Utica Peregrine Falcons Update for Monday, April 24th, 2023
Overnight was cool with some rain showers. The temperature was in the low forties. Conditions changed little during the day – light rain was intermittent, and the wind picked up. The high temperature peaked at around 50 degrees. Astrid was on the eggs all night long and from 4:10 the previous afternoon. Ares showed up at 5:16 AM to take over incubation. Astrid had been on the eggs for 11 hours and was eager get out and stretch her wings. She initially flew over to the State Building. At 6:32 she was on the hotel, most likely trying her luck at hunting Pigeons. For a little while there were two Rock Pigeons perched on the same ledge as her, but since falcons only hunt birds in flight, they were safe. She was back to the nest for at around 7:30 and they switched. At 8:14 Ares arrived on the State Building and his arrival was announced by Astrid. At 9:39 AM there was another changing of the guard and Ares was back on the eggs. At 10:10 AM Astrid made a quick visit to the nest. She was there and then up again. She flew back to the State Building. Forty-five minutes later there was an intruder in the canyon. It was on the lookout on the roof of the State Building and then it landed on one of the building’s upper ledges. Ares was off the nest and dealing with the situation while Astrid returned to the eggs. Meanwhile, the intruder audaciously upped Ares from his perch twice. They also did some low intensity sparring through the canyon. It was more reminiscent of the type of behavior that takes place between a parent and their offspring. Its immature plumage meant it was a yearling and its size told us it was a male. It could have been Percy from 2022. We don’t know for sure but given the observed behavior it was a possibility. At one point Ares went to the lookout and the intruder flew in circles over the west part of the canyon. He then returned, buzzed by Ares, and landed on a ledge next to him. They did some more sparring after that – some of which was captured our PTZ camera. Finally both disappeared towards the northwest. At 11:30 Ares returned to the State Building. Astrid announced his arrival with some chirping calls.
By 12:15 PM the wind was picking up in the canyon. The falcons switched at 12:57. Ares took over on the eggs, adeptly tucking all four beneath him while Astrid flew to the State Building. Astrid was seen feeding on the hotel after that. We don’t know if the prey was something from the pantry or if it was a fresh catch. The pair executed a quick switch at 2:34. An hour later it was raining in the canyon. Ares was on the State Building keeping watch on the territory. He stopped briefly at the nestbox just as the clouds broke and a rainbow appeared. Astrid didn’t stir and he flew over to the steeple. At 5:06 PM we heard Ares give some long calls from somewhere – first quite distant and then much closer. Astrid responded with excited calls of her own. Ares arrived at the nest and the pair did a fast changeover. The next switch was at 6:21 and then Astrid was back on the eggs. Twenty minutes later we heard Ares giving long calls again. Astrid called back to him. This time it seemed like they were reacting to an intruder, but we were unable to confirm it. Ares was seen flying around the State Building, but he didn’t appear to be chasing anyone. He then went up onto his lookout post. He was there on and off until just after 7:30 PM. Most likely he was hunting. Goodnight all.