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Quest spent the final days of 2008 in Tom Nevers, where she was a hit with a number of area birders. We received detailed descriptions of her movements from several people including noted Nantucket Birding experts Edith Andrews and Ken Blackshaw. Others have posted their sightings in the comments of the Quest update we posted on the 28th.

Here’s Edith’s account of seeing Quest on the 27th of December. She’s keeping up with Quest in her newspaper column that appears in the Nantucket Inquirer and Mirror:

In spite of rain and fog Nantucket had a good Christmas Bird Count on December 27. It was warm – temperature in the 50s and the wind was moderate SW. A relief from the gale we had during the week. One hundred and thirty-four species were seen by thirty-nine participants. Last year we had 130 species with over 50 participants. The grand total of individuals is three hundred and thirty-nine thousand and seven hundred and seventy.

One of the highlights was Quest, the Peregrine Falcon from Rochester, N.Y. She was seen and photographed at Tom Nevers in the morning and in the afternoon she was seen on the west side of Miacomet Pond, perched on the house with the name of “Full House” and then flew off, came back and perched on the ridgepole of the house next door named “Sandcastle”. She sat there quite a while, shifting her feet, turned around and looked at us. The antenna protruding from her back was very obvious, her feathers looked wet and bedraggled. It is exciting to think she is staying here on Nantucket. She was raised in a box on the Kodak Tower in Rochester, N.Y. When she fledged she flew down to the ground in the midst of traffic but she flew up and back to the Tower and was fed by her wild parents before taking off in an easterly direction.

We were fortunate to receive several pictures of Quest from the 27th as well, including this one from Rob Culbert:

Her appearance in this photograph fits very well with the accounts we’ve read. She looks like she’s in good shape considering the winter weather on Nantucket. We’re grateful to Falconcam team member Carol Phillps for connecting with Edith and Ken. We also extend our sincere thanks to everyone who has reported seeing Quest. Keep those sightings coming!

Quest took the opportunity of the new year to head up the coast, where it appears that she spent the day at the beach. A strong signal from the afternoon on New Year’s Day placed her on Atlantic Street/Baxter Road, a couple hundred meters from the Sankaty Head Lighthouse, and just east of the Sankaty Head Golf Club. The following day brought her back to the north end of the Tom Nevers neighborhood. It appears that she spent the night in the woodland near 27 Norwood Street.

She definitely seems to have found a home in Tom Nevers. Presumably there is sufficient shelter and food nearby to provide some level of comfort for her. We’re looking forward to seeing how she passes the rest of the winter, and hopeful that 2009 will be an exciting year for Quest!

-Jess

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Quest remained in the neighborhood around Tom Nevers Road in southeast Nantucket for the holiday. Several of the data points show her very close to some luxurious residences.

In fact, on Christmas Day, Quest appears to have been a surreptitious house guest at the seaside mansion of some wealthy landowner on Wanoma Way, close by Tom Nevers Pond. Locations on other dates also place her near several different houses. The winter population of Nantucket falls to about 10,000, so its anyone’s guess whether she has been spotted or not.

If you’re on Nantucket with some time on your hands, you might want to cruise the streets around Tom Nevers Road. Who knows? You might just spot Quest perched on a rooftop somewhere.

-Jess

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Despite some gaps in the daily emails from the ARGOS satellite tracking service during the past several days, there’s enough data to show that Quest is staying between the communities of Siasconset and Surfside on the southern shore of Nantucket Island.

The reliable data points indicate that she’s spending much of her time along Tom Nevers Road. Satellite imagery shows this to be a wooded residential neighborhood with plenty of single-family homes. Click the View Larger Map link then click the Satellite button to switch views. Some of the houseslook quite large. It’s likely that the woodland provides a refuge for Quest, sheltering her from the worst of the precipitation and especially the wind which has been quite fierce in recent days.

-Jess

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Well, she’s not from Nantucket exactly, but naughty limericks aside, it looks like Quest has decided to leave the Cape for a while. Since December 5^th she’s been visiting the old whaling port-turned-high class vacation spot.

She started at the northernmost tip of the island, spending the 5^th and 6^th at the historic Great Point Lighthouse. There is undoubtedly an abundance of shorebirds here to keep her fed. The data from the 7^th wasn’t very accurate but it also showed her at the northeast end of the island.

The 8^th and 9^th found her moving south to Siasconset. The morning reading on the 8^th showed her on the beach near Ocean Avenue, while a strong signal on the evening of the 9^th placed her in the wooded residential neighborhood along Tom Nevers Road. So Quest appears to be seeking out sheltered spots where she can pass the night in relative comfort.

After her long stay at the Cape we’ll have to see whether she returns to the mainland or decides to spend the holidays with the residents of Nantucket.

-Jess

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A look at the map might make it seem that way. The data shows Quest returning to some of her favorite haunts on the Cape, including Wellfleet Bay and Monomoy Island. But the timestamps tell a different story.

Quest usually takes her trips to Monomoy during the day, but our most recent data indicates that she has actually been spending her nights on the tidal flat. We didn’t receive any good data for the 3^rd but the data for the 29^th, 2^nd and 4^th places her there in the early morning and late evening. On at least one occasion we were fortunate to get consecutive good data passes at hourly intervals indicating that she is indeed spending the night on the northern end of Monomoy Island.

The data points are so closely spaced that it appears she’s found a particular area she likes. The satellite image doesn’t show any structures nearby, so it’s not clear where she’s staying, but something on the island seems to appeal to her.

-Jess

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Just when we think Quest has settled into a routine she throws us a curve. Most of the good data we received are from the early morning or early evening, hardly prime hunting time for the season. Interestingly, it shows that Quest has been staying away from Monomoy, choosing instead to go into Chatham Port. In fact, the three data points in the Chatham area place her very close to the Middle School where she spent a few days back in September. Her night time destination continues to be Nickerson State Park.

We’re not sure if this signals the beginning of a new pattern for Quest or whether its just a temporary change. We’ll keep an eye on our intrepid Peregrine to see what happens.

-Jess

Members of the Rochester Falconcam recently took a few hours to install a trio of cameras at the nest box that was placed on the Powers Building about 6 weeks ago. Some internal connections still need to be made, but we can comfortably say that we’ll be ready to bring the images to you if Mariah makes use of this box in the spring.

Carol Phillips put together a photo journal of the work done by the team. Check it out here!

The second nest box should be installed at the Times Square building in the next week or so. There are a few technical challenges at this location, but we’re planning to install at least 2 cameras there as well. We’ll bring news of that work to you as soon as we can.

-Jess

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Quest is sticking to her established behavior patterns on the Cape, but the latest batch of data from Quest’s transmitter shows that she’s modifying her activity to match the changing season. As the days grow shorter, Quest is limiting her time over Monomoy, and spending more time at Nickerson State Park in the area around Ruth’s Pond.

The move from Daylight Saving Time to Eastern Standard Time means that fewer satellite passes are occurring during daylight hours. Combine that with the many variables that affect signal strength and the result is that we aren’t getting as many meaningful data points as we were in the summer months. We’ll adjust our schedule of updates to match the data we’re receiving, so new postings on Quest’s whereabouts may be coming at longer intervals for the next few months.

-Jess

Photos courtesy of Mark Nash, Canadian Peregrine Foundation

We’ve received some happy news from Mark Nash and our friends at the Canadian Peregrine Foundation— Linn is back!!!

You may recall that Linn was spotted there at the beginning of the year, but then she left for parts unknown. She’s back now, and she’s brought a friend, as Mark Nash reports:

Over the past four plus weeks, we have been getting regular sightings of a pair of peregrines that have been hanging around the Bell hack site at Pharmacy & Eglinton. Both birds (a male and female) have been observed coming in and out of the hack box, as well as roosting, sleeping and feeding regularly on various elevations on the Bell building. This morning we were able to confirm Bruce Massey’s observation of the female’s band number that he [observed] this past weekend (November 8th & 9th 2008) – Black 91 over Green V.

She has been identified as Linn from Rochester – produced at the Kodak nest site in 2007!!

Her male friend also [wears] a Black over Green colour marker band (but we have not been able to get his numbers yet). BUT his USFWS band appears to be a purple/mauve colour. While it may be a coloured tape, it does not appear to be case. We will continue to monitor the site in the hopes that we might get an ID on this guy.

Mark sent along some pictures of Linn the male who accompanied her, presented here for your viewing pleasure.
          

What a beauty she is in her adult plumage! We’re thrilled to know that Linn is back. If this male is her mate, they’ve chosen an excellent spot to nest and raise young in 2009! Our gratitude and appreciation go to Bruce Massey, Mark Nash, and all the great folks at the Canadian Peregrine Foundation for keeping an eye out for Linn, and for welcoming yet another Rochester peregrine to grace the skies of Canada!

-Jess

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No she’s not joining a convent, but it does look like Quest has established a regular cycle of activity for herself. All of the November data thus far places her near Monomoy Island during the day, and at Nickerson State Park in the evening and at night. It seems the pineland in the park is providing a sheltered spot where she can rest. And of course, she’s likely taking advantage of the bird buffet at Monomoy during the day.

Here’s a satellite image of the Monomoy Island with the refuge outlined in red. It provides a good view of the areas Quest has been frequenting, and it really shows the tidal flats that aren’t as apparent in the map view above. We’re thankful to Stephanie Koch and Michael Brady, both of the US Fish and Wildlife Service for providing this image and for the interest they’ve shown in Quest’s presence at the Monomoy refuge.

It’s shaping up to be a good life for Quest. She doesn’t appear to be in any hurry to leave the Cape, so this might be the pattern we can expect from her throughout the winter. Quest might have other plans though, so keep checking back every few days to catch up on her latest movements!

-Jess