As we reported previously reported, Jemison’s recovery has been going very well. She’s been moved to a larger flight cage so that she can exercise her wings in preparation for an eventual release. The rehab specialist taking care of Jemison says that she continues to be feisty and she takes lots of baths in the water bowl provided for her!

We don’t yet know when Jemison will be ready to be released, but we do know that she won’t be released back here in Rochester. The biologists at the DEC have determined that Jemison’s safety could be jeopardized if she’s released in Rochester because so much time has passed since she was injured and taken away. It’s likely that by now Archer and Beauty wouldn’t recognize Jemison if she were returned here. If the adults were to treat her as an intruder she could be re-injured or at least forced out of the territory under unfriendly circumstances. We know everyone was hoping for a different outcome, but releasing Jemison away from Rochester will give her the best chance for safely making it through these next few months, which are crucial to her development into a full-fledged adult. We’re in close contact with the rehabber and the DEC so we’ll make sure to get more information as it becomes available.

Jemison’s release is still some way off though, so in the meantime here are a couple more pictures with those beautiful falcon wings outstretched…

After spending much of July in the neighborhood of Brampton, Ontario, Quest decided to end the month by going eastward. She passed by Toronto on her way to Pickering. We’re pleased to see that in her third year, Quest and her transmitter are still going strong, though we’re wondering when (and where!) she might settle down to start a family of her own.

Quest continues to enjoy her time inland. As with the previous week, she has spent most of her days in Brampton, Ontario. She took one trip west into the Toronto suburbs, but it seems like she’s feeling comfortable staying away from the water for now.

According to the latest from the rehabber taking care of Jemison she is beginning to heal. The broken bone in her shoulder is re-calcifying. Calcium is essential for bone strength so this is very good news. She’s feeding herself, another good sign.

The next stop for Jemison is a two-week stint in a large flight cage where she can exercise her wings. Then more x-rays will be taken to see how things stand.

We’ve heard from the rehabber taking care of Jemison. She’s doing very well, and she’s scheduled for an x-ray tomorrow. The radiograph should give them an idea of how well Jemison’s broken bone has healed. We’ll let you know as soon as we hear the results of the x-ray.

It appears that Quest has decided to move north of Toronto for a while. Her most recent few days’ locations have placed her in nearby Brampton, Ontario. The satellite view of the map there shows parkland and plenty of multi-story buildings (including the local Police station), so it would appear that she has good perches and at least the potential for plentiful prey.

Jemison Gets a Cooling Mist. Picture by Carol Phillips

June Summers, President of the Genesee Valley Audubon Society, and Rochester Falconcam member Carol Phillips paid a visit to Jemison and provided the picture above, along with a report of her progress so far. She continues to be feisty and is eating everything given to her. Jemison also enjoyed the cooling spray of water that you can see in the picture at the left.

All hopes are that her injured shoulder will heal quickly. Her wing continues to return to a normal position, and another rehabber who looked at Jemison couldn’t even detect an injury, so that’s very good news. We’ll be sure to keep you updated as to Jemison’s progress.

The DEC has made arrangements to transport Jemison to the same rehab facility outside of Syracuse, New York, which was so instrumental in nursing Mariah back to health. They have over 30 years’ experience treating falcons and returning them back to the skies. Their facility includes a very large flight cage where Jemison will be able to practice flying.

The Rochester Falconcam wants to extend our sincere and heartfelt thanks to Gary and all the staff at Black Creek Wildlife Center, and especially to Dr. Parsons. Also to Terry and the good folks at Wild Wings for supplying some falcon-appropriate food on short notice. Our gratitude also goes to Dr. Gerald Balonek at the East Ridge Animal Hospital, where Jemison was taken by Rochester Animal Control. Without the selflessness of all involved, Jemison’s outlook could have been much worse.

We’re also grateful to the DEC’s Mike Allen, Jenny Landry, and Barb Loucks for their advice and assistance, and to the Rochester Police Dept. and Rochester Animal Control, both for Jemison’s initial rescue and for letting MAK, our on-scene watcher at the time, know of Jemison’s condition.

And finally, a huge “thank you” to our volunteer fledge watchers, who have spent many hours on the “front lines” keeping an eye on all of the falcons, especially our newest flyers. It is their dedication that helps to ensure positive outcomes for the fledglings in Rochester, and gives them the best opportunity to lead successful lives as masters of the sky.

Jemison - photo by Carol Phillips

If you’ve been following the reports from our volunteer fledge watchers, you know that Jemison got into trouble flying on the Friday before the July 4th holiday and had to be rescued. If you haven’t been following the news, you can catch up HERE.

The Veterinarian who is taking care of Jemison performed an x-ray today and the results are in. Jemison has a break in her right coracoid bone, part of her shoulder. Her long-term prognosis is uncertain right now, but there’s good reason to be optimistic. In young birds like Jemison bones heal fast, so as long as the bone heals in the correct position, she has a good chance of flying again.

As you can see from the picture above, Jemison’s right wing is much closer to the normal position than the drooping that our watchers witnessed this past Friday when she was rescued.

The Vet also reports that Jemison is feisty and eating well, all good signs. He plans to feed Jemison a diet that includes additional calcium to help with bone growth and healing.

Jemison took her first flight Saturday morning, then spent the weekend making occasional, short forays around the Times Square building. Yesterday she took her first extended flight, going about half a block before turning back and making a competent landing at the nest box.

Callidora, much larger and heavier than her smaller sibling, did her share of flapping and wing practice, but couldn’t quite make the leap. That is, until this afternoon, when she too made her maiden flight. According to watchers on the ground, she tried to follow Jemison across a small gap at the top of the building, but ended up curving away from Times Square. She misjudged her return, bumping into the side of the building, but started flapping again and made a soft landing on the flat roof of the nearby Wilder Building, which is just across Exchange Street. She’s been sitting there for a few hours now, hopping along the rooftop. We’ve had Camera 1 trained on her all evening, and she looks no worse for wear. If Callidora doesn’t make it back to the nest box tonight, she’ll be perfectly safe on top of the Wilder building. Archer and Beauty know where she is, and it’ll be easy for them to feed her if she stays. Eventually she’ll make her way back to the nest box, and we have watchers on the ground just in case she takes a bad turn.

Both of the fledglings have made pretty conventional flights. The watchers have a little adjusting to do, being in a downtown environment for the first time, but so far the Times Square building at the corner of Broad and Exchange Streets in downtown Rochester has turned out to be a pretty good place to raise young falcons.

Quest's week June 17-27

Other than a visit to Port Hope a few days ago, Quest has been spending all her time in the Tornoto area. In particular, it looks like she’s been hanging out at some high buildings near the Toronto Public Library, which overlook the Tam O’Shanter Golf Club. Maybe she’s working on her short game.

When Quest isn’t looking for birdies on the links, she’s been out at the waterfront in nearby Pickering. It looks like there’s a large industrial complex that she’s been using as a base for her amphibious operations.