Some of you may recall my earlier post about the establishment of a nest box for Peregrine Falcons Falco peregrinus in Kitchener (http://www.travelswithbirds.blogspot.ca/2015/03/peregrine-falcon-faucon-pelerin-in.html).
The nest was very successful and four healthy youngsters are now growing strong, tended to by attentive and hard-working parents. Recently these birds were banded by the Canadian Peregrine Foundation and a great deal of publicity accompanied the event.
Here is the bander's tool kit.
As is customary in situations like this the young birds are named, although I am not quite sure why this should be. Waterloo Region Nature had the option to pick one name and we chose Redbud for a female bird. The other names were selected by the host television station and were Ginnie and Chroma for two other females, and Reggie for the only male.
Each bird was carefully handled as the bands with their identification number were attached to one of the bird's legs.
Unfortunately, due to a prior commitment I was unable to be present at the banding, but Dale Ingrey, the stalwart from our club who has been deeply involved with this programme for many years was there to represent us.
All the while, the mother of the chicks, Mystery, was not happy with the whole sequence of events and screamed from above until her offspring were returned to the nest.
The entire sequence was covered on CTV news that day and this picture shows Lyndsay Morrison, the weather reporter, Matthew Richards, a CTV producer, and Dale each holding a young bird.
There is a webcam in operation where the birds can be viewed in real time. They are healthy, well-fed and we all earnestly hope destined for a long and productive life.
All of the photographs were supplied by Don Thomas and I appreciate being able to use them on my blog.
Last year a pair of Peregrine Falcons Falco peregrinus bred successfully on the Sun Life Financial tower in downtown Waterloo. This year due to maintenance on their roof, the company requested that the nest box be removed, and they were unwilling to have it reinstalled.
Fortunately, CKCO, the local CTV affiliate, located just a short distance from the Sun Life building, agreed to permit the Canadian Peregrine Foundation to install a new nest box on their communications antenna. Two years earlier peregrines had bred there, and already this year a pair was showing interest in this location.
The nest box which had been taken down from the Sun Life building was too big to to be installed on the CTV tower, so a new box had to be built. Waterloo Region Nature, of which I am president, donated the funds for the construction materials, and the the custom box was built by Mark Nash of the Canadian Peregrine Foundation.
It was getting late in the breeding season for the falcons and we knew that pair bonds had been formed. We had our fingers crossed that we would not be too late for this pair to occupy our box.
Dale Ingrey, the point man for our club, accompanied by several others, assisted at the erection site and the nest box was successfully hauled up and installed on the platform.
Imagine our sheer delight when the pair of falcons almost immediately showed interest and within a day it became clear that they had claimed the box as their own.
This has been a success story of which we can all be proud. As of yesterday the pair had two eggs!
For our dedicated team of falcon watchers this is only the beginning. Much monitoring has to be done and people stationed at the ready to help future fledglings survive their first attempts at flight. Often they have to be rescued and returned to the nest, for the city can be a dangerous place for a young peregrine before it attains full flight proficiency.
It is a labour of love for all of us, however, and we are happy that we have played some small part in ensuring the ongoing viability of this most magnficent of raptors.
Land Acknowledgement
We acknowledge that the land on which we are situated are the lands traditionally used by the Haudenosaunee, Anishinaabe, and Neutral People. We also acknowledge the enduring presence and deep traditional knowledge, laws, and philosophies of the Indigenous Peoples with whom we share this land today. We are all treaty people with a responsibility to honour all our relations.
