News: Peregrines

[Alison]

Rare falcon chicks stolen from Chorley nest

Newly-hatched chicks from endangered peregrine falcons have been stolen from a protected nest in Chorley.  Bird enthusiast Richard Todd, 36, visits the site in Whittle-le-Woods, on a daily basis to monitor the falcons’ progress. He, along with other spotters and conservationists, had recorded four eggs in a cliff-side nest, which hatched on Friday, May 14.  Mr Todd observed the chicks on Sunday evening at around 9pm, but was told early on Monday that there appeared to be nothing left in the nest. He believes the nest was raided by thieves. He said: “I’m disgusted that someone could do this, presumably with the intention of selling the chicks into captivity for breeding. The adult pair have been here for a couple of years and to have four chicks born was exciting. I often bring my five-year-old son Finlay to see the falcons and just can’t bring myself to tell him they’ve gone. I don’t want him to know that there are people who can be so cruel and take these wonderful creatures.”

Mark Thomas, of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds’ investigations unit, said: “If it is a theft of chicks, then they could fetch anything from £300 to £500 for falconry.”  Some chicks are even sold abroad as British falcons are believed to be from pure, wild stock. Experts say there is a slim chance that the chicks were targeted by ravens but said theft was more likely. Bird recorder Judith Smith said anyone found guilty of stealing the eggs could be facing a jail sentence because peregrine falcons are a schedule one protected species, along with golden eagles, kingfishers and barn owls.

Ivan Lynas, who runs the Imperial pub on Union Street, Chorley, is a peregrine expert whose passion has taken him and his wife Natasia across the country observing them. He had lent a powerful telescope to Mr Todd to help him monitor the nest at close quarters. Mr Lynas said: “It’s quite rare to have four chicks from one breeding pair and to have them taken is very distressing. These birds need to be out in their natural habitat. I’m appalled that someone could do this.”

Lancashire police confirmed that they had been made aware of the theft and said a specialist wildlife officer had begun an investigation.

Link to story: The Chorley Citizen - Rare Falcon Chicks Stolen from Chorley Nest

[Alison]

The three chicks from the Olympia nest have now been banded:

3 baby peregrine falcons taken from Olympia nest for banding

Three baby peregrine falcons hatched on a marine terminal crane at the Port of Olympia were brought down to earth Friday afternoon so identification bands could be attached to their legs.

The hourlong effort involved volunteers and port staff members who climbed the crane, retrieved the falcons – one female and two males – and carried them to the marine terminal so two aluminum bands could be connected to the raptors’ legs. After the bands were affixed, the falcons were returned to their nest.

One band was a federal Fish & Wildlife band and the other was a visual identification band, said Glenn Phillips, a volunteer with the Department of Fish and Wildlife. The bands are used to track the falcons; one falcon that was hatched at the port in 2008 has been tracked to the Ballard Bridge in the Seattle area, he said.

The falcons showed up at the port in about 2003 and nest in a plywood box, said Mike Crawford, marine terminal maintenance foreman for the port. The marine terminal has two cranes, and the falcons have settled in on the crane to the south, near the port’s public plaza.

The baby falcons at the port are 15 to 25 days old and should take flight after about 45 days. In 18 months, they will be considered adults, Phillips said.

http://www.thenewstribune.com/2010/05/22/1196524/3-baby-peregrine-falcons-taken.html


Another article on the Olympia banding has some great photos:

http://www.thenewstribune.com/2010/05/22/1196502/stay-away-from-my-baby.html

Photos by Tony Overman.



One irate, and fearless, peregrine:



One equally irate chick:

[Alison]

3 falcon chicks spotted in nest at city's port
 
State will put ID tags on birds in 10 days

OLYMPIA — A pair of peregrine falcons is raising three chicks this spring in a nesting box perched high on the railing of a Port of Olympia crane.

It marks the eighth straight year that the pair used the southernmost of the two cranes during nesting season, rearing their young amidst the occasional bustle of marine terminal operations.

The number of chicks successfully hatched each year has ranged from zero in 2003, when they didn’t have a nesting box, to four in 2009.

State Fish and Wildlife biologist Steve Desimone confirmed last week the presence of at least two chicks approximately one week old. Black Hills Audubon member Whittier Johnson spotted three chicks on Wednesday, including one that was somewhat smaller than the other two, suggesting it had hatched later.

Desimone and Johnson used spotting scopes set up in the Olympia Farmers Market to view into the box in the morning when the adults bring food to the chicks.

The chicks are old enough now to hold their heads up and peer over the edge of the nesting box.

If history is any indicator, the chicks will leave the nest in late June. Roughly 30 percent of all peregrine falcons hatch each year survive to age 1, according to state Fish and Wildlife studies.

The department plans to place identification tags on the chicks in about 10 days. The 2009 offspring were banded, but there’s been no sign of their whereabouts, Desimone said. The state is home to about 150 nest sites in rural and urban areas from Bellingham to Olympia. Not all nest sites are occupied each nesting season.

http://www.thenewstribune.com/2010/05/14/1186142/3-falcon-chicks-spotted-in-nest.html

[Alison]

Department of Natural Resources is reporting number of nesting peregrines has grown
WQAD TV / 13 May 2010

AMES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Department of Natural Resources is reporting the number of nesting pairs of peregrine falcons has grown to 16.

According to DNR officials, that is the most nesting pairs counted since the department launched its falcon restoration program in 1989.

According to wildlife diversity technician Pat Schlarbaum, there were 13 nesting pairs of peregrines in Iowa last year. The new nesting sites this year are near Lansing and in Clinton and Muscatine.

There were just two nesting pairs of falcons in Iowa a little over 10 years ago. At the time the restoration began, officials said the goal was to establish five nesting pairs in the state.

http://www.wqad.com/news/sns-ap-ia--iowa-peregrinefalcons,0,4815476.story

[Alison]

Man in court on rare egg theft charges

Counter-terrorism officers recently arrested a man who has been accused of scaling a mountain and stealing rare bird’s eggs – in the first case of its kind for 20 years.  The suspect had been stopped by police at Birmingham International Airport, as he was about to board a plane to Dubai earlier this month.  He has been charged with stealing 14 peregrine falcon eggs, from a nest in Rhondda, South Wales. It’s alleged that he’d strapped the eggs to his body, in order to keep them warm. He was arrested at the airport on Bank Holiday Monday.

Last Wednesday (May 5), Jeffrey Lendrum, 48, appeared before Solihull Magistrates.  He faces four charges involving the taking of eggs, and hiding them to evade export restrictions.  He was remanded in custody, and is due to appear at Warwick Crown Court later this month.Twelve of the 14 eggs are thought to have survived, and have been placed in the care of a local wildlife charity.  Before the experts arrived, officers had kept the batch warm by putting them on top of office computers, and turning them regularly.

If they hatch, it’s hoped that the birds-of-prey will eventually be released into the wild. Peregrine falcons (pictured) are a protected species – they were previously culled during World War 2, because they preyed on carrier pigeons.  But following a change in the law, the population has recovered, and bred locally. In previous years, the falcons have nested at Fort Dunlop, Erdington, and the Chamberlain Tower at Birmingham University.

It’s thought that this is the first time someone has been charged with attempting to smuggle bird-of-prey eggs out of the UK, since 1990.

[Alison]

Breeding success

Open-mouthed and featherless, three falcon chicks crane their necks toward their mother as she tears chunks of meat from a fresh quail and gingerly feeds her wide-eyed young.  Safe beneath their mother's vigilant lookout, the shrill crying of the hungry brood in the nest is a scene that has played itself out in remote rocky reaches of the globe from time immemorial.

But in this instance, the gravel substrate beneath the chicks is part of a triangular man-made nest positioned in a breeding chamber deep inside the UAE's only commercial falcon breeding facility — the Nad Al Sheba Avian Reproduction Research Centre.
The fabled goose that laid the golden egg, it would appear, has changed its feathers.

Today, it is the rare and magnificent falcon raised in captivity that is laying four to 15 golden eggs a year, that ultimately, as adults, fetch more than $30,000 (Dh110,100) apiece when sold as full-grown hunting birds. Breeding, raising and selling falcons is big business for the centre, producing more than 200 fully grown specimens a year for sale in an international industry worth untold billions annually.

Opened in the spring of 2001 by owner Mohammad Suhail Bin Tarraf, 36 falcons were raised in the centre in its first year.  By the end of this year's spring-breeding season, there could be more than 250 fully grown falcons in the most productive year ever, said David Le Mesurier (pictured below), avian centre manager.

"I don't count my chickens before they're hatched but I have a lot of eggs at the end of the month," Le Mesurier told Gulf News during a tour inside the facility.  A UK expatriate who has raised falcons since the age of 12, Le Mesurier helped custom design the avian centre to create a comfortable environment for the hundreds of breeding falcons he maintains, as well as the hunting-bird offspring that are sold each year to enthusiasts both domestically and abroad.

In five large breeding buildings, 112 specially designed breeding chambers include, for example, one-way observation windows that face away from nests at a 45-degree angle to avoid birds seeing their reflections.  Chamber entry doors open into the room rather than against the wall, he said, to prevent birds from flying out into the long hallways where clipboards hang at each chamber doorway, with charts carefully logging all aspects of the young birds' formative years, before release and sale.

Attention to detail is the backbone of Le Mesurier's business acumen when it comes to caring for each and every falcon, he said.

"It makes good business sense," he said. When people shell out large amounts of money, they want only the best money can buy.

"As far as I'm aware, we're the only commercial breeding project in the UAE. We produce very high quality birds. They will always sell," he said, adding that it's all about "selling high quality product at a good price".

On the business front, Le Mesurier said the yearly market strategy is to stay ahead of competitors by offering its birds for sale at the beginning of the autumnal falconry hunting season, at a time when foreign falcon representatives enter the UAE to offer their birds as well.  The falcon reproduction centre sells about 80 per cent of its birds to Emirati Shaikhs in the UAE, he said. "Within three or four days, all of our birds are sold."

For the rest of the article:

http://gulfnews.com/business/features/breeding-success-1.624947

[Alison]

Lovebirds home to nest at Sebel Cairns

A SWEET romance has blossomed above as two peregrine falcons come home to roost on the Sebel Cairns Hotel sign.

The Weekend Post photographer Marc McCormack has been following the life of a peregrine falcon at the Abbott St hotel for months and has recently noted the bird’s single life is over.  Ornithologist and Birds Australia representative for Mossman and the Daintree, Del Richards, said the peregrines, the fastest birds in the world, capable of reaching speeds of up to 260km/h, have come back to nest.

"These birds might live for 30 years and mate for life," Mr Richards said. "They start their courtship and mate this time of year, have their chicks in August, and move to the mountains around October to take their young from the city."

While they live in Cairns, the falcons feed on pigeons and lorikeets. Mr Richards believes the same pair has a long history in Cairns and has previously nested on a balcony of an Esplanade hotel for many years.

http://www.cairns.com.au/article/2010/05/08/108815_local-news.html

I remember seeing photos of this pair in the past.

[Alison]

Llanito, Gibraltar

The Llanito Peregrines

In a quiet corner of Windmill Hill flats, the first of two yearly clutches of captive-bred Peregrine falcons is growing up fast.  Reared in captivity and trained by experienced falconers at the Raptor Unit of the Gibraltar Ornithological and Natural History Society, the three birds will eventually be released into the wild.

Some will settle in Gibraltar, while others will move further afield. Thanks in part to this breeding program, this majestic bird now has a firmly-established presence in Gibraltar. There are currently seven pairs living and nesting on the Rock, as well as one lone falcon trying to establish itself. The birds normally nest in the nooks and crannies of the sheer north face of the Rock, where access is tricky and young birds are relatively safe.

Vincent Robba, who heads the Raptor Unit, said he and his team coordinate the first clutch of captive-bred birds to coincide with birds breeding in the wild. It means that once the captive-bred birds are trained and released, they are more likely to find birds of a similar age.

The birds are trained from seven weeks of age using traditional falconry methods aimed at refining their flying and hunting skills. Over time, they gain confidence in the wild until eventually, their hunting skills perfected, they stop returning to the falconer’s lure.

Sometimes during training, the GONHS raptor team has introduced young captive-bred birds into area where they know wild birds of the same age are learning to fly and hunt. They call this “synchronised hacking”.

“Once we saw our young falcons playing for hours in the air with wild birds,” Mr Robba said.

Two Peregrines were successfully released this way last year and were adopted by Peregrine families in the wild.  

Although the Peregrine breeding program has been underway since the mid to late 1990s, it took several years before the first fertile eggs were laid. It was 2004 before the first Peregrine was born in captivity to a disabled female – she had a broken wing - that had been artificially inseminated with semen from a bird in Spain. The chick was reared and trained in captivity and later released into the wild.

But although the GONHS team took encouragement from this success, the program was often frustrating. Sometimes the male falcons were reluctant to mate. On other occasions when they did mate, the eggs produced were infertile. Over the years, the number of successful clutches increased and these days, several falcons are reintroduced into the wild every year. Remarkably, all were born from the same female. In all, she has produced 21 birds, of which 15 have already been released into the wild.

Through its contacts with Spanish ornithologists, GONHS believes some of those birds may have established themselves in the Cádiz region.

http://www.chronicle.gi/headlines_details.php?id=18914

 

[Alison]

Bird of prey found hanged on Cumbrian allotment

A wildlife officer for Cumbria police has said they are looking for a key witness after a falcon was found hanging in an allotment. The bird of prey, believed to be either a peregrine falcon or a buzzard, was found on a plot of land near to Kilbride Place, Frizington, on Sunday morning.  Officers believe the bird may have been killed in suspicious circumstances.

PC John Shaw, Cumbria police’s wildlife crime officer, said: “We believe it is either a peregrine falcon or a buzzard. It was found hanging from a fence in the allotment. We have not established a cause of death at the moment. We know someone placed the bird on the fence. We are trying to get that witness to come forward and tell us under what circumstances the bird was found dead.  “It’s quite a problem for birds in the west of the county. We want to get the message across that we will seriously investigate it. It was possibly shot dead. It’s difficult to tell until we do an X-ray. If we are talking about small pellets it is difficult to see them unless X-rayed. We really want to talk to any witnesses who might be able to help with the circumstances. They can speak in confidence with me. Unfortunately Cumbria has quite a lot of bird persecutions. We get birds that are shot, poisoned and trapped illegally. When it comes to birds of prey most of the incidents are deliberate. Birds of prey are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act. They are vulnerable to persecution.”

Anyone found to have killed the birds can face a hefty fine and up to six months in prison.  Anyone with information is asked to contact PC John Shaw on 0845 3300247 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.

Link to story: News & Star - Bird of prey found hanged on Cumbrian allotment

[Alison]

Man tried to smuggle 14 rare Peregrine falcon eggs on a plane to Dubai from Birmingham Airport

Anti-Terror police arrested an alleged thief trying to smuggle rare birds eggs from Wales to Dubai at Birmingham Airport on Bank Holiday Monday.

Jeffrey Lendrum was charged with climbing a mountain in south Wales to steal peregrine falcon eggs from their nest at Solihull Magistrates’ Court.  West Midlands Police said it is the first case of its kind for 20 years.  The 48-year-old, who has dual Zimbabwean and Irish nationality, was said to have the eggs strapped to his body to keep them warm.  He was charged with four offences involving the taking of the eggs from a peak in the Rhondda and hiding them to evade export restrictions. He was also charged with the possession of climbing gear, an incubator and other equipment to take and keep wild bird eggs. Twelve of the 14 eggs are believed to be alive.  Officers said they kept them safe by nesting them on their office computers and turning them regularly until wildlife rescue centre staff arrived to collect them. It is hoped they will eventually be returned to the wild once they are hatched.

Lendrum was remanded in custody on May 5 and he is due to appear at Warwick Crown Court later this month.

Link to story: Birmingham Mail - Man tried to smuggle 14 rare Peregrine falcon eggs on a plane to Dubai from Birmingham Airport

[Alison]

Drama in the air: Two peregrine falcons in extraordinary battle 250 ft above ground

Framed against the backdrop of a cloudless blue sky, the two male peregrine falcons look as if they have been almost frozen in time like figures on a coat of arms.  In reality it was the frenzied scene being fought out 250ft above the ground at Chichester Cathedral, West Sussex, as a younger bird tried to take over the nesting ground of a cathedral veteran. Although the encounter lasted just a few seconds - with the senior peregrine the victor - the whole sequence was captured frame by frame by wildlife photographers David and Janet Shaw.

"I have taken photographs of wild animals all of my life all over the world but this is one of the most remarkable sequences I have ever seen," Mr Shaw said. "It was totally stunning."  The couple, from nearby Worthing, were on one of their regular pilgrimages to see the peregrines who have been nesting at Chichester since 2001 when the drama developed.

Mrs Shaw said: "There has been a resident pair of peregrines at the cathedral for ten years and this year the male was sitting on the pinnacle of one of the turrets when the youngster came along. He is one of the young males born last year at a site called Sussex Heights in Brighton and was obviously on the look out for some new territory."

For the rest of the story and photos:  (Well worth the read & photos are great) The Daily Mail - Peregrine Falcons fight 250 ft above ground

[Alison]

Pigeon fanciers slam city plan

Pigeon fanciers aim to shoot down a scheme to bring peregrine falcons into Manchester after claiming their prized birds are being eaten. Racing fans have slammed the RSPB-backed scheme to build city centre roosts for the birds of prey. A series of man-made nests – known as scrapes – were created in a number of prominent buildings, including Manchester town hall, five years ago.

Last week, the M.E.N reported that a pair of peregrine falcons had moved from their previous city centre home to a new scrape in the CIS tower. But pigeon racers say they are fed up with the presence of the falcons, which are routinely swooping on their birds. Now a veteran racer says he plans a protest.

Albert Langslow, from Salford, says he and other pigeon racers had lost birds due to falcons.  He said: “There are far too many of these birds of prey. They are not in decline any more. All these attempts to bring them into towns are getting out of hand. I can’t let my birds out without worrying that they won’t come back. My friend in Whitefield let his out, they were attacked by a falcon and scattered. He lost the whole lot.

“Some of the pigeon breeds go back years and years but the birds of prey are 10-a-penny. Pigeon racing is an old man’s game. Too many youngsters are interested in other things. But bringing these birds into the city centre is just the nail in the coffin.”  Mr Langslow, 70, a retired hotelier, said he and other fed-up fanciers now planned to stage a city centre demo in opposition to the scheme.

Peregrine falcons were previously listed as endangered species but their numbers have increased in recent years.  There are now 1,400 breeding pairs of the clifftop-dwelling birds. Many have increasingly been spotted on tower blocks and tall office buildings.

But Tim Melling, a senior conservation officer at the RSPB, said research showed birds of prey were responsible for only a sixth of lost racing pigeons. He said: “Pigeon fanciers are actually killing more pigeons than birds of prey. What they do is try to breed them and the ones that aren’t in top condition, they wring their necks.  “If a bird has got lost or disorientated, they are the ones that will be eaten by the falcons. Birds of prey are saving pigeon fanciers the job of killing the weak birds.”  Mr Melling denied falcon numbers were now excessive and said the vast majority continued to live in countryside and coastal areas.

Link to story: Manchester Evening News - Pigeon Fanciers Slam City Plan

[Alison]

Peregrine falcons nest on International Bridge
Soo Evening News / Jan 2011

Sault Ste. Marie, Mich: Again this spring, the fastest animal in the world is nesting atop pier #22 under the International Bridge. A pair of peregrine falcons returned to the Sault to nest under the bridge.

On Monday, Phil Becker, the General Manager of the International Bridge, reported that bridge workers found four peregrine falcon eggs around 10 days ago. They located the nest and eggs where the falcons had raised their young last spring. Workers immediately moved to protect the breeding pair from disturbances. This is at least the ninth year the falcons have nested at the International Bridge.

The peregrine falcon’s eggs should hatch in the next three weeks and the chicks will begin flying in July. The eggs take 28 to 33 days to hatch, then the chicks — called “eyasses” — leave the nest after 42 to 48 days and depend on the parents for two more months.
 
Peregrine falcons can dive at over 200 miles-per-hour when chasing their favorite prey: Pigeons.

Interested residents can catch a glimpse of these fast falcons flying around the Sault area and sitting on various structures including the arches of the International Bridge.  The nest is sheltered well under the bridge deck near the north end of the second bridge arch over the Soo Locks. The young falcons will not be visible until sometime in July and August when they will fledge from the nest then fly around town.

“For the protection of the falcons and the bridge users, people must not stop on the bridge to try to locate the nest,” Becker warned. “The nest is not visible from the ground and nearly impossible to see from on the bridge.”

A peregrine falcon can be identified by its hooked beak, dark strips under its eyes, pointed wings, blue-gray back, and barred front.

Peregrine falcons have been seen around the Sault area for some 14 years. 

Peregrines were on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s endangered species list, after the pesticide DDT decimated the populations in the 60s and 70s. DDT was eventually banded. Bald eagles, Cooper’s hawks and other birds were also damaged by the pesticide. The captive breeding of peregrines and their release into the wild expanded the falcon’s range to now include places such as New York City, Ontario’s Batchawana River area and Sault Ste. Marie.  The USFWS removed the peregrine from the endangered species list, but this falcon and all birds of prey are protected by Michigan and federal law. It is a felony to shoot any kind of raptor, including the fastest animal in the world — the peregrine falcon.

source:  http://www.sooeveningnews.com/news/x1042480106/Peregrine-falcons-nest-on-International-Bridge

[Alison]

Watch mounted on peregrine falcons' nest



Ornithologists throughout the south of England are descending on a churchyard in Bath to keep watch over the nest of a pair of peregrine falcons.  The female falcon on the spire of St John the Evangelist church in Bath has laid a clutch of four eggs. The rare birds have fallen victim to egg collectors in the past, and the site will be protected by a 24-hour watch scheme. Ornithologist Valerie James said there were excellent views of the nest.

"We should have wonderful views with the aid of 'scopes and anyone who is really interested should go along and take advantage of a stunning bird on your doorstep," she said.  

The eggs are expected to hatch in early May. Peregrines are protected birds in the UK and the RSPB says their numbers are still low.

Link to story: BBC News - Watch mounted on peregrine falcons' nest

The peregrine in the pic with the article doesn't look too happy . . .

[Alison]

Shuttered Statler still home to Peregrine Falcons
National Public Radio / 26 April 2010

BUFFALO, NY (WBFO) - While there are no tenants inside the Statler towers in downtown Buffalo, some outside dwellers remain.

Department of Environmental Conservation wildlife biologist Connie Adams says Peregrine Falcons have been nesting at the top of the Statler for many years now. And even though the future of the building remains uncertain, the Peregrines continue to make the structure their home.

Adams says there are seven known nesting pairs in the Buffalo area. She says Peregrines continue to return to the same nesting spot year after year.

Another set settled into a building on UB's South Campus. The falcons are waiting for three eggs to hatch. Adams has been working along with the UB staff and the Buffalo Audubon Society in keeping watch. UB gained approval to install a nesting box at MacKay Tower because it is a historic landmark. A web cam was also added.

But the Audubon Society had to remove its falcon web cam at the Statler. So anyone who wants to view their activity will have to revert to less modern means -- binoculars, telephoto camera lens or telescope.

source: http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/wbfo/news.newsmain/article/1/0/1641445