Category Archives: Peregrines

Dare We Hope For an Egg Today?

Morela in egg-laying position, 16 April 2023, 7:34am (snapshot from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

16 April 2023

Oh my! This morning Morela stood over the scrape for quite a while looking very egg-y. This is the closest she’s come to laying an egg since 20 March — almost a month!

She looked egg-y yesterday morning when she bowed with Ecco …

Morela looks egg-y while she bows with Ecco, 15 April 2023, 7:50am (snapshot from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

… and 4:50pm they bowed for three minutes and touched beaks. This is a very good sign!

Morela and Ecco bow for three minutes at the Cathedral of Learning nest, 15 April 2023 (video from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

So will Morela lay her first egg today? Stay tuned to the National Aviary Falconcam at Univ. of Pittsburgh.

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

Young Peregrines As Home Wreckers

Young intruder female challenges Trailblazer at CVNP/I-80 nest site, 5 March 2023 (photo by Chad+Chris Saladin)

9 April 2023

After reporting on the peregrine drama last Wednesday in Downtown Pittsburgh I went there on Thursday 6 April to investigate. There were no peregrines at Gulf Tower but in just 15 minutes of watching at Third Avenue I saw two peregrines and a possible nest exchange. The departing bird was normal adult color (gray & white) and did a territorial flappy flight as it left. The arriving bird was very dark chocolate brown like the bird in Ann Hohn’s photo on 3 April.

Dark plumage peregrine at the Gulf Tower, approx 3 April 2023 (photo by Ann Hohn)

If this pair is on eggs, the arriving bird’s behavior did not match an incubating female. Instead of quietly moving to the nest the arriving bird called loudly for several minutes. It sounded like “Hey, come back!”

When I mentioned this on Pittsburgh Falconuts Facebook page, Jeff Cieslak remarked: “I’d say that’s pretty good news. But it does raise some questions, neither of the birds I saw on 3/3 were brown.” Here’s the peregrine pair Jeff photographed a month ago.

Female at Third Ave nest Downtown 3 Mar 2023 (photo by Jeff Cieslak)
Male peregrine at Third Ave Downtown, 3 Mar 2023 (photo by Jeff Cieslak)

Correction as of early June 2023: The dark bird is not immature, just dark, and is the mother bird at Third Avenue. … The Theory below is based on incorrect information.

Aha! So the immature bird is an intruder. The quick exit of the adult bird Downtown is like Terzo’s reaction in 2016 when female intruders visited the Cathedral of Learning. Terzo always left quickly and the intruder female always remained at the nest. Adult females were silent but an immature female called loudly. (See this vintage article: Juvenile Female Intruder at Pitt on 8 April 2016.)

Why didn’t the Downtown adult peregrines attack? Peregrine falcon literature says that immature plumage protects young birds from attacks by territorial adults because they aren’t perceived as a threat. Young peregrines won’t breed until they have adult plumage at two years old(*).

… end of bad theory …

In this attack at CVNP/I-80, photographed by Chad+Chris Saladin, Chris explains that the adult male is not brutal to the one-year-old, partly because she’s female and partly because she’s immature.

Young intruder female challenges Trailblazer at CVNP/I-80 nest site, 5 March 2023 (photo by Chad+Chris Saladin)

Yet these one year-old peregrines are disrupting nests. Are they trying to claim territory? Are they thinking about nesting?

Sara Showers reminded me of an article I wrote in 2020: “A year or two ago, it was pointed out to me that one of the factors that causes falcon populations to plateau at the “carrying capacity” isn’t just a finite food supply. When populations are very high, constant competition over nesting sites can cause those contested sites to not produce chicks in a given year – restricting population growth.”

Read about the Home Wrecker phenomenon in this 2020 article, written when Ecco was the young “intruder” and nesting failed that year.

(*) A note from Chris Saladin: “We’ve had 2 females successfully breed when they were just 1 year old, though it certainly isn’t common.”

(blue sky fight photos by Chad+Chris Saladin, adult peregrines at Third Ave by Jeff Cieslak, immature peregrine at Gulf Tower Ann Hohn)

Peregrine News: Good Day at Pitt, Bad Day Downtown?

Morela at the scrape, 5 April 2023, 1:48pm (snapshot from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

6 April 2023

Good news at the Pitt peregrine nest!

After lamenting Wednesday morning that Morela was again distracted and not spending any time at the nest she was there yesterday for nearly 3 hours. She even dug the scrape (where she’ll lay eggs) and stood over it for a minute looking rather pregnant as seen in the video below.

Morela at the scrape, 5 April 2023, 1:48pm (video from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

I slowed down yesterday’s 12-hour timelapse and cut out the empty spaces to create this 2-minute look at Morela’s nearly 3 hours on camera. Notice Ecco perching for an hour in the late afternoon and their 3 bowing sessions. Three!

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

If this keeps up we could see eggs this month. Fingers crossed!

Bad Day for the Downtown Peregrines?

Meanwhile Downtown Pittsburgh’s peregrine pair is already nesting at Third Avenue but something is happening at the Gulf Tower less than half a mile away. Ann Hohn, whose Make-A-Wish office is near the unused Gulf Tower nest, emailed me yesterday:

There is something going on up here. Two falcons are buzzing the building and one of them lands and chirps at the other and then they buzz the building (or each other) again. Been going on for a few hours. This doesn’t appear to be the juvenile that was here the other day. Video is the chirper. Turn up volume.

Kate – no bands on this bird.

— email from Ann Hohn, 5 April 2023

Here’s Ann’s photo of the dark-plumage peregrine seen the other day at the Gulf Tower. At the time we thought this was juvenile plumage but notice the horizontal stripes on the legs, the sign of an adult.

Dark plumage peregrine at the Gulf Tower, approx 3 April 2023 (photo by Ann Hohn)

Yesterday’s “chirper” peregrine is dark colored, too, and loud enough to be heard through double-pane windows.

(video by Ann Hohn via YouTube)

Birds of the World explains that this sound “in wild birds, is given during aerial encounters with conspecific intruders around nest site.” The chirper must be telling another peregrine to go away.

Chances are that this event was an encounter between an intruder and a member of the Downtown pair. Is one of them this very stripe-y female, seen last May with Terzo at BNY Mellon? There’s no way to know. None of them are banded.

Unbanded adult female seen with Terzo at BNY Mellon, 11 May 2022 (photo by Amanda Linn)

My hope is that Downtown’s troubles don’t fly over to Oakland and distract Morela and Ecco again. Additional fingers crossed!

Stay tuned to the National Aviary Falconcam at the Cathedral of Learning to find out what happens next.

(yesterday’s Downtown photo and video by Ann Hohn, last year photo by Amanda Linn, Cathedral of Learning photo and videos from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

Morela Is Distracted Again

The empty nest at the Cathedral of Learning, 4 April 2023 (photo from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

5 April 2023

Last month I had high hopes for eggs at the Pitt peregrine nest, but now I’m not so sure. Morela is distracted again.

The season started well as Ecco and Morela courted at the nest several times a day during 12-14 March. They toned it down to once a day on 15-18 March but I didn’t notice because they were back to normal shortly thereafter. And then Morela disappeared on 21 March to chase off a challenger.

Four days later she returned to the nest and the pair courted frequently. I was optimistic we’d have an egg by 8 April but I was wrong. Things have been very strange since then.

Since Morela’s return on 25 March there have been days when Ecco and Morela courted more than once and other days when Ecco was the only one on camera. The one constant — until last night — was that Morela hung out at the nest for half the night.

This timelapse video from 3 April at 8:00pm to 5 April at 7:00am shows the change in behavior. It starts with Morela perched at the nest two nights ago, during the full moon of 3-4 April. Just before dawn on 4 April Ecco appears briefly. He’s the only one on camera all day yesterday and, surprisingly, the only one on camera last night!

Timelapse at Cathedral of Learning peregrine nest, 3 April 8pm through 5 April 7am (video from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

Morela may have been nearby, though. This snapshot at 4:50am shows her tail at top left while Ecco is on the green perch.

Morela on roof, Ecco on perch, 5 April 2023, 5:08am (photo from the National Aviary snapshot camera at Univ of Pittsburgh)

Meanwhile, an observation from Betty Rowland at 10:30am yesterday might give a hint to what’s happening. As she was waiting for the red light at Bellefield and Fifth Ave she saw a peregrine burst out of a nearby tree(!) and fly over Fifth Avenue to the roof of Webster Hall where another falcon was perched. Was this Ecco flying up to mate with Morela? If it happened at exactly 10:30am Ecco was at the nest, not in flight. Was it the challenger and Morela?

I don’t know what’s going on and cannot predict what will happen next except for this: I doubt we’ll see an egg at the Cathedral of Learning this weekend.

p.s. Mary Ann Pike remarked yesterday that it looked as if Ecco was calling at 3:50pm. I found the incident and can see that he was trying to cast a pellet.

Ecco casting a pellet, 4 April 2023, 3:50pm (photo from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

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

Peregrine Update, Southwest PA, 31 Mar 2023

Ecco at the empty Pitt peregrine nest, 29 March 2023, 12:01pm (screenshot from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

31 March 2023

This month southwestern Pennsylvania’s peregrine falcons got down to the serious business of defending their territories (at Pitt) and laying eggs, summarized in the spreadsheet below.

Note the last line! Margaret & Roger Higbee + others saw a peregrine along US 422 near Craigsville, Armstrong County. It’s an odd location but noteworthy in that it’s 8+ miles due east of the Kittanning nest site on the US 422 Bridge.

And now for the details.

Cathedral of Learning, Univ of Pittsburgh:

After chasing off a challenger during the third week of March Morela returned to the Cathedral of Learning nest and is again getting in the mood for egg laying. During the day she’s perched on the building but not on camera. At dusk she arrives to spend at least part of each night at the nest.

Though Morela did not lay yet this spring, her hormonal situation may be similar to having lost a clutch of eggs. According to Birds of the World, in temperate latitudes [such as Pittsburgh] clutch may be replaced in about 2 weeks if first clutch is lost.

Downtown Pittsburgh:

On 3 March Jeff Cieslak stopped by Downtown Pittsburgh and found a pair of peregrines at home on Third Avenue. Both members of last year’s pair, Terzo and Dori, were banded so he could tell immediately that the unbanded female is new. The male is a puzzle; Jeff couldn’t see his legs.

In Jeff’s 27 March photo below, taken from Mt. Washington, it appears that incubation has begun at bottom left.

Third Ave nest site as seen from Mt. Washington. Peregrine circled in red, Peregrine on nest inside red square, 27 March 2023 (photo by Jeff Cieslak)

Monaca RR Bridge, Ohio River:

TWO YEARS AGO: Peregrine on Monaca RR Bridge, March 2021 (photo by Jeff Cieslak)

During March Dante Zuccaro reported one or two peregrines almost every day at the Monaca Railroad Bridge. He last saw two on 18 March, but now only one. Perhaps incubation has begun.

Ambridge-Aliquippa Bridge, Ohio River:

Ambridge Bridge, 20 Feb 2020 (photo by Kate St. John)

Every once in a great while a solo peregrine is seen perched on the Ambridge-Aliquippa Bridge. The last incident happened to be this week, 28 March.

Sewickley Bridge, Ohio River:

Peregrine on the Sewickley Bridge, 11 Mar 2023 (photo by Jeff Cieslak)

Like the Ambridge-Aliquippa Bridge, a solo peregrine is sometimes seen on the Sewickley Bridge. The last one was on 14 March.

Eckert Street near McKees Rocks Bridge, Ohio River:

COMPARISON, 2 PHOTOS: Female and male peregrines at Eckert Street, 26 March 2023 (photos by Jeff Cieslak)

Jeff Cieslak visits the Eckert Street peregrines nearly every day to see them courting loudly(!). On Tuesday the pair bowed near the nest. The female’s belly bulge indicates that eggs are due any day now.

Female peregrine looking egg-y at Eckert Street, 28 March 2023 (photo by Jeff Cieslak)
Male peregrine high-stepping and calling to his lady at Eckert Street, 28 March 2023 (photo by Jeff Cieslak)

Westinghouse Bridge, Turtle Creek:

Peregrine at Westinghouse Bridge, 18 March 2023 (photo by Dana Nesiti)

Dana Nesiti saw the male peregrine at the Westinghouse Bridge on 18 March, above, and the pair on 23 March.

62nd Street Bridge / Highland Park Bridge / Aspinwall Riverfront Park, Allegheny River: No photo this time but on 8 March a bunch of observers, myself included, saw one and then two peregrines near the 62nd Street Bridge. We were all at the Sharpsburg Marina to see a long-tailed duck and happened to luck out with the peregrines.

Tarentum Bridge, Allegheny River:

Female peregrine getting off the eggs at the Tarentum Bridge, 30 Mar 2023 (photo by Dave Brooke)

This week Dave Brooke suspected that the female peregrine is incubating at Tarentum Bridge. Yesterday, 30 March, he came very close to confirming it in this photo showing her head-dipping and carefully moving away from the nest so as not to disturb the eggs with her talons.

No news in March from…

  • Graff Bridge, Rt 422, Kittanning, Allegheny River
  • Clairton Coke Works
  • Speers Railroad Bridge, Washington County, Monongahela River: A solo peregrine was seen on 25 February. No news since then.

Check out any of these sites and tell me what you see. Need directions? Leave a comment.

Peregrine locations in Southwestern PA (annotated by Kate St. John)

(photos by Kate St. John, National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh, Jeff Cieslak, Dana Nesiti, Dave Brooke)

Courtship Resumes at Pitt Peregrine Nest

Morela and Ecco bow on the green perch, 27 March 2023, 4:28pm (photo from the National Aviary snapshot cam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

28 March 2023

After Morela returned from battling a challenger for four days, we wondered why she wasn’t spending much time at the nest. Before the challenge she stayed at the nest all day and looked as if she was about to lay an egg, but since her return on Saturday 25 March she hasn’t spent much time at the nest.

The reason is probably that Morela’s hormones tamped down so she wouldn’t need to lay an egg during the battle. She has to get back in the mood. Ecco is working on it.

Yesterday, 27 March, Morela and Ecco held three bowing sessions, each one longer than the last. At the second session Ecco warmed up for 20 minutes and made elaborate bows and pauses. All of his moves are part of his courtship “dance.”

Watch two of their bowing sessions in the video below. Alas, the microphone misbehaved so there is no sound.

Stay tuned to the National Aviary Falconcam at the Cathedral of Learning and watch them court.

Morela and Ecco bow at the nest, 27 March 2023, 4:28pm (photo from the National Aviary snapshot cam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

Let’s see what happens next.

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

Morela Returns!

Morela returns to court with Ecco, 25 March 2023, 6:11pm (photo from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

26 March 2023

Four days ago I wondered if a female peregrine was challenging Morela at the Pitt peregrine nest because I hadn’t seen her on camera since Tuesday afternoon, 21 March. Yesterday morning Ecco was still present and calling to a female off camera. Was she Morela? Or had the challenger won?

The answer came yesterday around 6:15pm. After Ecco spent five minutes calling and bowing to an unseen female she appeared on camera. Morela is back!

This video shows only a small portion of time it took Ecco to entice her to the nest.

video clips of Ecco and Morela at the nest, 25 March 2023, 6:11pm

After he left she was so confident that the challenger was gone that she snoozed at the nest for an hour.

Stay tuned to the National Aviary Falconcam at the Cathedral of Learning to see what happens next.

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

The Drama Continues Off Camera

Ecco watches something in the sky (photo from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

25 March 2023

UPDATE as of Saturday 25 March 2023, 7:15 PM: MORELA IS AT THE NEST!

Morela is back at the nest, 25 March 2023, 7:12pm (photo from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

News as of Saturday 25 March 2023, 8:00am:

On Wednesday morning, 22 March, I began to wonder if a female peregrine was challenging Morela at the Pitt peregrine nest. Morela hasn’t been seen on the falconcam since Tues 21 March at 3:32pm and two days have passed since I last saw her perched on campus (Wed 22 March at 4:14pm). Meanwhile Ecco waits and watches at the Cathedral of Learning.

Though none of us have seen any female peregrine for two days Ecco sometimes sees one in the sky — or maybe more than one. Yesterday afternoon he called to her from the nest. Whoever she was, she didn’t come in. Only Ecco knows whether she was Morela or the challenger.

Eventually a female will join Ecco at the nest so watch carefully at that point. Is she Morela? Or someone new?

Will there be eggs and chicks this year? No one can tell. Like Ecco, all we can do is watch and wait.

The drama continues off camera for now.

Stay tuned at the National Aviary Falconcam at the Cathedral of Learning.

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

Is There A Challenger At The Pitt Peregrine Nest?

Morela at the Pitt peregrine nest, 21 March, 2:07pm (photo from the National Aviary snapshot camera at Univ of Pittsburgh)

22 March 2023

See Status Updates at the end.

As I mentioned yesterday morning Morela was looking as if she’d lay an egg any minute, but yesterday everything changed. After days of lounging at the nest and crouching over the scrape Morela was barely on camera at all. When she returned in the afternoon she looked vigilant. Meanwhile Ecco spent 2.5 hours waiting at the nest, sometimes watching the sky.

What’s up with Morela? Why isn’t she trying to lay an egg? I think she may have a challenger who’s keeping her busy.

From just after midnight on 21 March through 7:00am 22 March (today) this timelapse video shows how both peregrines are absent from the nest. I’ve provided a description of the action below the video, some illustrated with snapshots.

Activities on the video:

  1. Morela is at the nest nearly continuously on Tuesday 21 March from midnight to 4:50am when she jumped to the roof, still present at the nest though not visible.
  2. Morela looks relaxed for an hour at the nest 9:50-10:57am. Then she disappears.
  3. Ecco takes her place for more than an hour 10:59am-12:02pm. Ecco has a bright orange beak and legs compared to Morela’s pale yellow.
  4. Ecco stops in briefly and watches the sky.
  5. Morela’s back at the nest 2:03pm-3:32pm, for about 90 minutes, but she looks sleek and vigilant, not egg-y at all.
  6. Ecco returns for 90 minutes, 5:29p-6:56pm.
  7. Neither bird is at the nest after that.

The photos are numbered to match what they illustrate.

#1. Morela is on the roof during the early morning hours of 21 March.

Morela on roof of nestbox before dawn on 21 March 2023, 6am (photo from the National Aviary snapshot camera at Univ of Pittsburgh)

#3. Ecco has bright orange beak and legs.

Ecco has bright orange beak and legs

#3 and #5 Morela’s beak and legs are yellow, not orange. At 2:00pm she looks sleek and vigilant, not egg-y at all.

Morela looks vigilant, 21 March 2023, 14:44 (photo from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

#4 Ecco stops in briefly and watches the sky.

Ecco watches the sky. Who’s up there? (photo from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

Neither bird is at the nest today which indicates again that there’s probably a challenger.

Fingers crossed that the intruder is driven off soon. Go, Morela!

UPDATE on Morela and Ecco as of Friday 24 March 2023, 5:50 am:

  • Morela’s most recent appearance at the nest: Tues 21 March at 3:32pm.
  • Morela last seen: Vigilant on Heinz Chapel scaffolding Wed 22 March at 4:14pm.
  • Ecco last seen: Watchful at the nest, Thurs 23 March at 5:13pm.
  • The Challenger: Has not been seen yet (which is good news).

My conclusion from these sightings: The challenger is female. Morela is keeping her away the Cathedral of Learning but has not vanquished her yet. The challenger has not won either.

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

Waiting For An Egg

Morela looks egg-y, 20 March 2023, 9:57am (photo from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

21 March 2023

For almost a week Morela has looked as if she’ll lay an egg any minute at the Cathedral of Learning peregrine nest. Yesterday morning we thought she was ready. She lumbered off the green perch and stood in the scrape. We watched and waited.

But minutes later Ecco showed up with a snack. Morela didn’t tell him “Go away I’m busy.” Instead she got up to grab it and eventually left to eat. As Ecco steps up to watch her leave, he realizes he has fluff stuck to his toes.

This morning at 6:54am there is still no egg. So we’re still waiting.

Morela but no egg at the nest, 21 March 2023, 6:54am (photo from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

Morela, of course, is waiting more than any of us.

Will she lay her first egg today? Stay tuned the National Aviary Falconcam at the Cathedral of Learning.

UPDATE, 22 March 2023: See this article about a possible challenger.

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