10 January 2021:

In the next 10 weeks peregrine falcons will court and claim nest sites in southwestern Pennsylvania, then lay eggs mid-March to early April. Right now through mid-March is the best time to see them. Here’s an update on recently active sites and information on locations where observers are needed. Get outdoors and look for peregrines! I hope you can help.

Cathedral of Learning, University of Pittsburgh:

It’s easy to watch peregrines at the Cathedral of Learning because they’re on camera. The snapshot camera captured Morela and Terzo courting on 8 Jan 2021 as shown in the slideshow above. Stop by Schenley Plaza and look for them on or above the building. The streaming camera will start running in February.

Downtown Pittsburgh:

If I was to bet where the Downtown peregrines will nest this year, I’d say there’s a 90% chance they’ll be at the Third Avenue site, shown above, where they’ve nested for the last three years. Though the roof rehabilitation project is done at the Gulf Tower, the nestbox probably hasn’t been reinstalled. I’m awaiting news from the Game Commission. Meanwhile, observers are needed Downtown! Let me know if you see anything.

OHIO RIVER, Neville Island I-79 Bridge — no nest in 2021 and 2022.

PennDOT’s rehabilitation of the Neville Island I-79 Bridge will encompass the full length of the bridge through the 2021 and 2022 peregrine nesting seasons. Peregrines will be excluded from the bridge during that entire time so they can’t start to nest and then fail. We hope the bridge pair finds an alternate site nearby, but we won’t know where they are until we look for them. Observers needed! Look for peregrines in the Ohio Valley. Be alert for battles over an existing site.

OHIO RIVER, Monaca Railroad Bridge:

Speaking of the Ohio Valley, on 4 Jan 2021 Jeff Cieslak found a peregrine pair at the Monaca Railroad Bridge, perching, bowing and flying as shown in the slideshow above. If you’d like to see for yourself, stop by the north shore of the Ohio River in Beaver and Bridgewater PA at the sites marked by Jeff Cieslak on the map below.

OHIO RIVER, Ambridge Bridge:

Again in the Ohio Valley, Mark Vass saw a peregrine at the Ambridge Bridge on 3 Jan 2021. This bridge had an active pair in spring 2020 though nesting was not confirmed. Watch this bridge for more excitement.

TURTLE CREEK, Westinghouse Bridge:

The Westinghouse Bridge pair is gearing up for nesting as seen by Dana Nesiti on 2 Jan 2021. Click here for more photos.

ALLEGHENY RIVER, Tarentum Bridge:

Both peregrines were at the Tarentum Bridge when Dave Brooke stopped by on 29 Dec 2020. Click here for more photos.

ALLEGHENY RIVER, Rt 422 Graff Bridge, Kittanning:

Margaret and Roger Higbee saw a peregrine at the Graff Bridge on 6 Jan 2021 (and also in December). Peregrines have nested here since 2016. Stop by to see for yourself.

Two other bridges were active in 2020 / 2019 which may be active this year as well. Observers are needed at:

• OHIO RIVER, McKees Rocks Bridge, active in 2020
• ALLEGHENY RIVER 62nd Street Bridge, active in 2019, not in 2020.

Get outdoors and see peregrines! Let me know what you find.

(photos by National Aviary snapshot camera at Cathedral of Learning, Kate St. John, John English, PENNDOT, Jeff Cieslak, Dana Nesiti, Dave Brooke, Wikimedia Commons)

5 January 2021

As promised in early December, Dan Hosier of the National Aviary returned to the Pitt peregrine nestbox yesterday and installed a new roof. It took him only 15 minutes to clear away the old pieces and attach the roof and awning. The snapshot camera captured his movements, sped up in the 8-second video above.

When Dan was done he took this photo of the roof, a rare chance to see the nestbox from the peregrines’ perspective.

Morela and Terzo saw it too and visited the nestbox twice during the afternoon. Morela tried out the new roof with her typical leap to the awning after leaving the nestbox. In the slideshow below, Terzo looks up while Morela is on the roof. You can see her talons at the edge of the awning.

Very soon — next month! — the National Aviary falconcam will start streaming again. Don’t forget to support the streaming camera to keep it running! Click here to donate to the National Aviary today.

(photos from the National Aviary snapshot camera at Univ of Pittsburgh; nestbox photo by Dan Hosier)

3 January 2021

Now that the days are getting longer our local peregrine falcons are staying close to home and defending their territories. Pittsburgh has six more minutes of sunlight since the winter solstice. Peregrines are thinking of spring.

Westinghouse Bridge:

Yesterday, 2 Jan 2021, Dana Nesiti found both peregrines at the Westinghouse Bridge. The female watched from the catwalk (above) while the male carried a snack.

Tarentum Bridge:

On Tuesday 29 December, Dave Brooke found both peregrines perched on the same beam at the Tarentum Bridge. The female is the same spotted-breast bird who has nested there since 2018.

Cathedral of Learning:

At the Cathedral of Learning three peregrines have visited the nest since the winter solstice. Ecco and Morela courted during Christmas week, 22-26 December, shown above.

Then on Christmas Bird Count day I saw two males chasing while Morela waited at home. Terzo must have won the chase. He and Morela courted last week and Terzo has been present ever since.

Will either one of the males finally win the territory this spring? Or will both persist and the nest fail again?

Your guess is as good as mine.

(photos from Westinghouse Bridge by Dana Nesiti, Tarentum Bridge by Dave Brooke, and from the National Aviary snapshot camera at Univ of Pittsburgh)

8 December 2020

Perhaps you have noticed that the Cathedral of Learning nestbox is clean and the old eggs are gone. As predicted, we performed annual maintenance on the Pitt peregrine nestbox and falconcam yesterday morning.

Due to the COVID surge in Allegheny County, four of us briefly met in the Cathedral of Learning lobby then only two, Bob Mulvihill and Dan Hosier from the National Aviary, went upstairs with the security guard to access the ledge. Joseph Pastorik and I watched outdoors at Schenley Plaza to see if the peregrines would show up. They did not.

As you can see from the snapshot camera, Bob collected the old eggs, cleared the nest surface, and cleaned the cameras. The nestbox roof has fallen apart so Bob pulled away the hanging bits. Meanwhile Dan measured the roof so he can construct a replacement. Bob and Dan will return in a week or three to install the new roof.

Are the peregrines still around? You bet. Morela (female), Terzo and Ecco (two males) have all shown up in the last five days. Check out these comparison snapshots.

Expect another human visit to the nest to replace the roof. Then we’ll all stay away, hoping that Morela, Terzo and Ecco can work out their complicated relationship and have a successful nesting season.

(photos from the National Aviary snapshot camera at Univ of Pittsburgh)

18 November 2020

It didn’t rain much last July but when it did I noticed something puzzling on the Pitt peregrine falconcam(*). The nest was getting wet where it ought to be dry. Was the roof leaking?

A week ago the problem became acute when it rained hard all day on 11 November. By the end of the day pieces of brown debris were on the nest surface, probably from the roof. Now the rain really gets in!

If you look closely at falconcam still photos you can see papery pieces of roof hanging from above, erosion in the right corner where the rain drips, and debris from the roof on the nest surface.

Though we can’t see the roof from either camera, a snapshot of the awning gives us a hint of the roof’s condition. The red circle shows a place that lost its waterproof coating, exposing the under layer. The awning is deteriorating too, though more slowly.

The nestbox was built and installed in late 2007 (or early January 2008) after the Cathedral of Learning was spray-washed. I believe the box and walls are made of solid plastic but the roof and awning appear to be a composite material that has been weathering for 13 years.

This fall we’ll arrange for repairs so the nestbox is in good condition for the 2021 nesting season. Like maintaining a very small home, repairs are inevitable.

(*) Streaming of the Pitt peregrine falconcam is seasonal. It ended for the year on 31 July 2020.

(snapshots from the National Aviary falconcams at Univ of Pittsburgh)