Utica Falcon Update – April 11, 2025 Vera, Sometimes Acting Like a Fledgling

Ares and Vera remained very active around the nest site on Thursday. Several matings and ledge displays were observed, though no direct food exchanges were seen. On Wednesday, a few exchanges did occur, and prey was stored on ledges near the box—including one Woodcock. By the next day, the Woodcock in question had been sitting untouched on a ledge for some time, and we had nearly written it off—expecting it to get blown off the ledge before Vera ever claimed it. But to our surprise, she eventually returned to it, moved it to the east veranda, feeding on it intermittently throughout the day.

On Thursday, Vera made some nest scrapes and spent a little time inside the box, though she lingered more frequently on the verandas and nearby window ledges. Despite the continued cold and occasional precipitation, she seemed unbothered. At several points during the day, Vera exhibited behaviors reminiscent of a newly fledged falcon. At one moment, she deliberately dropped a piece of prey off a ledge and watched it fall—something we’ve only ever seen fledglings and pre-fledglings do. At other times, she bounced playfully between the verandas, the roof of the nestbox, and back again, with a kind of curiosity and youthful exuberance not usually associated with adult falcons. While we may not end up with chicks this season, having Vera around has, in some ways, feels like having one.

As of today, we’ve officially passed the latest first egg date for Astrid (April 10, 2014). But of course, Vera isn’t Astrid—and we don’t hold her to her predecessor’s timeline. As a yearling, everything she’s experiencing this season is brand new. There remains about a 50% chance she will lay eggs at all. But if she does, we believe they will be fertile. Until then, we continue to observe, learn, and enjoy the surprises Vera brings to the season. She is certainly keeping Ares interested.