The overnight was again relatively mild with temperatures in the forties. During the morning, conditions warmed to 60 degrees. The day was partly sunny and some wind. Astrid came to the nestbox at midnight and did some vocalizing. At 1:44 AM Ares brought prey to the box. She took it and flew off into the night. After only a minute, he was gone as well. At a few minutes after 5:00 both were back at the nest. Ares had a whole Robin in his talons and was eager to gift it to Astrid. She in turn wanted to mate. Finally, she hopped into the nest and accepted the gift on the crossperch. And then, for the second time this morning she darted into the night fully laden. He left the box but then came right back and was giving his squeaking calls. At 5:14 she was back on the west veranda. There’s no way she could have eaten her meal that fast – she must have stored it. At 5:34 she was asking to mate again, but he was more interested in staying in the box. Actually, it looked a little like he was trying to lay an egg. At 6:19 the falcons mated on the west veranda. He returned to the nest at 6:41 and the pair shared some spritely conversation. Ten minutes later they mated again on the west veranda. At just before 7:00 Ares was over on the hotel, but soon he was back at the box. They mated at 7:30 and then again fifteen minutes later.
At 8:03 AM Astrid and Ares were engaged in a ledge display in the box. The dance was less than five minutes in duration. Ares was out and Astrid moved back out onto the west veranda. At 8:38 Ares brought an unrecognizable hunk of prey to the box. Astrid accepted it, flew off, and promptly disappeared. We couldn’t find her with the cameras. At 8:45 Ares was giving long calls on the east veranda. She flew to the crossperch at just before 9:00 and then moved onto the east veranda. They mated there a minute later. We noticed that Astrid had a crop, so she must have eaten that last meal. They mated again at 9:22 and then at 9:38. He was in the box after that and picking through stones. He left and then came back with prey at 10:36. It was probably some leftover Woodcock from his pantry. A minute later both were in the air. Ares yoyoed back but didn’t have the prey that time. She returned from her outing at 10:42 and came right to the nest. He hopped into the box excitedly. At 10:56 they mated on the west veranda. He brought prey to the east veranda less than ten minutes later. She walked over to take it, but he backed up and she flew off instead. She boomeranged back and landed on the west veranda. He was still clinging to the gift on the east veranda when she started asking to mate. He then left and came back moments later without the food. One of them then abruptly gave a cackle alarm call and both took flight. He was immediately back to the box and issuing more alarm cackles. He flew off once more, still cackling. Obviously, an intruder had entered the falcon’s airspace – most likely a non-falcon raptor or a Turkey Vulture. At 11:16 Ares was back to the nest and giving interactive squeaking calls again. These were directed to his mate who had just landed on the State Building.
At 11:56 AM Astrid landed on the crossperch. She was asking to mate and, as is typical, he was lobbying for a ledge display. Her idea won out and the pair mated at 12:05 PM. She left after that, and he came back to the box. At 12:09 she flew to the west veranda, and he went back inside the nestbox. Astrid had been asking to mate, but at 12:13 both gave cackle calls and darted to the east. Once again, some raptor or vulture had come too close to the heart of their territory. They dealt with the situation swiftly and he screeched back to the box only a minute after leaving. Right away he began calling to Astrid. She then arrived on the crossperch. After a few minutes she flew to the steeple. At 12:34 he started giving long calls. She left the steeple and flew to a perch on the State Building. He gave more long calls at the box, flew into the canyon, and then yoyoed back to the box and started calling again. At 1:08 he once again he gave his intruder alert call, but soon his cackling segued into long calls. By 1:20 his volleys of long calls were become more closer together and more intense. At 1:38 he flew off and retrieved some stored prey. He brought it back to the box for processing. It was a Killdeer, perhaps the one he had caught and tried to interest Astrid with on Wednesday. He then flew across the canyon and landed on the same ledge Astrid was on. He was still trying to persuade her to accept the meal, but she refused to take it. He soon gave up and stored it on one of his pantry ledges. He then came back to the box. In fact, he was back and forth for the next couple of hours. Was there a mating that happened during some of his forays? Perhaps, but we didn’t hear Ares’ famous mating chatter. At a few minutes before 4:00 both falcons were at the box sharing a ledge display. He was out after few minutes – leaving her to do some chores around the box. At 4:27 Ares brought his mate more food – this time an unrecognizable scrap of something. When she wouldn’t take it, he fed a bite of it to her. That did the trick. She accepted it and flew over to the hotel. After finishing her meal, she remained on the hotel, perched in the sun for quite a while. Meanwhile, holding the fort, Ares gave long calls and squeak calls at irregular intervals. At 5:28 Astrid arrived on the crossperch. They mated there a couple of minutes later. At 6:50 she had moved to the east veranda and the pair mated there several minutes later. At 7:00 PM she flew off just as he came to the box. She was on the State Building after that and Ares directing his somber angst-filled calls in her direction. By 7:41 both were off, we thought to their night perches, but then Astrid returned to the long perch at the box and she is still there as of this writing. It seems that these falcons never really go to sleep. Goodnight all.
The Little Falls pair of Peregrine Falcons continue to be heard and seen at their nest ledge on the Adirondack Bank in Little Falls. Today they were seen mating a few times on a large communication tower not far from the downtown nest site. They seem to be on track with their nesting this season.
Awesome narration again! Thank you! I’m wondering, do the citizens of Little Falls pay much attention to the pair of peregrins?