Kathy Borland was doing rounds today (July 4) as a security guard for CMU when she heard there was a dead hawk on Henry Street behind the Software Engineering Institute. When she got there she found it was a peregrine, one of Dorothy and E2’s brood who hatched this spring at the Cathedral of Learning.
Kathy got in touch with me, I got in touch with the PA Game Commission’s Beth Fife and then I went to see the bird.
It was “Yellow Girl,” the one we saw so close on Heinz Chapel on June 6.
“Yellow Girl” apparently hit a window on SEI around 1:15pm with so much force that it completely broke her neck. Kathy found her face down on Henry Street with her wings spread. She probably died instantly.
Poor Yellow didn’t know what hit her. She may have been chasing pigeons and thought the window was the sky. Alas. There was nothing we could do.
As I said before, if you want to save birds do something about windows!
(photo of deceased juvenile peregrine “Yellow,” black/green, 72/AE, by Kate St. John)
That’s a real shame and a real loss. As we see more and more peregrines nesting in cities, juvenile mortality will definitely continue to be a problem.
So sorry we lost another from the Cathedral nest this year 🙁
{sigh} I was hoping all the rest would at least make it to their first brood.
She was the 1st pergrine I had the pleasure of seeing really close up. She made my year. Sad to see her go so soon 🙁
Heartbreaking. A preventable death.
This IS very sad news. Such a shame, after surviving to this point.
What a shame …. 🙁
They give us such happiness, but this makes us aware of their vulnerability in our city surrounding. How good she was found, and what beauty even with no breath in her.
It is so VERY sad.
Heartbreaking news. Rest in peace, beautiful “Yellow Girl”.
🙁 Rest in peace Yello Girl.
So sad. Poor baby. It’s so terrible that innocent animals become the victim of the environment that we have created. I think this every time I see an animal that has been killed on the road and I find myself thinking it again. Poor yellow girl. My condolences to all her fans.
I was just thinking of these birds the night before when I heard one crying out between 1am and and 2am when some fireworks upset them. Little did I know the next afternoon one would crash into the glass in the light of day. Last winter I had a huge ghostly open wing imprint of one of these birds on my glass back door when they’ve gone after a bird at my feeder. I couldn’t get a good photograph of it to share. Kathy Borland is always helpful to the wildlife and strays around CMU Campus. Thanks for telling Kate and the rest of us about this sad accident.
Received this email from Lily today (15 Sept 2011) with a NYTimes link about window-kills:
Hey Kate,
In case you haven’t seen this article today: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/15/nyregion/making-new-yorks-glass-buildings-safer-for-birds.html?_r=1&hp
Cheers!
– Lily