Utica Peregrine log March 6, 2019
Monday March 5th, had a promising start. At 5:45 AM, Ares was at the box and calling. Astrid wasn’t in view, but he was clearly communicating to her wherever she was. Crows from the local roost were silently filing through the canyon but Ares was unconcerned with them. Just before 6:30, Astrid showed up on a window ledge west of the nestbox. The two conversed as if they were going to do a ledge display, but she didn’t come to the box. Instead, she flew over to a ledge on the State Building. We thought it likely they were going to mate, but a few minutes later, Ares had fallen asleep. As it happened, it was only a catnap and at 7:10, he flew over and mated with Astrid on her ledge. Twenty minutes later, Astrid was having a small meal on the hotel. It may have been leftovers and we weren’t sure if it was a gift from Ares or not. In contrast to how they behaved the day before, the falcons were very active throughout the morning – frequently moving between their three principle buildings. At 11 AM, Astrid had been on the hotel for a while. A couple of Pigeons got very close to her on the ledge. What were those crazy birds thinking? While that was going on, at the nestbox, Ares was vocalizing as if he had Astrid in view (she was not within his view). He darted off to the south, possibly in pursuit of an intruder.
At noon, Astrid caught a Pigeon and brought it over to hotel to eat. Ares landed near her but made only a half-hearted attempt at getting a share. Shortly after, he had given up on the whole idea and flew over to perch on the hotel’s upper east ledge. Un-hassled, Astrid ate until she was satisfied and had a huge crop. After she flew to the State Building, Ares came to finish the scant amount of leftovers. When he was done, he resumed guarding the nest. At 3:36, the pair mated again on the State Building. At close to 4 PM, the falcons were vocalizing again, but we didn’t know what they were reacting to and by that point, neither had moved from their respective perches on the State Building. Fifteen minutes later, alarm calls were issued and that time, both birds launched into the canyon. There was almost certainly an intruder around, and judging by the falcons’ response, it had to be another Peregrine. At 5:00, one of the falcons was back in view and manning the northeast lookout corner on the State Building. Proof of an intruder was at hand when we saw two falcons sparring before the east face of the building while one remained on the lookout post. The contenders soon gained height and darted off to the north. The falcon on the roof launched, but we couldn’t tell if that bird engaged in the high-altitude chase. At 5:25, one of our pair had returned to the State Building, but soon another volley of excited vocalizations echoed through the canyon. A second falcon (the intruder?) flew in from the east and made a display-like flight through the canyon. The falcon on the State Building took off after it and both vanished into the northeast. However, by 6PM, Deb confirmed that both resident falcons were on their night perches on the east face of the State Building. And with that a very active day had come to an end.
Tuesday March 6th began on an exceptionally cold note – with temps in the low double digits. Snowfall was intermittent and winds were out of the northwest. Despite that, at just before 5 AM, our falcons were sitting on the north face of the State Building and experiencing the full force of the weather. At just before 6, Ares came to the box and was soon chirping to his mate. Astrid landed on a window ledge west of the box and the two engaged in a short conversation. This seemed normal enough, except for the fact that the falcon we had earlier assumed was Astrid was still perched on the State Building. Who was the stranger? Astrid flew off from her window ledge but didn’t confront the intruder. By contrast Ares flew right to the unknown Peregrine and upped it from its perch. The two then disappeared from view. Ares returned to the nest at around 6:30, but Astrid remained out of view. He gave some long calls, but nothing he did could persuade Astrid to come back over. And so that was pretty much how the entire day went.
The weather actually got worse as the day progressed with increasing wind speeds and intermittent snow squalls. It was not a good day for falcons or for people that like to keep track of falcon behavior. Theresa White and Deb both reported seeing Astrid on the East face of the State Building – sometimes with Ares nearby, but she never did come to the box or even venture somewhere that our cams could view her. Ares did come to the box a couple of times and to the hotel at least once. Here’s hoping for a better day tomorrow!