We experienced another very cold start for a day in mid-March. The temperatures were in the single digits in the early morning but managed to reach into the twenties before noon. The falcon’s got an early start this morning; both arrived at the next box at 5:09. Astrid stayed on the cross-perch for only a moment and then went over to the State Building. At 6:30, they both piled into the box again. This time they shared a very short, but intense ledge display; one that was heavy on the beaking. She really blasted out of the box at the end of it. Afterwards, she spent some time on the State Building while he, presumably, was out hunting. At 8:25, She was out of view, Ares was gave some alarm calls and then was seen on the roof of the State Building. He had prey in his talons. At one point he mantled his food, which suggests he was hiding it from another bird, but what other bird? While plucking the prey he took frequent pauses to look around, which also suggested the presence of an interloper. It’s possible that Astrid was busy chasing after an intruder right then since we didn’t know where she was. Meanwhile Ares took his meal over the Hotel ledge. In less than ten minutes he had finished the whole thing. So much for saving some for Astrid! At 9:07, Astrid finally showed up on the Hotel, but by then Ares had gone. A little while later he was at the nest box. Astrid came over, but landed on a window ledge west of the box. At 10:20, Astrid caught a bird right there in the canyon. She brought it back to the same window ledge and did some plucking. When she was done processing the bird she brought it over to the Hotel.
When she had finished her meal, she bit at the wall above the ledge a few times. This is very much like the “housekeeping” work she does around the nest box. It’s interesting to see her do that in a non-nest environment. Does that mean she’s considering nesting on the Hotel? Nope. They are obsessively committed to their nest box. Just before 11 AM, Astrid was back on the State Building and Ares was at the box. He alternated between preening, giving long screech calls into the wind, and working on his mega-scrape. As usual, he was keeping a close eye in his mate. At 12:50, Ares left the box, mated with Astrid and then came right back to the nest. He remains very eager to have eggs in the box. To demonstrate that, he loped over to his scrape and did some more work on it. At about one o’clock, Astrid took off and flew north. Without missing a beat, Ares was up and following after her. At 1:15, Ares was back at the box, but we weren’t sure where Astrid was. He then went up to the roof of the State Building, which could mean he was watching for her return. At 2:10, she must have come into the canyon, because he leaped into the box and began chirping loudly. At 2:45, Ares gave his cackle alarm call, but there didn’t seem to be an emergency. A moment later the pair mated on the State Building. They mated again at 4:08. At just before 5 PM, Astrid flew from the State Building and Ares came to the box. For some unknown reason, he gave his alarm call again. He flew west after Astrid but then came back only a few minutes later. One of the falcons flew extremely high above the canyon. Deb tried to get a picture, but the bird was just too high. Ares soon sailed back into the canyon – going east to west. Near the west side of the State Building he made two unsuccessful tries for a Pigeon. He then flew back and forth in front of the same building before taking a perch on the east face. Shortly after, he was feeding on some leftovers that were on the ledge.
The pair converged at the nest box for a ledge display at 5:30. The dance was at least 5 minutes long. Afterwards, Ares left and Astrid did some predictable chores inside the box. At 6:30, Astrid left the nest and likely picked up a fresh food delivery from Ares. We didn’t actually see the exchange, but when Ares arrived at the box he was picking feathers out of his toes. Subsequently, she was seen plucking prey on the ledge of the Hotel. After she had fed for a while, Ares joined her. He perched on one side of her and then the other – careful though not to crowd her. He was not trying to take any food. But then utilizing the wind, he made a slow flight by her. At 7 o’clock, she flew and he immediately followed after her. He landed at the box and she landed on the roof of the State Building. However, she wasn’t there for long. She made a dramatic dive from the roof and then zoomed by the box liked an arrow. She then dove into the box – but didn’t come all the way in. The pair didn’t dance; instead they had a spirited conversation after which, she flew off. Of course, followed closely by him. She was last seen on the Hotel at 7:10. He was on the roof of the State Building until he finally called it a night at 7:24. Although her high activity levels this afternoon have sown seeds of doubt, we still think that Astrid is getting close to laying her first egg of the season. We may indeed have the first egg of the season within the next few days.