A Better Look at Beauty & Archer at Times Square
We’re making progress but we’re still not ready to connect the Times Square cameras to the site yet. One thing we did manage to do though is to pull the original images of Archer and Beauty at the nest box that we printed in our post from the 12th. Here’s the first of them.
One thing we can say immediately is that we got the ID wrong in our earlier picture. The photo above clearly shows the black and green leg band, which means this is Beauty, not Archer as we had said. Her breast shows the heavy barring and deep salmon tint to her plumage that our on-scene watchers have also noted.
Here’s the next picture…
The bowing behavior that typifies courtship and pair bonding between falcons is on display in this picture. You can also see the area surrounding the nest box, including the ramp on the right that can be used by eyases or fledglings to climb back up to the nest box if one were ever to fall out. The door allowing access to the nest box area is also visible on the right. The nest box is about seven feet (2.2m) above the floor of this narrow area, so if we ever do get an opportunity to band eyases here we’re going to need a ladder to get up to the box. It’s not visible in this picture, but this box has been modified so that the right side can be opened to allow easier access to any eyases that may call this artificial scrape home.
June 15th, 2009 at 8:59 PM
Thank you for posting these photos and keeping all of us in the loop with updates. There certainly have been some dramatic/interesting developments this year. And more to look forward to with the setup of the Times Square cameras. This is great! Archer and Beauty make a handsome couple. Thankfully, Mariah has harmoniously reinstated her position in Rochester, as well. The dedication of all humans involved is impressive.
Barbara
(Los Angeles)
June 15th, 2009 at 10:02 PM
Thank you, Jess! I’d all but given up on seeing any nestbox action this year. Can’t wait to see what’s next for this new pair.
June 15th, 2009 at 11:52 PM
Beautiful, just beautiful!! Thanks for all you do!!
June 16th, 2009 at 12:34 AM
I am so happy to see these photos – thank you for posting them. BTW, the falcons here in Seattle on the WaMu tower are doing well. Last year’s clutch all died of disease around two weeks of age so we had our fingers crossed this year. So far, so good !!
June 16th, 2009 at 2:05 AM
That’s great news about your local falcons, Barbara in WA. Is there a webcam on the WaMu tower?
There do not seem to be any falcon cams in L.A. However, Saturday evening I believe I saw falcons circling the top of a tall building at 5700 Wilshire Blvd. in the Miracle Mile area. Does anyone know if there is a scrape on that building?
Barbara
(Los Angeles)
June 16th, 2009 at 3:28 AM
Saw them both today. Took off from the Times Building and hung out for a while on the ledge of the large brick building where the First Federal Bank is. Waaay up at the top on the green ridge is where sat for a while.
June 16th, 2009 at 3:36 AM
Birdlover – That is the Wilder Bldg. and you are correct it was Archer and Beauty sitting next to each other. I hope to post some pictures soon.
June 16th, 2009 at 12:04 PM
The kids are certainly handsome offspring. Love that salmon color! And whomever did the box construction, excellent!! Can’t tell that our kids are spoiled (big grins*).
June 16th, 2009 at 12:27 PM
@ Barbara in LA-I know absolutely nothing about LA, but one of the moderators on the Yahoo group, Judi, is in LA & has mentioned a scrape in Century City. I’ll post a copy of your note over there…
June 16th, 2009 at 1:31 PM
Thank you Thank you for all this information. I check the Quest map daily and we are so lucky with all these pictures and how this balance is working out for our beloved Mariah.
June 16th, 2009 at 2:03 PM
This is VERY exciting news!! 😀 Thank you to everyone involved for their efforts, and for keeping us posted!
June 16th, 2009 at 3:32 PM
Wonderful pictures, alas, just 3 months too late …
June 16th, 2009 at 3:47 PM
Thank you, ei.
Barbara
(Los Angeles)
June 16th, 2009 at 4:41 PM
This is great! Thanks from someone who doesn’t live close to Rochester! This is the closest we can get to seeing them. Much appreciated!
June 16th, 2009 at 5:57 PM
chicki, Looks like we have Boy Scout Troop 334 from Rush, NY (a suburb of Rochester) to thank for the construction of the nest box. Great job!
June 16th, 2009 at 7:53 PM
I used to look forward to this time of year when Mariah would come back. Now that her home is gone, so is she. I won’t be back. Thank you for nothing.
June 16th, 2009 at 8:37 PM
Bonnie from Ridgecrest: It isn’t the people behind this web sites fault that Mariah was displaced this year – it’s a part of nature, we may not like it but that’s the way it is. Beauty and Archer are peregrine falcons and gorgeous ones at that and I fully support knowing about them as they are the future. It is a fact that without Mariah, Archer wouldn’t be here today – it’s the cycle of life and he is a part of her that will carry on to future generations.
I also haven’t given up on Mariah yet either. Who knows, maybe she will find a new mate and they will coexist – each in their own territories. What I do know is that Mariah has given us a decade of joy. She has made a major contribution to the falcon population that will live on far beyond us and be here for future generations to enjoy – that is what the whole point of all this is. She is a free bird, born to fly free and die free – hard as that may be to accept. I don’t think she’d be very happy in a cage at all. Let’s enjoy her for all the days that we can! I personally love hearing the watchers updates on her daily adventures. I take great pleasure she’s out there still kicking it up!
The people who give us this web site, provide us with the updates, the watchers and all the contributors deserve our respect and admiration for all the hard work they do. And I for one do thank them!
June 16th, 2009 at 9:29 PM
Barbara in LA – just got back to these comments today: yes, there is a live cam on WaMu falcons in Seattle. It is on the Falcon Research Group website (frg.org). They juvies aren’t always in sight now as they roam around the ledge. Last time I spotted them they were still mostly white with lots of dark feathers coming in.
June 16th, 2009 at 11:02 PM
@Bonnie in Ridgecrest – Mariah showed up in February this year, just like she has every year that she’s been here. It’s too bad you’ve decided to turn away from what has been one of the most interesting years we’ve had here in Rochester. True, it can be hard to watch sometimes, but we’re learning a lot about Peregrines’ resiliency and behavior.
I’m not sure why you think Mariah’s home is gone. Falcons don’t have homes, per se; they have territories. Mariah’s territory is Rochester. The nest box on the Kodak tower that she used for a decade is a nursery, a place for her to raise her young, nothing more. Had she retained her mate this year she would doubtless have found a place to lay her eggs and raise her young because that’s what falcons do. The fact that she didn’t is solely due to Kaver’s absence this year, not to the movement of her nest box.
June 17th, 2009 at 12:26 AM
!!!
June 17th, 2009 at 4:40 AM
Thank you, Barbara in WA. I’ve bookmarked the site and will visit during daylight tomorrow.
Barbara
(Los Angeles)
June 17th, 2009 at 4:58 AM
I wonder if everyone is aware that there is a page on this site dedicated to reports covering Mariah as well as Archer and Beauty’s activities. I didn’t realize it was there myself for a while. Look for the “Falcon Watch” link (not Fledge Watch). Reports come in as time allows (watchers often stay till sundown so it’s a long day!) and sometimes they even add pictures. It’s nice to know that our merry band of Mariah watchers will be there for her if she ever needs help again 🙂
June 17th, 2009 at 11:40 PM
thank you, those are great picturs, kinda remains you of M&K…doesn’t it?
June 19th, 2009 at 7:20 PM
On Kfalconcam I see people posting pics from the main camera of this nestbox, where are they getting those pictures? Has the main camera been hooked up somewhere?
June 21st, 2009 at 9:00 PM
@WingedSkye-You may have already seen the latest Imprints, but in case you check here first…the Main cam is currently viewable at Shaky’s archive viewer at http://shakymon.com/rfc-archive.html