U of Alberta - 2009 / Damon & Radisson

[allikat]

As have mentioned in an earlier post....I wish no harm to any creature.  However, if humans can interfere in this matter to avoid a territorial battle between Ravens and Falcon(s), then I think we should.  I don't want to see a Falcon and/or a Raven injured because of this nest.
All we are trying to do is protect an endangered species...if we can.  And since we can, then we should!
We all can't predict, but if the falcons that have been nesting here for years do comeback to this nest....it will get ugly, and why can't we try to avoid that?  If the falcons don't come back to this nest site, then, we get to see Ravens raise their young and see how they live.  
We all understand that every bird has a right to be somewhere as they got to this nest first....because it wasn't occupied (yet), however instinct is powerful!  I hate to keep repeated myself here but, if humans can interveen to avoid an unnecessary battle which could lead to death(s).  I understand that it is nature and this happens all the time but it's a little different when this is a nestbox that humans built for the purpose of helping in the recovery of the peregrine falcon!

[The Peregrine Chick]

Can someone send me the link to this webcam??  For some reason, that seems to be the only cam I don't have in my favorites...

http://www.species-at-risk.mb.ca/projects/pfrp/forum/programs/index.php/topic,216.0.html

When you are looking for links, I always try to set them up separately - usually with something like "Project Webcams" for a title.

[allikat]

Can someone send me the link to this webcam??  For some reason, that seems to be the only cam I don't have in my favorites...

[carly]

I have been scouring the web to see if I could find anything about this situation.  I found an old report from 1998 from the University of Tennesee and it was cached, was the only way I could read it as it's not online anymore.

It was about Raven's vs Peregrines in the wild; the report says they often shared nest cliffs but not at the same time. In cases where their 'timing' overlapped, it said they fought to the death for the nest site...as both had established it as theirs.  Most of the time they said the peregrines won but in 3 recorded cases the ravens did...gah...! 

That's why I'm concerned, I can't see the tiercel whose been there for years giving up his site.  I know it's nature, I will keep telling myself that.

[The Peregrine Chick]

Haven't heard back from the folks in Edmonton yet, but they may decide to post a message on their website.  I will post any information I hear here of course, but I would suggest that you all check the webcam website occasionally in case they post there instead.

[The Peregrine Chick]

Hi Tracy,
I chase all crows and merlins out of my area.  I love my song birds and my feeders and I do not tolerate them. just before I left  I heard my bluejays cacking and I looked out and there was a crow. the bluejays and the magpies shoed it out of the area. If they had not I would have.

I love my birds but I do not like them in residential areas.
at the end of las season there were  crows around the nest site, but not ravens . Now the university will not like the Ravens there be cause they like the peregrines chasing the pigeons.

I am shocked here.

Question for you Bev - do you feed your birds all spring/summer?  If you do, you are contributing to the presence of the Merlins or crows because you are creating a ready food source for them.  Additionally, there is a debate concerning spring/summer feeding with commercial bird seed as it is not as nutritious as natural sources (bugs, berries, seeds) in the spring/summer when they are trying to feed themselves and young.  During the winter, the high fat content is a great way to help out birds during our long (long) cold winters.  All our bushes, trees, gardens and bird feeders are why residential areas have so many birds.  On the upside, having birds in your yard (and it sounds like you have good habitat there) you are improving survival rates and doubling/tripling the reproductive success of all your birds - passerines and raptors alike.  And the mammals too - squirrels, raccoons, skunk and deer will all eat your seed and eat your passerines. (It also apparently adds $10K to the value of your home!)

Its all a case of balance - for the merlins, its two months with a raptor in your area, then they move further afield when the chicks have fledged and all your songbirds come out of the woodwork and its pretty much back to normal.  With the crows it lasts a bit longer since they don't seem to want to move out of the neighbourhood so quickly.  There are techniques to have both though - Check out the Cornell Attracting Birds page for some of the easiest.  

Scaring off bird species we don't "like" is a tough argument.  We have damaged/destroyed existing habitat and some species suffer (raptors).  We create new habitat and some species prosper (songbirds, including introduced species like House Sparrows) but when the species we damaged are able to take advantage of the new habitat conditions, we protest.  I have feeders all winter and into the spring to get them started and I love having all the songbird, House Sparrows and all.  Come spring when the rest of our bird species return, I'm glad to see them all because I can't assign a greater value to one over the other, particularly since I'm the one manipulating their habitat for good and ill.

[Loriann]

As I mentioned on a thread last year, we have resident Merlin's nesting in an old nest high up in the neighbours pine tree.  I too noticed a difference in the amount of song birds, but as tracy says, they are still there, just a bit more cautious.. ( throw down some bird seed and see how many come creeping out).

To me, a bird is a bird is a bird.. Each one has a place in the grand scheme of things, and while some may be more enjoyable to watch than others, each one is just as valuable in the food chain as the next.
Crows, and the much maligned Raven serve a great purpose in eating crap that other birds would not ... carrion, and rotting vegetation.
Like them or not, ravens are highly intelligent ( for a bird) and very interesting to watch.  I know you all want the falcons back in the nest, but if the Ravens are to be there, then so be it.  In nature, they have every right to 'squat' in that box . They have no idea that they are interferring with what 'we' as humans would prefer to have happen.

The same goes on in my yard every year.. the bird houses high up in the maple trees were meant for BIRDs, but our resident squirrels take over every time.  At first it annoyed me, but now, many years later, we get a great laugh watching them raise thier family.

we should have all learned a lesson that we cannot interfere in the ways of Nature.  The Ravens are not doing anything but trying to procreate .  something they are born and raised to do.

 

[carly]

Bev!!  No I didn't get your email    I'm so sorry but relieved you will be home soon!  I was hoping you would have a more peaceful season this year.

U

[bev.]

Hi Tracy,
I chase all crows and merlins out of my area.  I love my song birds and my feeders and I do not tolerate them. just before I left  I heard my bluejays cacking and I looked out and there was a crow. the bluejays and the magpies shoed it out of the area. If they had not I would have.

I love my birds but I do not like them in residential areas.
at the end of las season there were  crows around the nest site, but not ravens . Now the university will not like the Ravens there be cause they like the peregrines chasing the pigeons.

I am shocked here.

[bev.]

Hi, guys

I am extremly  upset right now. I left all my e-mail adresses  at home so I cannot e-mails my biologist friends.  
Carly e-mailed me andI hope she  got my e-mail that said I would be out of town until Tuesday evening.
this does not look good and if I was at home I would be doing all I could to get rid of this nest. Not good at all

I am not sure if  the falcons would even try for the nest with this one in but if Tracy hears nothing I will get to the bottom of it on my return.   that is what  happens when cam is not up soon enough for us to see what is going on.

I do not know if the biologists are allowed to do anything by law?

Boy, Oh boy. Never  easy at this site.

I will be down  there on Wednesday to check  things out in person.  I will see if there are any falcons about and what not

[The Peregrine Chick]

We have crows primarily in this city (Edmonton too I suspect) because our urban forest is old enough (and tall enough) to provide nesting habitat for them.  Not to mention that we have lots of food here - human-derived (garbage, road kill, planted gardens) and naturally-derived (berries, bugs, eggs, chicks, small mammals).  They like to nest primarily in tall (over 50') spruce trees here, though I've seen them in large elms as well.  Not a bad thing since merlins need crows to make nests for them.  So if you have crows, you can have merlins.  Both are noisy but if you have merlins, you won't have crows.  As for the songbirds, the number of songbirds hasn't decreased (and yes, folks have actually done research on this) but rather they are being more secretive.  They aren't as vocal, they will sit in more dense cover (juniper, cedar) and they won't stick to a regular schedule at feeders or the like.  Crows (and squirrels, blue jays, grackles, raccoons) will predate nests (pretty much all nests) for eggs and chicks.  Merlins on the other hand, do wait until they are on the wing but they are much more enthusiastic and exhibitionistic diners - they like to eat on telephone poles or garage roofs.

So enjoy your adult, mature trees and if you would prefer merlins to crows, be glad the crows are there now.  Since the merlins don't repair the nests they use, they need to find new nests fairly frequently.  So if you have crows again this year, maybe next year for merlins ....

Help any?

[irenekl]

I live in the north east part of Winnipeg and as of last spring/summer we have alot of ravens/crows.  Not sure which they are.  They are very annoying and behave with alot of dominance.  Since they've moved in we have about half the number of songbirds.  I've been so angry with them until I watched a video on utube.  Check it out, it's called kitten and crow are friends (or something like that).  Hilarious and sweet!

[Elaine L]

We never used to have ravens here in Edmonton - I guess they are now expanding their range, after coming close to being wiped out of areas here in North America.  I hope TPC can tell us soon what the result is of her conversation with the Edmonton crew.  I don't want to see the ravens suffer or lose their eggs, but I want to see our peregrines return and breed safely.  This is a bad situation, with no winners.

[carly]

George and Weezie are back and more branches incoming..

[Loriann]

Well if 'George and Weezie" insist on 'moving on up- to a deee-lux apartment in the sky'..  then it should be interesting when the original tenants decide to revoke their lease.