Other Peregrine Projects > USA Peregrines
ME / BRI - 2009-16
carly:
Thanks TPC and I think mom has learned from yesterday. Checkin in now and she's not there..yay! perhaps finally out hunting and sharing duties with dad?/!! Chick is all sprawled out napping and eggs are strewn around him...all is as it should be at this stage :D
allikat:
Thanks TPC... ;D
The Peregrine Chick:
General nestbox design - there are a few favoured ones, not really sure why but there are and they work at lots of locations. Some locations are chosen because the boxes will work there, not because its the best location for the birds. We have different designs for different locations. The Maine box may be high because it has to sit above something in that niche ...
High sides - peregrines won't nest where they can't see when they are incubating/brooding - they can't see what's coming - prey species are happy to hide out of site, peregrines are predators and need to see what's out there at all times.
Brooding - peregrines learn just like everyone/everything else, she's just inexperienced and this is her only chick. The site is protected on three sides so there really isn't a great danger from the elements or from predation. If she had more, I'm pretty sure she would be happy to leave them alone at this stage of the game.
Aggressive - think of the early battles in the nestboxes this year. That's aggressive. Its all feet and fury. This was determined, inexperience female to my eyes. Hopefully she will grow out of it as it will make her life alot easier. She's done a good job this year, next year should be more relaxed but perhaps busier if they manage to hatch out more chicks ...
carly:
As for the nestbox..I honestly can't comment on that because I have no expertise in that area and outside of what I see on the cam, I have no clue what the area that surrounds them looks like so there may be a perfectly good reason for the height and position of that box that we dont' understand. I know that Alison and TPC have experience in this are so perhaps they can give us some good perspective.
I know people have commented to me about ours and asked why we don't make the sides higher or why we didn't tuck it in right next to the wall (it's to prevent them from being cornered in case of predators and gives them a better all round view of the area) so they couldn't climb out both sides, etc.. No no one has ever died falling out of the nest and they have tumbled out a few times just to the side-mainly of over curiousity. It's high enough that they are safe from falling out during storms and strong winds..with mama's help of course, if they were on a cliff ... they probably wouldn't survive something like that. And it's open enough for them to go exploring.
Moonstar:
So happy everything turned out well here. The chick looks quite happy snuggling up to Mom or Dad.
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