Falcons saved from river (Lancaster PA)

[Donna]

The first successful nesting effort by rare peregrine falcons in Lancaster County in 63 years nearly went under last week — literally.

Within a span of three days, both chicks hatched by a pair of adults in a nest underneath the Route 462 bridge over the Susquehanna River were rescued by boaters after the birds fell into the river.

One of the chicks was believed to have foundered in open water for at least four hours.

"I think it's likely that both of these chicks would have died if it weren't for a couple of caring individuals," said John Veylupek, the Pennsylvania Game Commission's wildlife conservation officer for northwest Lancaster County.

"We're very appreciative of the public's assistance in saving these birds."

The two chicks likely hatched in mid-June in a nest on the underside of the bridge, about halfway between Columbia and Wrightsville.

A pair of adult peregrines using that nest produced eggs that never hatched for three successive years prior to this year.

Local birders, who have been following the chicks' growth, had worried about what would happen when the young falcons attempted their first flight because the nest sits over open water.

On July 28, Julie Lehmer of Columbia was boating with her parents, Kevin and Sue Kraft, and her 7-year-old son, Johnes, around 5 p.m.

The family had gone out on the river in hopes of seeing one of the adult falcons, Lehmer said.

"We just spotted one of them flying overhead and we couldn't believe it," she said. "Then we looked down through one of the tunnels and saw something splashing around way out in the middle of the river."

Lehmer said the family started heading down river in the general direction of the animal.

"When we got in range with the binoculars, I knew right away what it was and my heart just sank," she said.

It was one of the falcon chicks, struggling to stay afloat.

Once the boat pulled up near the bird, Lehmer immediately could tell it was in trouble.

"It would flap its wings a little and then start to sink," she said.

Not knowing what else to do, Lehmer called 911 and county dispatchers patched her call through to the Game Commission's southeast regional office.

"Within minutes, I was talking to John (Veylupek)," she said.

Lehmer told him the bird was struggling and she said he told her to "use my best judgment" about whether to pull the bird out of the water.

Veylupek, who was more than an hour's drive away, couldn't offer any immediate assistance.

"I knew we were going to get that bird out of the water," Lehmer said.

Kevin steered the boat so the falcon was at the rear and the bird immediately gripped the outside of the craft with its talons.

Lehmer said her stepfather gently grabbed the falcon from behind and lifted it into her arms, which she had covered with a beach towel that she wrapped around the physically spent, shivering chick.

"It didn't fuss at all," she said. "I couldn't believe it. We went out just in hopes of seeing a falcon, and here I was holding one in my arms. It was incredible."

Lehmer and her family headed to shore, where they eventually turned the chick over to Jack Bennett, one of Veylupek's deputies.

Veylupek later took the falcon to a licensed wildlife rehabilitator in York County, who determined the bird was exhausted but not injured.

On Friday morning, Veylupek and Bennett made preparations to return the chick to a small island just upriver from its nest.

"We felt confident the parents would find it and take care of it," Veylupek said.

Bennett called Jim Cox, owner of Chiques Rock Outfitters in Columbia, to arrange to have canoes available to return the young falcon.

During a follow-up call, Cox told Bennett he had just rescued the other chick from the river.

"We got back to shore after taking a group out on the river and this fisherman told me he had seen one of the falcons flapping on the water," Cox said. "That was at, like, 8 a.m. and it was about noon when I went out."

Cox paddled his kayak out across the river and quickly found the bird in open water, south of the bridge.

 He tried coaxing it toward an island with his paddle.

"Every time my paddle got close, the bird grabbed it in his beak, like he wanted to climb up on it," Cox said. "I could tell he was pretty tired."

So Cox scooped his paddle under the bird and lifted it up onto the bow of his kayak.

"We had a staring contest for a couple seconds, and I just said to him, 'If you stay cool, I'll give you a ride to that island over there,' " he said.

The bird sat tight as Cox delivered it to a small island.

"I pulled up and nudged him off my boat with the paddle," he said. "He just crawled under some branches and sat there, shivering."

With one chick already sitting on an island near the falcon nest, Veylupek and Bennett decided to take the other chick, which they had stashed in a cardboard box, to the same location.

Cox took them out to the spot where he had delivered the chick he rescued and Veylupek placed the second one beside its sibling.

"The one that had just been rescued looked pretty good," Veylupek said. "It was wet, but it wasn't shivering anymore. I think they'll be OK."

After Veylupek released the bird that had fallen July 28, it started screeching and two adult peregrines quickly arrived on the scene, soaring overhead and calling back to the young falcon.

"They know where the chicks are. They'll take care of them," Veylupek said. "Quite frankly, they're better off now learning to fly from that island, than up on the bridge."

On Sunday, Lehmer said she saw both young peregrines still together on an island in the river.

Through binoculars, she said she watched one of the adult falcons catch and kill a small bird, which was then delivered to the chicks.

"I really hope they make it," Lehmer said.



(What a great rescue)

[MAK]

   That is awesome!