Quest Update Feb 23 – March 3
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(Zoom in or out on the map by clicking the small “+†& “-†signs. Move it around by clicking your mouse button and dragging the map in the desired direction. Click the falcon icons for more information about each location.)
Again, not much to report from Quest. Aside from a trip north to a curious, spidery clump of interconnected roads and expensive looking buildings in the Polpis area she continues her normal pattern of movements in south-east Nantucket.
We’re happy to report that the winter storm that struck the northeast earlier in the week does not appear to have impacted Quest to any great extent. Her transmitter’s temperature sensor continues to read well above ambient air temperatures, going as high as 25°C and generally hovering between 18 and 20 degrees.
March 6th, 2009 at 4:02 AM
So, do you think Quest will stay there or will she move on? She’s too young to breed so maybe she’ll just find a playmate for a year. She seems very content there.
Thanks for the update.
March 6th, 2009 at 8:11 AM
Personally, I think she will stay. Why go elsewhere when the neighborhood seems to have all that a falcon could desire?
Of course, longer days and warmer weather could change the neighborhood – more raptors, for example – which would alter the equasion.
March 6th, 2009 at 2:15 PM
I hadn’t thought about what Alison said… possibly more raptors once the season changes. It should be very interesting to see what comes next. Thanks for the update!
March 6th, 2009 at 3:50 PM
Great news! Glad to hear she continues to find all that
she needs, and even did a little bit of exploring since
our last check on her. Thanks for updating us!!
March 7th, 2009 at 12:51 AM
Glad to hear Quest is still doing well..wish she would come back this way.. thanks for the update.
March 7th, 2009 at 2:02 AM
I would like to think she will stay satisfied and content. Will see.
Now she’s doing great, that’s all I need to know.
March 7th, 2009 at 2:23 AM
Thanks, Jess!
Always good to hear how Quest is doing.
March 7th, 2009 at 5:31 AM
I hope Quest stays in her little corner of the island. She seems well adapted and safe. She doesn’t even seem to go near the airport, a concern a lot of people had early on. (‘tho I admit a moment of angst when I heard about the cessna losing nosegear forcing an emergency landing a few weeks ago!).
If memory serves, Quest’s next update should be a milestone making her the longest surviving of Mariah’s offspring to be tracked.
March 7th, 2009 at 5:18 PM
If she stays or not would depend on how things change (more people, etc) in the spring and summer months. Wouldn’t it?
March 9th, 2009 at 3:02 AM
Who can say what’s going on in Quest’s small, sophisticated raptor brain? Availability of food, a sheltered place to rest and other survival-related factors certainly play a role. If Nantucket gets busy in the spring and summer she may well decide she doesn’t like all of the crowds. And of course her biological imperative for reproduction will be a powerful driver of her behavior. It remains to be seen what course she’ll take, but if and/or when she decides to move we’ll have the great advantage of following her journey.
March 9th, 2009 at 5:50 AM
Let’s hope she doesn’t go too far inland and stays clear of Nantucket Sound…
http://www.windstop.org/home.html
March 9th, 2009 at 8:25 AM
I doubt that summer crowds will be a problem for a high-flying lady like Quest who grew up and was socialized in downtown Rochester… Nevertheless, if it is too much, she can always head for the bird sanctuary.
March 9th, 2009 at 3:59 PM
I hope that she stays and raises a family there. My nephew’s in-laws have a summer place on Nantucket so I’ve told him to keep a look out for her when they visit. How long will her transmitter work?
March 10th, 2009 at 1:41 AM
It’s not tourists Alison – it’s wind power – did you check the link?
March 10th, 2009 at 1:42 AM
Lemme help you:
“Scientists don’t know whether the kills reduce overall bird populations but worry that turbines, added to other factors, could tip a species into decline. “They didn’t realize it at the time, but it was just a really bad place to build a wind farm,” says Grainger Hunt, an ecologist with the Peregrine Fund who has studied eagles at Altamont.”
March 10th, 2009 at 8:19 AM
Birdlover, my reply was not to you, but rather to Jess.
I know about windpower, we have a great deal of it in Europe. It is a topic on various bird forums in German that I frequent, as are powerlines. What with the energy crises, both political and material, we will probably have a great deal more of both. But whether Quest chooses to stay over the summer or moves on will, in my opinion, not be as affected by the windmills as by other factors.
March 11th, 2009 at 1:01 AM
It’s unlikely the presence of wind turbines would have any impact on whether Quest decides to stay in Nantucket. Such things are, like automobiles and airplanes, beyond her understanding and likely her notice. If the turbines killed off enough potential prey that she had trouble feeding herself they might have an effect, and she could always fall afoul of spinning turbine blades herself, but other than that they probably won’t have any impact on her travel plans.
@Barb C- The harness holding the transmitter is designed to fall off after 2-3 years. Being solar powered, the transmitter has potentially an unlimited life, but weather exposure and other factors would probably cause it to fail after a few years.
March 12th, 2009 at 7:13 PM
Hey Jess, I have been watching the camera and have not seen any sign of use. Do you know if they have found any of the new boxes yet?
March 12th, 2009 at 9:34 PM
@Tim – Check out the latest Imprints update for your answer!
March 18th, 2009 at 8:54 AM
Is Quest ok, we haven’t had an update for awhile?