10 May 2021

Western Pennsylvania peregrine families are very active at this time of year but we often don’t see it. In May the parents are feeding hungry chicks but the chicks are typically hidden from view. At most sites we won’t know if a nest is successful until the chicks appear — loudly — when they’re about to fledge in late May or early June. Right now I have news from only 4 (boldface) of our 11 regional sites.

1. Pittsburgh: Cathedral of Learning, Allegheny County
2. Pittsburgh: Downtown, Allegheny County
3. Monongahela Watershed: Westinghouse Bridge, Allegheny County
4. Monongahela River: Speers Railroad Bridge, Washington County
5. Ohio River: McKees Rocks Bridge, Allegheny County,
6. Ohio River: Neville Island Bridge, NO PEREGRINES DUE TO CONSTRUCTION
7. Ohio River: Ambridge-Aliquippa Bridge, Beaver County, NO PEREGRINES SEEN FOR SEVERAL WEEKS
8. Ohio River: Monaca Railroad Bridge, Beaver County
9. Allegheny River: 62nd Street to Aspinwall Railroad Bridge, NO PEREGRINES NOW
10. Allegheny River: Tarentum Bridge, Allegheny & Westmoreland Counties
11. Allegheny River: Rt 422 Graff Bridge Kittanning, Armstrong County

Cathedral of Learning, University of Pittsburgh:

Yesterday the chicks were 14 days old (2 weeks): Their second down is long and fluffy and pin feathers are beginning to emerge at wing tips and tail. The chicks walk around on their tarsi and sit like white Buddhas.

In good weather their parents guard them from the nestrail (bulwark) above the nest. I’ve put yellow V’s on the photo below to show Ecco’s typical perch on the left and Morela’s in the center. When on the bulwark they are not visible on camera but you can see them with binoculars from Schenley Plaza.

Watch the family at the nest on the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh.

Downtown Pittsburgh:

We know that the Downtown peregrines are nesting at Third Avenue this spring (yellow arrow) even though it’s impossible to see into the nest from the street. The best vantage point is from the sidewalk on Mt. Washington near the incline. Use a scope.

When they’re ready to fledge we can see them at Third Avenue.

Meanwhile, though the Gulf Tower nestbox is not in use an immature peregrine showed up on 4 May to have a look at the building. Photo by Ann Hohn at Make-a-Wish.

Monongahela Watershed: Westinghouse Bridge

The Westinghouse Bridge peregrines must be too busy to show themselves. Dana Nesiti visited the site yesterday and said, “[It] Took a while to find one of the falcons. It then flew to one of the arches and was hanging out. Didn’t hear any calls.”

Allegheny River, Tarentum Bridge:

On Saturday May 8 Dave Brooke stopped by 1st Avenue in Tarentum to film the Tarentum Bridge peregrines during a feeding. Click on the photo or caption above to see Dave’s video.

The three chicks already have “faces,” a trait that appears at 3 weeks old. Art McMorris estimates they are 18-20 days old. This means they are likely to fledge around 27 May 2021. Be sure to visit Tarentum before they go.

(photos by National Aviary falconcam at Cathedral of Learning, Kate St. John, Dana Nesiti, Dave Brooke)

7 May 2021

We know that peregrines are nesting in the Tarentum Bridge nestbox, circled above, thanks to observations and photos by Dave Brooke. On Friday 6 May, he wrote:

Yesterday (5 May 2021) I was able to see 2 young falcons in the box from Riverside Park. Both were all grey with black eyes. They walked inside the box and stretched their wings. They also shot poop out of the box. [They] can be seen in the right corner in this video I digiscoped. From your chicks aging blog Kate, these two would appear to be older than the Pitt young. … There could be a third.

— email from Dave Brooke, 6 May 2021

In Dave’s video you can see a chick’s head moving at the bottom right corner of the box opening. Do you see two?

On the same day at the Cathedral of Learning nest, the chicks were active but not walking around alone nor were they stretching their wings. The Pitt chicks hatched on 25 April. Based on behavior they are clearly younger than the chicks at Tarentum.

Using the descriptions and photos here — Peregrine Chicks Week-to-Week Development — can you guess how old the Tarentum chicks are?

(photo of the Tarentum Bridge by Amber Van Strien Treese, videos from Dave Brooke and the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

4 May 2021

Last weekend the Pitt peregrine chicks reached a milestone. At seven days old they were able to thermoregulate (stay warm on their own) so Morela didn’t have to brood them anymore.

They also became more mobile, moving out of the scrape into the shade, then into the sun again. The chicks popped up to watch Ecco examine a corner of the box, “Hey, should we be over there?” And they pursued Morela across the gravel during the 1:45pm feeding.

Watch them move in this day-in-a-minute video.

Morela and Ecco keep a watchful eye on them, even when you don’t see the parents on camera.

“We’re stepping out!” say the chicks. They’re growing up fast.

Watch them on the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh.

And for a peek at what will happen next, check out this Peregrine FAQ: Peregrine Chicks Week-to-Week Development.

p.s. The nestlings huddled yesterday because it rained all day. Today’s forecast calls for thunderstorms so they’ll huddle again when the storms roll in at 11am.

(photos from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

2 May 2021

Perhaps you’ve noticed that the Pitt peregrine nest stays clean during the chicks’ first week of life, then suddenly becomes a mess after a routine feeding. The reason has to do with the chicks’ age. This background explains why.

• Peregrines eat birds that they capture in flight (not on the ground). The male usually captures medium-sized songbirds because they are plentiful and smaller than he is.
• The male does all the hunting during incubation and brooding in the chicks’ first week of life. The female will start hunting when the chicks can be left alone.
• The female does all the feeding. (The male may do so later in the chicks’ lives.)
• Peregrines pluck their prey and remove the head and wings before eating. They can do this in flight or at a favorite perch.
• If the male is not in a hurry or the chicks are very young he completely prepares the prey — plucked, headless, wingless — before handing off to the female.
• When the chicks are old enough to learn how prey is prepared, the male hands over an unplucked bird. (Most males remove the heads. Ecco doesn’t bother.)
• When the female plucks, the nest gets messy.

The messy nest moment came yesterday morning, 1 May, at 6am. Ecco delivered a complete unplucked bird. It may have been a starling.

Morela plucked as she fed the chicks. Instant messy nest!

Yesterday the chicks ate 10 times in 24 hours. The nest got even messier!

Morela was in such a rush at the 7:09am feeding that the chicks ate feathers with their breakfast. No problem. It’s good for their digestion.

So what are they eating? It’s hard to see during this feeding at 11:54am.

But the leftovers tell the tale. There are prey heads on the gravel. I see four in this image from 11:56am on Saturday.

Circled below they are …

1. American robin
2. Wood thrush (at the 11:54 feeding)
3. European starling, appears to be male
4. European starling, male

Sigh. I wish they had not eaten a wood thrush. 🙁

With 10 feedings a day you have a pretty good chance to see one on the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh.

(photos from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)