Terminal Tower, Cleveland 2015

[Kris G.]

Boomer and Newton (SW's 13 yr. old replacement) have 5 eggs!  

http://www.falconcam-cmnh.org/news.php

[patsy6]

Oh my goodness!!!

[Kris G.]

Oh my goodness!!!

From CMNH forum about Newton:

Just to review, 13 year-old Newton has had a strong reproductive history, laying a clutch of five eggs four times while at the I-90 site (in 2007, 2009, 2010, and 2012). While she never has raised five chicks, she has had broods of three and four in the past and has been successful despite many relocations along the bridge over the years. We've mentioned that the I-90 construction/demolition crew has been remarkable, respectfully working around the nest each year and even postponing the final demolition so that Newton and her mate (Bolt while at the I-90 site) could raise their young post-fledge before their home was destroyed. In spite of this mutual tolerance, however, Newton has tried to be rather elusive, seeking to nest in threads of the bridge furthest away from the workers and mostly out of view, to the point we had to spend a great deal of time scanning around the site to locate the nest, and there were times that bridge workers had information that really helped us to zero in on her chosen location.

[Donna]

The lone chick at TT fell between the nest and wall and is now under the nest. They don't know if Newton can help it out and with this chilly weather, they are afraid it won't make it! This was a while ago, has anyone heard if it's OK?

I wish they could rescue the little one!! 



Update: They are saying it will be ok there until it gets big enough to get out on its own.

[Kris G.]

The lone chick at TT fell between the nest and wall and is now under the nest. They don't know if Newton can help it out and with this chilly weather, they are afraid it won't make it! This was a while ago, has anyone heard if it's OK?

I wish they could rescue the little one!! 



Update: They are saying it will be ok there until it gets big enough to get out on its own.

Chad and Chris got there to check it..saw the baby, parents were nearby and heard it cry.  They said it'll be OK where it is..guess you have to take their word for it. 

[Kris G.]

Posted on CMNH: 

Sorry but Chad has never posted and doesn't know tech. I'm just off work now. He made it there this morning but no good news to report... no chick found.

[Donna]

Posted on CMNH: 

Sorry but Chad has never posted and doesn't know tech. I'm just off work now. He made it there this morning but no good news to report... no chick found.

WHAT????? What happened to it??? They said he would be safe!!!    They should have went yesterday!!!

[MAK]

 

[Kris G.]

Posted by Chad & Chris on CMNH:

Nature's Tough Lessons:

Without trying to prematurely abandon all hope that the chick could somehow have made it out of camera view, I think we all are facing the harsh likelihood that the chick has died. We would be more than happy to be incorrect in this assumption and to be pleasantly surprised by the chick reappearing, yet as reported earlier it didn't seem that the chick was covered or adequately fed overnight or into the morning and there was no sign of the chick when Chad went to check today.

With the help of TT security, Chad was able to get mostly out of the window to check the tray and nearby ledge today and they were able to pull the drawbridge forward with a pole to check as much as possible underneath. Boomer and Newton were both at the nest as Chad stepped out, although Chad said that Newton was notably less defensive than she had been when we checked on Friday evening.

We were hopeful last night when we heard the chick calling and saw that the chick was not stuck and was able to move a bit in the corner crevice. We also saw Newton vehemently defending, and as she flew up and landed next to the chick it raised its head and was responsive to her. We even heard the "e-chip" vocalizations from both Boomer and Newt when we closed the interior windows as we were waiting for the right tools to remove the bolts to allow the exterior windows to open (signifying a potential upcoming feeding). So, we could see that Newton would have been able to get to the chick to feed and would be able to brood as needed, and the chick was mobile enough that we weren't overly concerned about not being permitted onto the ledge to retrieve the chick and place it back in the tray (as security requires that we would need to be tied off to go out there).

We wouldn't have guessed that the very experienced and historically nurturing and maternal Newton would have basically ignored the chick through the night and that she would return to incubate the four unhatched eggs that she had been no longer consistently incubating as she was brooding the lone hatchling, but that's exactly what happened.

We are left to speculate as to what happened to the chick after we were unable to retrieve it on Friday night. It was last seen in that same crevice, so we figure that it either crawled further underneath the drawbridge (out of view when Chad checked this morning) and died or it may have died in the crevice and was carried out of the nest by one of the adults. Sadly we have experienced this scenario in the past watching the Brookpark Road Bridge nest in 2010. At that time, we watched helplessly (unable to get to the nest) as one of the two chicks appeared weak and wasn't able to remain upright during feedings. Mom initially tried feeding the chick as it was on its back, but eventually stopped feeding the sickly chick and after it died she even made a brief attempt to feed it to the surviving sibling before removing the body from the nest. We posted about this on the CMNH forum, but we never posted the pics of the dead chick getting carried out of the nest (as we figured these were images that no one would want to keep in their head).

Having had that previous difficult experience at Brookpark, we are left to wonder if Newton sensed that something wasn't quite right with her chick and stopped tending to it in much the same way that we had seen before.

We always have and always will believe in doing all that we can to help these magnificent animals when we are able. Yet we also understand that some of the laws of nature are quite difficult to accept and "survival of the fittest" means that our very human desire to see the underdog make it through despite poor odds doesn't always get satisfied.

Meanwhile, it seems that sad endings like this are also reminders of the wonders and blessings of successful nests and young and how fortunate we are to experience their intricate lives up close, in life and in death.

Sorry that we weren't able to do more. Once again, we appreciate the shared passion and support of the very caring individuals here.
   

[Donna]

Thanks to Chad Steele, who's keen observations of a male peregrine at the Terminal Tower nest tray caught on cam with a black/red left leg band, and since we were at the nearby Hope Memorial Bridge nest site I decided to check the TT nest site. The resident male, Boomer has black/green bands as does Newton, so we appreciate not only the observation of a nest site where there hasn't been much entertaining activity along with the good catch on the different band color, but also that Chad let us know on our FB page.
Spent just a short time at the window overlooking the nest tray before Newton flew up and walked to the mostly out-of-view corner of the tray and began the "chipping" vocalization. She stared at me in the window, however, so I decided to shut the interior window (so that I wouldn't potentially deter the male from joining her) and soon after I could hear them both vocalizing together. I slowly opened the window and stayed back and the courtship nest display went on for about 1/2 a minute as the pair bowed and postured among the sun-bleached eggs that remain in the tray.
As the courtship display ended, the male walked with his head held low to the front of the tray, revealing his bands... 88/B, black/red. This was a familiar combination to us, so we were able to find it in our log: "Stacker" from the 2010 Eastlake Power Plant nest site. Stacker is the brother of Ranger (one of the former resident males at the TT) as well as Stator (who nested unsuccessfully for one season at the Tower East site). We have also discovered Stacker in the past at a few different sites that we have monitored: (1) He paired with a female at the Northpointe Apartment Building in Euclid on 10-4-11, but was eventually displaced by an un-banded male; (2) He was present at the Avon Lake nest site on 3-7-12 before being displaced by Regal at that site; and (3) We spotted him at the Hilliard Road Bridge site on 4-13-12 before he was quickly driven off by Titan. So, it appears that Stacker has a storied history of seeking a territory and not yet being able to maintain it as his own. As we all know, the word "peregrine" means "wanderer", so this is not unusual... it's just interesting when we've been able to know at least a portion of his course to this point.
Looked around and didn't see any signs of Boomer, including when I checked ledges, rooftops, and the balcony wells that I could see from the TT perspective.
I'm certain most of us know what this could mean for Boomer, as it could be the end of his reign at the TT. However, there are more optimistic scenarios for him, including the possibility that Boomer could be doing some of his own "wandering", particularly since the lack of a successful nest means that he doesn't have to fulfill a "provider" role at this time of the year.
We'll keep a closer eye on the cams to see if Boomer may return and/or if the challenge for this nest site is just beginning. Thanks again to those who are interested and keep track! We would certainly miss a great deal in trying to observe multiple peregrine nests without our many fellow falcon fan friends out there!

Stacker

BY C & C

[MAK]

It's a small falcon world!