Other Peregrine Projects > USA Peregrines
KS / Topeka - Westar - 2019-20
The Peregrine Chick:
Think you are quite right - it should be Doorly not Zeus - Zeus was Doorly & Hope's dad. Doorly is the offspring of Winnie who was a Brandon hatch and the grand-daughter of our original Radisson pair - Pop & Maud. Hope is the daughter of Zeus and I believe his current mate ...
Alison:
. . . Or could there possibly be some confusion in identifying Doorly and/or his father, Zeus? ???
Alison:
2010 NESTING SEASON
If this is the same nest site as last year, the male is now listed as Zeus.
Westar's peregrine falcons incubating two eggs, more expected
By Phil Anderson
Updated April 5, 2010 at 11:55pm
If you think peregrine falcons are protective of their unhatched eggs, you would be correct.
Any doubters need look no further than to Hope and Zeus, the female and male peregrine falcons that are nesting on top of the 12-story Westar Energy building at 818 S. Kansas Ave. in downtown Topeka. The falcons, which were hatched in 1999 in Omaha, Neb., and made their way six years ago to a nesting spot at the southwest corner of the Westar building, are taking turns incubating two eggs that were laid in the past week.
The first egg was laid at 11:23 a.m. Thursday and the second egg was laid at 2:37 p.m. Saturday, said Westar spokeswoman Lila Halabi. Two more eggs are expected, with the chicks to hatch sometime around the first of May.
"They're very protective," said Brad Loveless, director of Biology and Conservation programs for Westar Energy. "You can't get close to them when they're real agitated." Though humans are keeping their distance physically, they are watching nearly every move of the falcons, thanks to a pair of Web cams that are streaming live footage of the falcons at www.westarenergy.com/greenteam. On Monday, viewers looked in on Hope as she rested on top of two eggs, which were visible when she changed positions.
Pedestrians in downtown Topeka may have heard the increased vocalizations, or screechings, of Hope and Zeus in recent days, an indicator that eggs might be in the immediate future. Hope and Zeus are the second peregrine falcon couple to have made their home on top of the Westar building. Another female and male falcon couple nested there in 1993 and 1994, then left and didn't return. Westar personnel kept watching to see if another falcon couple would come to the building, but none did — until 2004, when Hope and Zeus showed up.
Loveless said Hope laid about four eggs in 2004, 2005 and 2006. However, Zeus broke the eggs each time before a chick could be hatched, an action Loveless said baffled wildlife experts. Things changed in 2007, when Hope again laid four eggs and Zeus broke three of them. Hope then incubated the last remaining egg for a couple of days before it was hatched. From that point forward, Zeus hasn't broken any more eggs. One chick has survived each of the past three years, in 2007, 2008 and 2009, Loveless said. Some of the other eggs didn't hatch or the chicks didn't survive.
For the rest of the article: http://cjonline.com/news/local/2010-04-05/falcons_guard_eggs_atop_building
allikat:
Way to go Sampson!!! Way to go! Good for you for taking chick-waddle-flaps first....(ie: baby steps) ::)
The Peregrine Chick:
Couple of notes from Westar ...
June 18
We have confirmed that Sampson is indeed on the rooftop learning to fly. Brad Loveless, director of biology and conservation program had this to say about the fledging.
"That is very good news, because a falcon chick's first flight is the most dangerous and has a very high mortality rate. In previous years, our chicks tested their wings by flying to other rooftops to the south of the Topeka downtown office building, and that was very treacherous for them. They would barely make it, and then when they did, they'd sit there scared for days. Sampson, on the other hand, is taking optimal flights that are less hazardous. He is practicing safe flying, and he's learning how to fly while still protected by his parents. We'll see him flying, along with his parents, through the summer, and then in late summer they'll head south to winter."
Sampson isn't out of the danger zone yet - predators will be looking for young birds, and he's not sure yet about flying, but we're pleased with his initial flight and look forward to his being more confident of his flying skills in the days to come. The front view camera will attempt to get a glimpse of Sampson whenever possible.
June 19
We believe that Sampson has left the rooftop or ventured to a point where he can no longer be viewed. We're going to remove the web-cam links until next year. Sampson can still most likely be found flying around the downtown Topeka area over the next couple weeks. We will update you on anything we hear. Thanks to everyone for sending us emails and keeping us up-to-date on the falcons progress.
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