Manitoba Peregrines > Logan Peregrines
Logan - 2013 / Cowboy & Jolicoeur
The Peregrine Chick:
Had hoped to wait until I had a photo I could attach with this, but the news was posted elsewhere before it should have been, so here is this year's update on Cowboy and Joli ... hopefully a photo or two will follow along shortly!
Cowboy and Joli did manage to nest successfully this year but it was not without perils. We had a few fights between Joli and Ivy at/near the Radisson. Cowboy and Princess likewise pitched in but they were further away from the cameras and by the time Joli was looking to lay eggs, Princess was getting closer to hatching so she had other responsibilities. Joli had three mates ostensibly this year - first Ivy at the Radisson until Princess returned, then hot and heavy with Smiley until Cowboy returned.
Ivy was the staunch defender of his territory and his nestsites (box and ledge) this year which is why he wasn't bringing home quite as much food or quite as often as he has done in the last couple of years. He was a real chip off the old block - this year he looked much more like Trey than he has in the past. His fights with Joli were not for the faint of heart and Princess certainly made her disapproval known as well. Not surprisingly, we had to come up with a plan quickly and managed to identify a few possible emergency nestsites in hopes that Joli and Cowboy would retire from the field of battle and take up housekeeping elsewhere. Since they had been using the area around HSC as their base of operations, we concentrated our efforts in the same approximate area. In the end, they took us up on the offer of a tuppernest on a private building not far from HSC. The use of this nestsite came with the agreement that we would not talk about the site until the nesting season was over - actually the end of September.
In the end, Cowboy and Joli did stop fighting with Princess and Ivy and eventually settled down to lay three eggs. Cowboy and Joli did a great job with their first nest together (and perhaps first ever nest) and their three chicks, all males were banded and fledged without incident. We named them Butch, Sundance and Carver in the spirit of their father's name & "western" origins. And to-date we have had not reports of incidents or problems so hopefully they have continued to do as well as have our other three families this year. We would prefer that if Cowboy and Joli return next year that they choose another area further away from the Radisson territory, the risk of damage to one or both of these pairs is just so high given how aggressive and tenacious these four birds have proved to be. To that end we have installed another nestbox here in town and have hopes for get approval for two more. Perhaps now that Joli is of breeding age, they will have more incentive to find a "safe" location to raise their young in future.
We do have some photos of the chicks but they have to be approved for release first (working on that now). We will be speaking with the building managers about nesting there in the future and hopefully the experience hasn't been too traumatic for them (Cowboy is a wee bit hyper-aggressive and Joli is no shy flower) so that if the birds return and insist on nesting here again a) we can support them as we did this year and b) we can at least share a bit more about the pair and their family. If they decide to relocate to the site where we have a new nestbox now, we won't have any problems providing regular updates - the same would be likely in our other two potential nest sites. Now if we could only explain that to Cowboy and Joli ....
birdnut:
Still seeing both birds daily. This morning Cowboy is sitting up on the rooftop corner of the Buhler building. Joli is on her favorite perch - the HSC antenna.
Cowboy and Joli must have had breakfast already. A flock of 40 crows were chasing the pigeons around in circles - Cowboy and Joli just sat and watched the morning entertainment show.
birdcamfan:
One was on the ledge under the east facing letters on Tuesday at 0600. Wednesday AM I didn't see them but there was a mega squawk-fest going on up there..certainly PF's. They have spent a lot of time up there this year, the poop art down the side of the Buhler building is splendid.
birdnut:
U of Manitoba is fixing the broken "j" on the Buhler building, so I was not expecting to see the birds this week. But some birdie is sitting up on the rooftop this morning and the other is up on the antenna.
Kinderchick:
Thanks for this detailed explanation, TPC. :-* And yes, Birdnut, I too, enjoyed your report. :)
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