News: Canadian Peregrines

[Alison]

Alison - not sure if you saw this or not but thought I'd bump it up in case you missed it 

Thank you for the update on Nova, Carly! He is such a handsome little juvie. I hope being a captive bird will work out well for him, but I can't help thinking he would be better off in the wild.

[carly]

Alison - not sure if you saw this or not but thought I'd bump it up in case you missed it 

[carly]

From BigFrank:

Nova was received from a breeding facility..the breeding facility in Wainright Alberta Canada which was responsible for the captive breeding program for birds released to the wild back when Peregrine conservation started. Recently CPF lost their grande dame of their education program Qtesh. She was over 20 years old. She had been in the Wainright facility as one of the breeding birds who produced many young for release. She was retired to CPF some years ago. When they heard of Qtesh's passing,they offered us a new Peregrine to "take her place". Nova was that bird. He was born(I always say that...hatched of course) in captivity and we accepted him happily. He was acclimated to people and is now a full and valuable member of our feathered educational team.

[carly]

Awww...he's adorable Alison, he looks like he's smiling!  I honestly don't know what his story is, save for he came late in the season and he was from out of province.  It reminded me of Tybopra for some reason because the story I heard of him was that he was taken from a bridge in Quebec where the young were in danger of drowning due to the nest location so I thought perhaps it was another of those types of situations and maybe being so late in the season they couldn't find a home for him?? 

He looks healthy though, and that's the cleanest juvie I've ever seen 

[allikat]

A very cute chick turned into a very handsome juvie....

[Alison]

He has fledged already, these are from when he arrived in Ontario.  He is replacing Quetesh, who died earlier this year.  I'm bound to an oath, can't say more  

Yes, I realized that these were photos from earlier this year. I think these early photos make him a major candidate for Cutest Chick of the Year award. Nevertheless, an impression remains that CPF seems a little reluctant to post info about him.

A more recent photo:

[Alison]

An interesting post by Frank Butson on the CPF site:

On Nov 21, Walter and I were down at Humber Bay Park East in Torontos westend. It is right at the lakeshore. The adult Peregrine flew past me as I was searching for other birds. It flew out of my lines of sight,so I thought that was pretty cool and continued my search. As I continued on some time later,I spotted the silhouette of a raptor perched in a tree. Looking into the sun,I was fairly certain it was the Peregrine,but wasnt sure. I ventured abit closer and confirmed it was a Peregrine. Walter and I began a slow approach,not wanting to spook the bird. After 2 ladies walked right under the tree oblivious to the birds presence,I moved as close as I dared. I could not see a band on the birds left leg at all,and it was well seen on at least 2 or 3 occasions.  The Peregrine was likely digesting a meal,as it had a full crop. It sat for at least 10-15 minutes while we watched. It watched various small ducks intently,despite appearing full. It was a great find and really made my day. Please enjoy the video I put together.

http://tinypic.com/player.php?v=dsi11&s=6

And a video from Walter Fisher:

http://tinypic.com/player.php?v=2mo9sav&s=6

Photos by Frank Butson:

[allikat]

What a cutie.....I wish him all the success!!!  Can't wait to hear more news!

[carly]

He has fledged already, these are from when he arrived in Ontario.  He is replacing Quetesh, who died earlier this year.  

[bccs]

What a beautiful falcon. Notice the feathers just coming in on his tail.

[eagle63_1999]

We will find out in time I am sure but man that is one cute falcon!

[Alison]

This totally charming chick, born 2009, is listed as one of CPF's education birds, with a note "biography to come".

I wonder why he (or she) is being raised in captivity, instead of possibly being fostered to another nest. There must be a reason.

 



http://www.peregrine-foundation.ca/programs/education/edfoto.html

[Alison]

A wing and a prayer

ARVIAT - Joseph Kablutsiak of Arviat could never have imagined what awaited him when his daughter called him outside earlier this month.

There, standing on the ground near the side of his truck unable to take flight, was an injured juvenile peregrine falcon. The peregrine falcon, also referred to as a duck hawk, is a bird of prey.  It's a large, crowsized falcon, distinguished by its bluegrey back, barred white underparts, and black head and moustache. What many people don't realize about the peregrine falcon is that it's recognized as the fastest animal on the planet.

Amazingly, the peregrine can surpass speeds of 322km/h (200 m.p.h.) in a dive.

The female peregrine tends to be much bigger than its male counterpart, and its breeding range stretches from the Arctic tundra to the tropics. In fact, the peregrine falcon can be found nearly everywhere on Earth, except extreme polar regions, very high mountains and most rainforests.

Kablutsiak figures his peregrine falcon must have hit overhead wires and fell to the ground.

The bird's benefactor said once he was certain the falcon couldn't fly, he took it inside, put it in a box and fed it with chicken and mice. Kablutsiak said he contacted Renewable Resources, but its officers were all out of town. He was informed the bird would be looked at once they arrived back in the community.

"We decided we could keep it until it could fly again, and we could even provide a cage for the bird," said Kablutsiak. "We looked after it the best we could, hoping it would be able to fly soon and we wouldn't have to keep it all winter."

The falcon began to look healthier every day and started trusting Kablutsiak more as he and his family nursed it back to health. As it turned out, Kablutsiak spent his final moments with the bird this past weekend, when he took it out to look for mice.

"The bird looked up at the sky and then back at me, and then it took flight. I went up to the flat rocks by the dump and watched it soar in the sky, healthy and free once again. I am very happy to have been given the chance to save the bird's life."

[The Peregrine Chick]

Here's a nice story I came across this morning:

Falcon’s release into wild bittersweet for falconer

Same story, bit more detail ...

Falcon earns wings & freedom after helping to control gulls at Alberta landfill

Apparently Val the Falcon was injured in southern Saskatchewan a number of years ago ... going to email the company and see if they have information on her prior to her injury ... who knows, could be a Manitoba bird!  Will let you know what I find out ...

[JL]

Here's a nice story I came across this morning:

Falcon’s release into wild bittersweet for falconer