rfalconcam - Imprints

Imprints

The Journal of Rfalconcam

Beauty Returns to Times Square With A Friend

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Beauty’s been spotted around the downtown area all winter, but today is the first time this year that we’ve seen her on the Rochester Falconcam’s cameras. As expected, our new Main Camera got a great picture of her. This is about the time of year we’d expect to see the falcons begin to make their return to the nest box, so everything seems to be on track. Or does it?

Beauty had a friend with her today. Here’s a shot of him at the left, next to the Main Cam, munching on some prey. Beauty is looking on from the perch of the nest box on the right.
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Looks like Archer right? Only, it’s not. This guy doesn’t have any leg bands! In this picture you can see his left leg, and there’s clearly no band. Archer had bands on both legs, so this can’t be him.

Beauty seemed comfortable with this newcomer. Our Falconcam Archive Viewer (new for 2010!) shows her waiting patiently while the tiercel devoured his brunch. They both left the nest box shortly afterward. So, as the 2010 Falconcam season gets under way, we may have a new drama brewing here in Rochester. Where’s Archer? Is he just late returning home, or is this new tiercel going to be Beauty’s new mate? We usually get a healthy dose of drama at the Rochester Falconcam, and it looks like 2010 is not going to disappoint in that department!

27 Responses to “Beauty Returns to Times Square With A Friend”

  1. Larry Says:

    It’s about time for whoever to get off the dime and fix this password mess on Imprints. I know three people who would like to post and can’t because we can’t get in.

  2. Kathy Says:

    I was afraid of this as sooon as I heard he had migrated…*sigh*.

  3. Ashira Says:

    I wish Mariah would come back. ;-; I’ve been watching her since I was five.

  4. Ashira Says:

    Er, seven. Maths fail. : D;

  5. Paul Hamilton Says:

    Do we name him “Beast?”
    “Beastie?”

    Paul

  6. DianaR Says:

    Any chance this tiercel is Kaver?

    DianaR

  7. Maureen in MA Says:

    Yes, we usually do get a good dose of drama at the Rochester Falconcam – I love a good soap opera!! 😀 The new Falconcam Archive Viewer is great!! Thanks for your efforts in creating that, and the great post!

  8. chrissy Says:

    Diana, my thoughts exactly.

  9. Amy V. Says:

    Ooh, finally some potential action at the nest box. With a twist!

  10. Alison in Indiana Says:

    For long time observers the archive is not such a new feature, but this is the integrated version that was lacking previously. Initially it was the lynchpin of Shaky’s private falcon-watching site and what a mother lode of information it was. (Or still is, you can find it at shakymon.com)

  11. Melissa in MA Says:

    WOW! That picture of Beauty’s back is just stunning! The details
    in the feathers, the clarity of the whole picture; just fantastic!
    Sure hope this camera captures 2010 nesting!

  12. Alison in Indiana Says:

    Poor old Orville (the pale rock in the Times Square Scrape, a companion of the Rochester Falcons for years) seems to be teetering on the edge of a depression.
    There also seems to be a mini-depression in the gravel in the Powers box. But it could be an optical illusion (there have been such last year – illusions, I mean).

  13. Ashira Says:

    Beauty’s buffy tummy makes me wonder if she’s got Peale’s blood in her ancestry. I’ve found some pictures of the subspecies with the same colour on their breasts. Do we know anything about her heritage?

  14. Tim Says:

    It is great to just see them back!!!!!

  15. Alison in Indiana Says:

    Ashira, many of the falcons that were reintroduced into the wild after their practical extinction from DDT east of the Mississippi were raised by falconers who were less concerned with pure blood lines. So an anatum and pealei mix is very common. We also once (must be 5-6 years ago) discussed some Peale blood in Mariah on account of her coloring.
    We know Beauty’s immediate parentage, it must be somewhere on the site, and chose to keep the name given her at banding. But where she came from many generations back could be harder to trace. However, I do not doubt that there are some experts out there, citizen scientists, who can come up with a pretty good family tree.

  16. chrissy Says:

    Beauty’s history. http://rfalconcam.com/imprinting/?p=719. Her mom, Dorothy, is out of Wisconsin and all her chicks have that buffy borst. She and E2 are already in courting mode at Pittsburgh’s Cathedral of Learning Kate St. John’s blog. Love is in the air!

  17. Ashira Says:

    Alison – ooh, really? Thanks. : D

    Chrissy – Thank you! ^_^ I don’t know how I missed that post before. D : And that’s a cool blog – I’ll have to explore it. :3

  18. Alison in Indiana Says:

    The fact that both of Dorothy’s parents were hacked, indicates to me (without my being sure) that they were birds from a falconers’ stock like I referred to above. Chrissy’s report of them all having the same coloring that got Ashira’s attention is interesting and possibly indicative.
    So now we have three generations in this falcon Beauty’s line; may there be a fourth this season!

  19. Ashira Says:

    : D That’s pretty cool. I hope Mariah has better luck this year, too. D : Poor old girl had a rough 2009.

  20. Carol P. Says:

    Me too Ashira. Me too. 🙂

  21. Maureen in MA Says:

    Has anyone seen Mariah lately? Hopefully she’s hunkered down somewhere safe.

  22. Alison in Indiana Says:

    I have not read any reports on Mariah sightings for some time. This is not necessarily a cause for concern. In Mariah’s first years in Rochester she did leave the area in the winter and even in later years would not be seen for days and weeks. I always had greatest respect for the faithful watchers (among others, Carol P.) who would nevertheless go out, braving the elements, and search the usual places in case she put in a showing.

  23. Alison in Indiana Says:

    Snowdrifts in the nest box at Times Square. The snow in the Powers Building nest is considerably less. I noticed this when the last snows came through Rochester, too. If I were Beauty, this might make me change my mind about choosing TS for my scrape. But, of course, Beauty probably does not have a long memory for such things – so by March, this may all be forgotten and the basic geographical configuration of TS may still look more attractive.

  24. Carol P. Says:

    Alison is correct. There have been no positive ID’s of Mariah since end of October, 2009. We keep looking for her and will report if we see her. 🙂

  25. Maureen in MA Says:

    Thanks Alison and Carol for the reply!

  26. John Carlos Says:

    Soooooo, how about what DianaR asked? Any chance that this bandless tiercel could be Kaver?

  27. Alison in Indiana Says:

    A small chance – the tiercel is unbanded, so we cannot know. Even if he hung around all summer and raised eyases with Beauty, we would probably never know for sure. But since he has not put in an appearance for several days, he may have just been flying though.


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