Eyases Live Up to Their Legacy
Even though they’re only a few days old, the young falcon chicks are already proving their Peregrine heritage, “wandering” around the nest box. Mariah and Kaver are spending much of their time keeping the eyases covered, but the weather is mild in Rochester so leaving them uncovered for a few minutes at a time is OK.
Nevertheless, the adults don’t let the young ones go to far before corraling them again. Kaver’s expression in the picture at the left makes you wonder what’s going on in the nest box!
After about ten days the eyases will grow a second coat of heavier feathers, and at the same time they’ll mature enough to allow them to regulate their own body temperature. But for now they rely on Mariah and Kaver to keep them in “Baby Bear” temperate conditions– not too hot, not too cold. To do that, Mariah or Kaver gather all the eyases beneath them and lower their wings to keep the wind away and concentrate their body heat. For all their wandering, the nestlings will spend most of their time clumped together in a “Peregrine pile”, the better to keep each other warm.
In order to grow those feathers, and just to grow up, these chicks need to eat– a lot! They’re being fed every couple of hours. They even wake up in the middle of the night for an early morning snack! Here’s Mariah with some food for the always hungry eyases, caught in the instant of landing by the Rochester Falconcam’s cameras.
Now that hatching is over, look for updates on some of Mariah’s past offspring in the coming days, plus news about naming the eyases, banding day, and maybe even a little about Peregrine behavior and biology.
-Jess
May 13th, 2008 at 10:01 AM
thanks for the update..it is very interesting how they take care of their young. i love the term”peregrine pile”, in which they huddle to keep warm..so cute. such good parents these birds are, and very attentive. i will be keeping up with all your updates, and jess you do a great job, and i envy you having such a interesting and woth-while job.
May 13th, 2008 at 1:51 PM
Is it me, or does one of the eyases love to pose for the camera? In two separate pictures, it looks like one of the eyases is looking directly at the night camera (Camera #2). It’s almost as if it was very curious what that thing was..
May 13th, 2008 at 1:58 PM
Just can’t wait to check out the “babies’ everyday. I have been watching for years and these Mariah and Kaver never cease to amaze me! Thanks so much for all the updates.
May 13th, 2008 at 2:37 PM
We’ve been waiting so long. Now we can’t wait to hear their names.
May 13th, 2008 at 7:40 PM
I am finding it interesting that with today’s warmer weather, Mariah leaves the nest for longer times. I spotted both parents sunning themselves outside the nest box, perched on the camera arms or other structures. I also feel like those eayesses are growing right before my eyes. Looking back at the first pictures after hatching and then looking at them today, you can really see the difference already.
May 13th, 2008 at 10:15 PM
Well we know that Mariah and Kaver will make sure those babies grow up and have plenty to eat . I dont think that we “that” have much to worry about. We know that Mariah and Kaver know what there doing.
I LOVE watching the eyases grow up evey year!!!! 😀
I just like to say thanks to the people who run the falcon cam these updates and pictures and just everything that you guys do is just wonderful!!! You guys really take time and put effort into this website, Thank you! 🙂 😉
May 13th, 2008 at 11:41 PM
One of them is looking at the camera and he looks so cute!!! What a great shot of him (or her)!!! I love this website!!!!
-Brian Simmons
May 14th, 2008 at 12:05 AM
If Mom & Dad are away when these guys get bigger and moving around better, how or why do they stay in the nest box?
May 14th, 2008 at 3:49 AM
THE One Baby that is alway’s looking into the camera should be called rubber neck;; that one just want’s to know what is going on in his or her world;that one seem’s to be the know it all..lol.. I’m so Happy that they all are doing so good and getting strong…..
May 14th, 2008 at 3:18 PM
@Karen- There’s nothing about the physical layout of the nest box that keeps the eyases from leaving it. There is a drop of several feet to a catwalk just outside. It is possible for an eyas to fall out of the nest box, but it has never happened here to eyases as young as these. Presumably that’s because they have some instinct that keeps them from wandering over the edge of the scrape.
In the wild Peregrines live on cliff edges and similar precarious places. Eyases that fell out of the nest would surely be killed, and therefore not reproduce. Those that didn’t fall out would go on to reproduce, so there may be an evolutionary component to their behavior too.
May 14th, 2008 at 4:24 PM
I love the picture of Kaver “talking” with the “kids.”
Kaver, “Because I’m your dad and because I told you so!”
May 14th, 2008 at 6:11 PM
Brian is in our class, so we agree with his comment. We have had great fun keeping up with all these new babies. How about naming one Balto, Roc, or Phoenix?:)
May 15th, 2008 at 2:17 AM
They should name the one looking at the camera Curious George. Oh yeah, Mrs.G’s class rules!!!
May 16th, 2008 at 1:32 PM
The kids are a week old already. Wow! how time flies. You can see the pile of fluff is already bigger. Amazing!!!
Hey kids, from Mrs G’s class, Ilke Phoenix. Or how about Rochester. There used to be a radio guy by that name.
Have a great day
May 16th, 2008 at 3:16 PM
Boy Mariah has her work cut out for her with 5 little ones doesnt she!!
It is cute, she is standing over them with wings cuddled around them as much as will fit … and a little head popping out here and there around her feet.
One very large pile of white fuzz to keep warm!
May 18th, 2008 at 9:40 PM
Jess,
Banding Day, the eyases will be three to three and a half weeks old. Don’t we usually wait a bit longer? They’re so young.
I hate to see the white fluff go. They look soo funny at first. Like Halloween. Right now they are eally huddled. Are they cold?
Last year all I could see was the empty scrape, not action. AJ
May 24th, 2008 at 3:20 PM
Hey these are cool because we have been working on seeing this and it is so cool. i love these birds
May 25th, 2008 at 7:06 PM
Is it my imagination or are fewer folks writing this year. In the past, before all these catagories, We had many hundreds of comments. By the time they fledged we had a thousand or two. If I missed a day or two I’d have a lot of reading to do.
I never know where to look for the latest up date. The watching area sounds cool.
AJ