did, so I left my comments over on FB.  You are so correct about their world being a huge stage - I do wish you had found their hunting grounds.  Perhaps "junior" will setup "house" in Arlington.  I can always hope :-)

[Bonnie]

Beautiful pictures.  I know the feeling exactly.  Could not see our JC family yesterday and walked all over for three hours trying to find where they are hunting or perching.  At least we got to see talon tags and tandem flying over the past few weeks.  They are five weeks old now and going off on their own.