Cathedral of Learning Falconcam 2016

[Dumpsterkitty]

Today I am thankful we now have a stable nest with good parents in Beauty & Dot. There was a time that wasn't so certain.

I stopped watching there too. Very sad. All I can do is hope C1 thrives.

[Donna]

I got the tweet it was pipping, now this?? What is going on? She had babies before!! I don't watch either!

[Kris G.]

I got the tweet it was pipping, now this?? What is going on? She had babies before!! I don't watch either!

They say in several nesting years, she's only fledged 2 so you wonder how many others she's killed!

[DebInTexas]

This is unbelievably sad.  I am trying to tell myself that she could tell there were abnormalities with the three, but Dorothy didn't give up on Silver last year!  I'd like to capture Hope and get her into a lab to be studied by some bird experts.

[Donna]

This afternoon as Hope and Terzo’s last egg began to hatch, Hope picked the new chick out of its shell, ate part of it, and fed the rest to her only remaining chick, C1.

All four of Hope’s eggs hatched but there is only one chick to show for it. On April 29 she killed and ate the second chick (C2) feeding part of it to C1. C3 hatched on April 30 but he never thrived. (Some of you speculated that she didn’t fed him adequately even though there’s enough food.)

Hours after C3 died Hope fed him to C1. And now she has killed and eaten C4, again feeding him to C1.

We don’t know why Hope is doing this. Perhaps her situation will inspire biologists to study her case.

In the meantime we can only wonder.

Needless to say her actions are distressing, so turn off the nestcam if it upsets you.

This is very abnormal behavior!!

 

p.s. I have no predictions on what she’ll do next. I have no idea how the season will end.


Kate's Blog

[MAK]

 

[Carol P.]

This whole situation is very sad. 

[Kris G.]

I've read that Hope is around 8 years old, nested at the Tarentum Bridge for a few years but only fledged 2 plus the mates she had, abandoned her.  It was posted on FB that Hope was born at a Super Fund site along the James River and it's something the PGC is looking into.  Maybe this explains what's wrong with her?

[carly]

I've read that Hope is around 8 years old, nested at the Tarentum Bridge for a few years but only fledged 2 plus the mates she had, abandoned her.  It was posted on FB that Hope was born at a Super Fund site along the James River and it's something the PGC is looking into.  Maybe this explains what's wrong with her?

I expect it does explain a lot.  I am doing some googling on it this morning and here is just once excerpt from an article I found where they actually did extensive research on the effects of birds breeding at Superfund sites:

Tissue samples taken from birds in these areas contained enough Aroclor 1268 to cause a number of adverse effects, including lower egg production, physical and physiological abnormalities in offspring and immune system disorders.

Am currently browsing an article I found that talks about 'aberrant' parenting behaviors - I got 104,000 hits on my search and these are just first two I've opened.  

[Bobbie Ireland]

I've read that Hope is around 8 years old, nested at the Tarentum Bridge for a few years but only fledged 2 plus the mates she had, abandoned her.  It was posted on FB that Hope was born at a Super Fund site along the James River and it's something the PGC is looking into.  Maybe this explains what's wrong with her?

I expect it does explain a lot.  I am doing some googling on it this morning and here is just once excerpt from an article I found where they actually did extensive research on the effects of birds breeding at Superfund sites:

Tissue samples taken from birds in these areas contained enough Aroclor 1268 to cause a number of adverse effects, including lower egg production, physical and physiological abnormalities in offspring and immune system disorders.

Am currently browsing an article I found that talks about 'aberrant' parenting behaviors - I got 104,000 hits on my search and these are just first two I've opened.  

And if this has caused such things in the avian population, what about the human one?

[carly]

We certainly live in a 'toxic' world and effects on humans is also not good.  When I was in University, one of the environmental courses I took went into the adverse effects of toxins on humans and it was quite enlightening to say the least.

In spite of it all though, humans populations have grown beyond what the planet can naturally sustain.  Other species unfortunately are declining and many are going extinct.  I think the effects on them have been far more harsh than on us.  We soldier on but they continue to die out. 

We can prevent humans from being exposed to Superfund sites by isolating the area and educating people to stay away but the other species don't know and understand that they shouldn't be nesting there. 

 

[Bobbie Ireland]

Thing is... some humans MUST have known what the results would be. But they chose to ignore them, in favour of quick money. We see it everywhere. We can no longer say: "We know not what we do". Because we DO know.

[Tapper Gal]

Have just read about these Super Fund sites. I imagine that is what the problem is with the parent.Very tragic indeed!!Thanks for the info.

[MAK]

 

[Donna]

http://www.post-gazette.com/local/city/2016/05/10/Peregrine-eats-its-young/stories/201605100086?utm_campaign=echobox&utm_medium=social&utm_source=Facebook#link_time=1462855678

Peregrine falcon feeds some of its young to one of its chicks.

Pittsburgh Post Gazette