4 March 2024

Egg laying season is coming up soon at the Cathedral of Learning peregrine nest where Ecco and Carla are courting frequently.

Yesterday they held three long courting sessions that included bowing, ee-chupping, and nest preparation. The ee-chup call sounds different for male and female peregrines. Ecco’s voice is squeaky while Carla’s voice is rough and slightly lower in pitch. She’s the one that makes the “huh” sound. You can hear the difference in this 6-minute video. More information on what they are up to is described below.

After bowing, Ecco left the nest so Carla could make preparations on her own. To limber up she stretched her right wing and leg.

To “build” the nest, Carla put her chest against one edge of it and kicked the gravel out with her feet. The nest itself is a bowl in the gravel, called a scrape, for holding eggs so they don’t roll off the cliff. Peregrines don’t use sticks to build their nests.

After digging Carla puttered around on the gravel surface, swallowing small pieces of gravel to aid digestion. Birds add gravel to their gizzards to grind the food. Learn more about How Birds Chew at the link.

And when she was done Carla flew away.

A few weeks from now, after Carla lays her next-to-last egg, she’ll stay at the nest to incubate.

In the meantime stay tuned for eggs coming in March or early April at the National Aviary Falconcam at the University of Pittsburgh.