AZ / Phoenix - 2016-17

[Alison]

When I checked the site today, I found this:

Thank you for visiting the Phoenix peregrine falcon live-streaming camera page. The peregrines did not select the nest box this season so there will be no live feed this year. We would have loved to witness their nesting behavior and care of the young. Check back with us next season.

They don't say whether the peregrines have chosen any nest site or not. I wish only good things for this pair. 

[Alison]

The webcam is still not online, but I came across this:

Air Conditioning Planned For Phoenix Peregrine Falcon Nesting Box

By Kerry Fehr-Snyder

If any peregrine falcons decide to take up residence in the nesting box above downtown Phoenix this season, they could be in for a cool surprise.

Arizona Game and Fish Department wants to add air conditioning to the box atop a Maricopa County building at Third Avenue and Washington Street. The air-conditioning unit is pending approval.

“We don’t anticipate there being any problem [with approval],” said Randy Babb, Arizona Game and Fish Department’s watchable wildlife manager.

The department is modifying the falcon nesting box in hopes of preventing a repeat of last season in which the only chick that hatched fell out of the nest and later died. It also was believed to be too hot for the chick, known as an eyass.

Officials temporarily turned off the live camera feed of the falcons’ comings and goings after the accident in mid-May. Babb said workers expect to turn the camera, which was upgraded in 2016, back on in the next few weeks.

“We are very excited for this,” he said. “It’s like a soap opera, right?”

Babb was referring to whether the male and female will successfully breed and whether any eggs laid will hatch.

Officials have been consulting with peregrine falcon experts to determine the best way to assure a successful breeding season, which usually begins in late March. Breeding pairs have been using the box on the county building for about a decade, but only two birds have ever survived to the age of fledgling, according to Game and Fish.

Among changes workers have made is adding caulk inside the nesting box and lowering its lip so it is closer to the edge to help the chicks enter and exit. It also plans to add an air-conditioning system to the outside of the box.

The peregrine cam in Phoenix is one of two livestream cameras maintained by Game and Fish. A webcam of sandhill cranes in southern Arizona typically runs from October through March or early April.

Babb said the peregrine livestream has drawn interest from many viewers.

“We hear more from the peregrine cam than the cranes cam,” Babb said. “Everybody is super engaged.”

http://kjzz.org/content/430671/air-conditioning-planned-phoenix-peregrine-falcon-nesting-box

There are also photos of work being done on the nest box with the article.

We shall see if the air conditioning actually becomes a reality.

[mspeach]

Talked to some of the education staff today at Liberty Wildlife about Arizona peregrines.
For the most part they don't migrate like their artic brethren, they are in Phoenix year round.
The females are 700 - 750g and don't have that layer of fat needed for colder climates.  We did have a female from California we rehabbed for years that was 900 - 1000g.   
For drinking water there are rivers (not like WPG rivers!!) and lakes and ponds in parks and golf courses.  Many fountains also.  They nest on several buildings, on ledges above lakes and in the Grand Canyon.
On LW rehab side we have peregrine foster parents with I think 3 chicks presently.   On the education side we have 2 very popular birds.   We did have a female that lived 19 yrs. and a male that lived to the ripe old age of 24 yrs.

[The Peregrine Chick]

That was a nicely concise, empathetic and encouraging note from the Arizona folks. 

They weren't cavalier and didn't downplay or dismiss the emotional attachment cam-viewers have for this peregrine family but they also gently reminded folks of how tough it can be to be a peregrine.

Good things do come out of bad though - now they have a bit of extra time (in already busy lives) to consider how they might tweak the nestbox if they are so inclined. 

[burdi]

Arizona Game and Fish Department Update:
  
"Everyone at Arizona Game and Fish appreciates the outpouring of support and emotion from our peregrine-cam family. We have heard from people across the country and share the disappointment felt by all at the failure of this year’s nesting attempt. By not interfering with the nesting birds and letting nature chart its own course, we strive to bring you an uncensored glimpse into the daily lives of truly wild animals. We know that many people find this distressing. We feel that constant intervention and meddling with the workings of the nest serve only to lessen the educational value of the experience, presenting a sanitized version of reality.

The naturally high mortality rate for the young of these birds presents great obstacles for every chick. This nest, like so many others around the world, was unsuccessful this year. We will be discontinuing the peregrine live feed for the season this Saturday, June 11.

We expect the birds to use the same nest box next year and will begin the live stream when they return (likely in late Feb. or early March). We hope to once again share the experience with you, and we hope you will join us.

The department works with more than 800 wildlife species, several of these are endangered or threatened species. We are happy to share our efforts with all who care about conservation and the future of wildlife resources. No matter how you came to this page, we're grateful for your support, and we hope you will continue to stay in touch through either personal contacts or our publications and programs. Check our website (www.azgfd.gov) frequently for new program offerings."

[The Peregrine Chick]

I look forward to hearing more about the parents - Dad in particular.  In our experience with pairs who have lost chicks/nests is that their pair bond remains intact, sometimes becomes even stronger and we don't notice any change in their behaviours after the loss - by that it looks like the behaviour of adults whose chicks have fledged with a few extra visits to check out the lost nest in the first few days after the loss.  They don't abandon the site, the don't in general leave any earlier than usual and their interactions with one another appear as per other year's after the chicks are fending for themselves.

This year's chick was older so Dad certainly couldn't remove him from the nestbox which our birds have done.  His behaviour after the chick died - trying to protect the chick is as I would have expected, they are devoted parents as we all know and they don't give up on their chicks easily.  But because I don't know about this male's individual behaviours (where he likes to rosy, how often he was in the nest, etc) nor do I know anything that might have happened to him when the chick first fell or when the chick was returned or when it was retrieved from the box after it died. And in the absence of being injured during one of these events I would expect Dad to shift into independent chick mode within a few days and return to a routine similar to what we see when the adults return in the spring and before they get down to serious courtship.  The wild card for me is the high temperatures and if he (and/or she to be fair) have been impacted by the temperatures as well.  Without a chick to protect they could have left for a cooler location and returned later.  Or if they had cooler places or water nearby they could have spent more time there but with a chick they weren't leaving until there was no point in staying.  Not only am I glad we don't have those kinds of temperatures here but also that our Manitoba birds insist on nesting virtually on the doorstep of rivers!

Thank you Burdi for keeping a close eye on this site - difficult as it has been in recent days.  I look forward to hearing more and learning more about the challenges faced by peregrines in much hotter and drier climates than ours.

[burdi]

I contacted AZGFD not long before they closed on June 8, and I’m very thankful the cam was turned to face the nest shortly after my call.

Unfortunately, there still hasn’t been a confirmed sighting of the male parent. I’m sorry I can’t go into what was said right now, but might add a bit another day.

After all that AZGFD has done to provide a quality viewing experience for us, and all they have done to help the poor chick, I can understand the great loss they are feeling at this time - along with so many of us.

[burdi]

I've tried to understand why they left the camera facing outwards, but still haven't come up with a good enough reason.

Burdi, I don't know whether you have had a chance to check, but today the webcam is showing the view of the nest box again. The nest box is empty at the moment, but I will check from time to time in case either parent shows up for a visit.

Alison, thank you for your reply, and I hope that you will be able to spot a parent. Unfortunately, I think that opportunity would have been better within the first day or two after the chick was removed. It might help if the nest view was wider - but not too far away (or we won’t be able to identify the parents), though I haven’t even heard the sound of a falcon in the last two days.

[Alison]

How terrible this all has been.  Phoenix was so happy to have their first cam,  and it was very popular.
I was out of town last week and missed everything until it was over.
I was at Liberty Wildlife volunteering on Monday and talked to a friend who is with AZFGD.
She did not know anything official, but her opinion was that due to the spike in heat there were many early fledges here.   We had 80 intakes on Saturday and 70 on Sunday, bird orphans and injuries.
(last year we had around 7,000 intakes).
Anyhow, devastated about Rocky!!!     So sad.

It was so very sad to lose this beautiful and courageous little chick, mspeach.

Thank you for the information about there being many early fledges due to the heat. What a huge number of admissions to rehab in only two days.

[GCG]

 

[Alison]

I've tried to understand why they left the camera facing outwards, but still haven't come up with a good enough reason.

Burdi, I don't know whether you have had a chance to check, but today the webcam is showing the view of the nest box again. The nest box is empty at the moment, but I will check from time to time in case either parent shows up for a visit.

[mspeach]

How terrible this all has been.  Phoenix was so happy to have their first cam,  and it was very popular.
I was out of town last week and missed everything until it was over.
I was at Liberty Wildlife volunteering on Monday and talked to a friend who is with AZFGD.
She did not know anything official, but her opinion was that due to the spike in heat there were many early fledges here.   We had 80 intakes on Saturday and 70 on Sunday, bird orphans and injuries.
(last year we had around 7,000 intakes).
Anyhow, devastated about Rocky!!!     So sad.

[The Peregrine Chick]

Thanks for all the information Burdi and I will admit that I'm not going to check out the comments until after the nesting season just because I'm on the "other" side of the equation.

Personally I think webcams have a purpose and I recognize that there is a need to keep the conversation going with fans of webcams but it is labour-intensive when it first gets started and there is a steep learning curve in terms of the relationship between the two "sides".  A case in point being, that a very popular osprey (or perhaps eagle) cam decided not to continue streaming to the internet this year because they (the "other side") - biologists, partners - were getting harassed so badly by the public over what was or wasn't happening in the nest.  I'm sorry I didn't make note of which cam it was, but there was a very good interview with one of the folks involved on CBC Radio just before our cam went live I believe.  They (biologists) still use the cam to keep track of what is going on, but because of their public's response, it was more work/trouble than it was worth to continue sharing it publicly, which is the sad part of this.  What happens to the folks who were "enjoying" watching?  They have lost the opportunity now.  What happens to all the folks who were harassing the staff?  Do we think they have learned anything from the loss of the cam or are have they just found another cam to torture?  I can't say that I heard how long they had been streaming, but I can say that it happens to every webcam to varying degrees at varying times.  I think what makes our cam (and at times cams) different is that we started a long time ago and you all have "grown up" with the webcam.  Or maybe it helps that we aren't as popular as others in the grand scheme of things.  Whatever the reason, mostly our cam community is congenial and informed and long may that continue to be the case.

And yes, I'll see if I can't find that interview or some information about the cam in question ... its the other side of the coin, one that none of us thought would come quite so soon, but given the popularity of webcams I guess it was inevitable.  The more something is "liked" it seems the faster it attracts problems.

[burdi]

I should mention that I phoned the Arizona Game and Fish Department, but since the biologist wasn't in, I'll have to call again. The receptionist was very pleasant and seemed talkative when I mentioned the falcons - so I asked a couple questions (just in case she happened to know), but no luck. Hopefully they will post another update in the meantime, though it might not be what I want to hear.

[burdi]

The cam link below includes the “comments” I referred to in my previous post (although I haven't participated in them), and this is also where people named the lone Phoenix chick "Rocky". I prefer not to use a name that isn’t official. However, since this precious chick is now deceased (without a band or a name), I suppose it is fine if we call him Rocky.

You will probably notice squabbling in the comments, but you might find some very interesting information along with how the life and death of Rocky has affected so many - considering that all deaths and injuries are heartbreaking.

http://hdontap.com/index.php/video/stream/azgfd-peregrine-falcon