Nice write-up on Harlequin site about the banding:Say Hello to Luna, Carina and Kimani
On Friday June 7, we officially welcomed Quest and Kendal’s three new offspring into the family with a banding ceremony here at our offices in Toronto.
At 10:00 a.m., the Canadian Peregrine Foundation (CPF), working with the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR), sent someone rappelling down from the rooftop of the building across the street from Harlequin’s Toronto Headquarters and onto the ledge where the three new hatchlings were huddled in a corner of their nest box. An agitated Quest and Kendal made aggressive swooping dives to scare off the intruder unaware that the three fluff balls were being bundled into a soft carrycase, lowered to a waiting accomplice on the ground below and carried over to the Harlequin’s offices where a large group of people (including Quest’s godparents—our friends from Rochester—who have been watching out for her since she was a hatchling herself) gathered to greet them and witness the banding.
We were met by three very healthy hatchlings that were quite vocal in conveying their displeasure at being removed from their comfortable nest box. Mark Nash from the CPF explained that the easiest way to identify the sex of hatchlings is to weigh them. Anything 750 grams and over is a female, 650 and below a male. After plopping each of the fluff balls on the scales we were delighted to discover that Quest and Kendal have three brand new daughters.
The good folks from the MNR declared all three birds healthy (and scrappy, another good sign), logged all their vital details and banded each with a Canadian MNR band on one legs and a U.S. Department of Wildlife and Fisheries band on the other. Now, wherever their peregrinations may take them, they can be identified.
Before returning them to their nest box, we got one last chance to welcome our Quest and Kendal’s third generation of offspring. So everyone, please give a big “hello” to our three new peregrine falcons: Luna, Carina and Kimani.
Harlequin encourages anyone who wishes to learn more about peregrines, pledge support or discover what they can do to help this threatened species to visit the Canadian Peregrine Foundation at
www.peregrine-foundation.ca