The Reading peregrine falcons have successfully nested on top of a downtown office building for the fifth consecutive year, producing two young.
Shawn Walb, building engineer at The Madison, where the falcons first nested in 2007, has been keeping a steady eye on the birds and their nesting progress over the years.
He reports that the female laid four eggs at the end of March, but only two hatched by the end of April.
When Pennsylvania Game Commission peregrine falcon coordinator Art McMorriss visited the nest May 25, he found the two healthy young and banded them with the help of Walb and volunteer Tim Kita. They were able to confirm by reading the band on the adult male that he is the same falcon that nested here originally. He hatched in 2005 from the Rachel Carson State Office Building in Harrisburg.
The female falcon was unbanded and is believed to be the same mate that nested here for the last four seasons.
McMorriss was able to determine through plumage measurements that the birds were about 26 days old. There is one male and one female young: The female has red tape over the band on her right leg, and the male has blue tape, so they can be told apart when they leave the nest.
He gave the birds a medical exam and found them to be healthy and on schedule developmentally, and most importantly, he found no signs of the trichomoniasis parasite that killed three of the four nestlings last year before they were able to successfully fledge.
There is a new twist to the falcon story for this year.Dan Brauning, the ornithologist for the game commission, fostered a third falcon into the Reading nest the next day. The bird came from a nest on a bridge in central Pennsylvania, where access is available only from a crane, which wasn't available.
Since falcons can't count and the parenting instincts of the birds are so strong, the fostered bird should be accepted by the adults.
"The fostered youngster was the same age as those in the nest," Art said. "And since there were only two in the nest (the typical full brood is four) it shouldn't place an undue burden on the parents."
We'll keep our fingers crossed that this year's falcons will remain healthy and will soon be flying free over the city.
Matt Spence will present a program on naturalist and educator Sam Gundy and his five mentors, heroes, friends and students at 10 a.m Saturday in the Historical Society of Berks County, 940 Centre Ave. Refreshments will be served at 9:30. Admission is free for members of the society, $5 for adults, $4 for senior citizens and $3 for children up to age 17.
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