Peregrine Breeding Log for April 2 – April 3, 2019:
Tuesday, April 2nd, had a cold start with overnight temperature in the high teens. Temperatures rose quickly through the morning and by noon reached the mid-forties. Skies were mostly clear. Astrid was tight on the eggs throughout the night. At 5:45, Ares’ screech call was heard from somewhere in the canyon. He was then seen landing on the State Building. At 5:55, Astrid came off the eggs and flew out of the box. Ares arrived less than a minute later but remained on the crossperch. Astrid flew back and forth in front of the west face of the State Building. She was checking to see if Ares had any stored food. Ares is always great about letting us know when she is doing something. He regularly chirps to mark her every move. As it happened, she didn’t find any food and she settled on a ledge on the north face of the building. He finally climbed onto the eggs at 6:05. Astrid flew back to the nest and wanted to switch again, but Ares hunkered down on the eggs and indicated he wanted to stay. She conversed with him for a while and even employed some “donkey calls” all to talk him off the eggs. He finally complied after she invaded his space. What she clearly wanted was for him to catch something for her breakfast.
Rather inexplicably Ares came back to the box at 6:32, and the pair did a quick switch. He didn’t bring any food, so once again, Astrid flew around the State Building checking pantry ledges. Ares chirped the whole time as he watched her progress. She barged back into the box at 6:43. Evidently, she still didn’t find a meal. Instead of switching, she dove right out again. And then he left seconds later – only to come right back and get on the eggs again. A minute later, she was back to the nest again and wanted to switch. Again, he didn’t want to leave but she unceremoniously ousted him. At 6:56, he was back to the nest with a small food item. It was a bat (not Astrid’s favorite). She took it and ate it on the hotel while he sat on the eggs again. When she was finished with her meal she came back to the nest. Again, he was reluctant to leave and even closed his eyes like he was sleeping. She didn’t fall for it and muscled him out again.
Just before 8 AM, Ares had prey on the hotel ledge and was plucking it. He brought it to the box and Astrid took it. She at it on the State Building. Ares had been doing a great job incubating, but at 8:25, he came off the eggs and stood out on the perch. Astrid returned to the box at 10:00 and the pair mated there. She got on the eggs shortly after. At 11 AM, she began calling and came off the eggs. She jumped onto the cross perch and continued calling loudly. Ares flew over and the pair mated again. At that point Astrid flew out and landed on the lookout post. Ares came back to the box. They were acting like there was an intruder around, but we saw none with the PTZ cams. Ares left the box again and the alarm cackle was sounded, but he was back to the box and covering the eggs again by 11:10. The incubation gap was about 10 minutes this time. After that, Astrid did some nice flying around the canyon. Ares chirped as he watched her. At 12:36, Ares began screeching at the nest. He dove out and screeched across the canyon. Less that five minutes later, Astrid came to the box and took over on the eggs. Meanwhile, Ares looked to be swooping at something on the State Building. I zoomed in on the spot but found nothing. He was on the State Building for a while and then vanished for 45 minutes. During that time she got a little cagey in the box and started digging into the stones at the edge of the box.
At 2:10, Ares was heard screeching in the canyon again. Often, he does this when flying through with freshly caught prey. That was the case this time and he was subsequently seen plucking prey on the hotel ledge. At 2:30, there was a food exchange at the box. Astrid took her meal up to a ledge on the State Building and proceeded to feed. Ares sat on the eggs until 3:22, after which he flew over to the State Building. After the pair mated, he returned to the nest, but didn’t get back on the eggs until nearly 3:40. The eggs were uncovered for about 16 minutes. He came off the eggs again at 5 PM. Astrid had been on the steeple but flew over to the crossperch at the box. There they mated again. By 5:10, she had settled on the eggs. She stayed tight to them until 6:14, when she became agitated. She was calling loudly on the crossperch. It may be that she was calling for Ares to come and relieve her on the eggs one last time, or she wanted to mate. It could also mean that Ares was dealing with an intruder although we saw nothing. She went over to the steeple for a few minutes and then back to the crossperch. She was still calling. For the first time in at least an hour, we saw Ares up on the lookout post. He soon powered off to the north. He came back to the lookout ten minutes later. Instead of getting back onto the eggs. She went over to the County Building for a while. She came back to the box and resumed incubating at 6:53. The eggs had been uncovered for 39 minutes. Not a record and probably not of great concern considering how early it is in the incubation process. At 7 PM, she gave a few more “Chir-up” calls from inside the box but didn’t stir. Neither did Ares. He remained at his high post until 7:21. Goodnight falcons.
Wednesday, April 3rd, began on the chilly side, but temperatures rose quickly, ultimately reaching the mid-forties. Windspeed increased through the morning and by noon some rain began to fall. The wind became very strong in the afternoon and there were some snow flurries. Astrid spent the whole night on the eggs. We first saw Ares at 5:57 AM, when he screeched up to the west veranda with a woodcock. He seemed to be having some issues wielding it. We weren’t sure why he chose to bring it to the west veranda instead of the box, but that’s what he did. Astrid came off the eggs and was calling to him, but he wasn’t bringing it any closer to her. Instead he flew off with it, possibly with the aim of storing it somewhere. At 6:25, Ares came back to the nest and the pair switched. Astrid then flew back and forth a few times in front of the State Building’s west face – checking Ares’ pantry ledges for food, we believe. She didn’t find anything and landed on a north face ledge. At 7:25, Astrid flew to the crossperch at the box. The pair mated a couple of minutes later. After Astrid was on the eggs, she began calling loudly. Ares was flying high over the canyon at the time. He then landed on the lookout post. There was an intruder in the territory. Ares remained on the lookout and Astrid just kept calling. Ares took flight and he and the intruder sparred above the State Building. Much of what we saw was the intruder in flight and Ares repeatedly hazing her as she buzzed around. He would arc up about 50 feet and then quickly dive down on her. She would invert and trust out her talons when he came into striking distance. We believe the stranger is a female based on the size difference between her and Ares. As it happens, Ares is a large male, so few males are going to outsize him. Deb was in the canyon when the incident occurred and although she was unable to see great detail on the intruder, she had the impression she was a one-year-old. Deb heard some high-pitched chirps when the two made contact or got close in the air. As the action ensued, Astrid went onto the west veranda and did continuous calling. She was highly agitated during the altercation. Finally, the intruder flew off to the east. The excitement lasted for about ten minutes. Astrid came back onto the eggs on 7:45 and Ares perched up on the lookout post for a while. He left at 8:00 AM.
Things seemed to return to normal after the intruder incident. Astrid was on the eggs and getting a little cagey. She started digging in the stones around the scrape. At 8:28, he brought a bat to the box. Astrid took it over to the hotel and ate it. When she was finished (only 6 minutes later) she went to the steeple. Ares came off the eggs and stood on the crossperch. At 8:50, they mated on the steeple, and they mated again at 9:08. She showed up at the box at 9:10, and they mated there two minutes later. That was three matings in 22 minutes! She got back on the eggs at 9:15. The eggs had been uncovered for a total of 25 minutes. Astrid laid the third egg in the clutch at 10:50 AM. Ares came to the box at 11:22, and Astrid let him check out the new egg. They conversed over the expanding clutch and then she sent him out. At noon we noticed some beams hanging over the side of the State Building roof. Obviously, there was work taking place up there. We hoped the falcons would become upset by the disturbance to their grand rock, but they showed no sign of it. Both continued to perch on its north face. Ares came to the box at 12:55 to relieve Astrid but she was reluctant to go. She did leave a minute later and took a perch on the State Building. Ares took over incubating the eggs. They switched again at 2:00 PM and she took over the clutch. It’s possible that the intruder was back at 3:40. Astrid became quite upset and very vocal. She got off the eggs and flew into the canyon. Ares was right there at the box and took over incubating. He remained there until she relieved him at 5:42.
All seemed well in the canyon until about 5:40 PM, when Astrid began calling loudly in the box. She was still incubating at that point, but was highly agitated. On the PTZ we could see Ares perched on the State Building and there was another falcon flying around. Ares took off in pursuit when the stranger flew close to the building. He then returned to his original north face perch. Astrid’s freak-out was becoming more intense. She came off the eggs, hopped onto the crossperch and then went over to the west veranda. She was giving rapid volleys of her chir-up call, but she was also giving harsh long calls – the type she reserves for major events. We saw some zipping around, but it was hard to remotely track the action in the canyon. It seemed clear that Ares had failed to keep the female intruder away and so now Astrid had to take on the problem – and this was after she had laid an egg and had very little food. At 6:22, two falcons were seen flying over the hotel, but we weren’t seeing sparring like the type observed in the morning when the intruder first flew into town. Ares came back to the nest and settled on the eggs again. He was very vocal – in the manner he is when he sees Astrid performing or just flying by. He got off the eggs at 6:49 and left the box. She left her State Office Building perch a few minutes later. She came to the nest and was still very vocal. Ares was sparring with the other Peregrine. They flew high above the State Building where our cams couldn’t find them. At 7 PM, it all happened again. Astrid reluctantly came off the eggs and, presumably, chased the intruder out once again. She was back on the nest in less than ten minutes. Ares was on the State Building and left at 7:22, for his night perch. As for Astrid, she settled down and began her overnight vigil on the eggs. Hopefully tomorrow will be a less eventful day!