Utica Peregrine Falcon Update for April 6, 2018 –
It was cold overnight with temperatures dipping into the mid-twenties. Later in the morning the temperatures rose into the thirties. Occasional snow flurries made it seem like a real winter day. The afternoon was sunnier and it did manage to get into the mid-forties by day’s end. Winds were strong and persistent. Astrid had returned to the nest box at 7:38, Thursday night. She settled onto the eggs a few minutes later. As far as we know, she stayed tight on the eggs all night long. Ares screeched up to the box at 4:24 AM. He had a Woodcock in his talons. Astrid showed no interest in taking it and so he flew back into the darkness with it. He screeched in protest as he left. At 5:21, Astrid was getting hungry. We think that she expected him to come back with another meal choice, but that didn’t happen. She got off the eggs and stood on the lip of the box for a little while. She flew out but then came back only a minute later. Finally, she got back onto the eggs. The eggs had been in the open for about 14 minutes. With a temperature of 25 degrees, that gets into dangerous territory. At 5:57, Ares was heard giving a cackle-type alarm call. Astrid was quick to jump from the nest. Two minutes later Areas came into the nest and climbed onto the eggs. Astrid flew to the State Building and took a high perch. At 8:06, she came to the box, but she was just checking on things and she didn’t oust Ares. She went back to the State Building again.
At 9:15, Ares left the box and buzzed by Astrid on the State Building. She came down and took her place on the eggs. Ares was on the State Building for a few minutes only and then he flew. At 9:50, the pair switched out at the box and Ares was once again on nest duty. At 11:00, Astrid left the State Building, and Ares blasted out of the box at the same time. Somehow she was working on a meal on the upper ledge of the Hotel. We think it was that Woodcock Ares tried to give her ealier. At 11:16, both were back at the nest. He was in the box and she was out on the cross perch. He was lying on the eggs and she began bowing and signaling her desire to mate. After about a minute, he dove out of the box; headed into the canyon; boomeranged back and the pair mated right on the cross-perch. Following that, he went over to the Hotel and she took over incubating the eggs. By this point in the day, snow flurries were becoming more organized. At 11:28, Ares left the Hotel ledge and was out of our camera view for a while. At 12:55, Astrid was clearly close to laying the 3rd egg in the clutch. This time it was no false alarm. Astrid laid egg # 3 at precisely 1 PM. Forty five minutes later, Ares got his first look at the new egg. The pair vocalized and bowed to each other while Astrid brooded the clutch. She wasn’t ready to switch incubation duties, so he went on his way. At 2:20, Astrid became very excited. She began chirping loudly and got up off the eggs. She went over to the west veranda. She left, but then came right back to the cross-perch. She was there for only a few seconds and then launched into the canyon. A pair of intruders was in the canyon! No one knows exactly what happened, but there were four Peregrines flying in the sky above the canyon (many thanks to Theresa White for seeing this and reporting it to us!), but it seemed that Ares was trying to chase out the interlopers and Astrid joined him in his efforts. Ares came back to the box at 2:31. He got on the eggs right away. Initially he left one egg out, but thankfully he noticed and tucked it beneath him. Astrid returned to the State Building at 2:43. At 3:57, Astrid relieved Ares at the box. She settled on the eggs, but for only a few minutes. Just after 4:00, she was agitated again and left the box. Both were flying around the State Building in pursuit of an intruder. At 4:08, Ares brought a small prey item to the box. He brought it in and set it down next to the eggs for a minute and then left with it. He came back a few minutes later without the prey and began incubating the eggs. Astrid was on the State Building again by 4:20.
Things were actually quiet for a while after all that. Ares got up off the eggs at 5:43. He flew over to the State Building and landed on a ledge right next to the one Astrid was on. We couldn’t hear them well, but it sounded like they were having a conversation. After that, Ares flew in a circle around the canyon and landed on another ledge on the State Building. A minute later Astrid flew to the nest box and climbed onto the eggs. Ares made a few forays into the canyon – returning each time to the State Building. The first couple of trips Ares made were punctuated by Astrid’s light call notes. He was gone for little while and then suddenly he showed up on the Hotel at 6:30, but he wasn’t there long. At that point, Astrid seemed to be settled for the night. Or so it seemed. She became highly agitated at 6:43. She came off of the eggs and began calling loudly. She flew out of the box like a missile. I’m afraid that only intruders would elicit that kind of response from a female Peregrine that would otherwise be committed to keeping her eggs warm as night fell. Ares came to the box at 6:53 and took over on the eggs, but it was obvious that his attention was elsewhere. His mate was out of range and involved in a territorial dispute with at least one other falcon. He left the box at 7:18 and went to his lookout spot on the roof of the State Building. Where was Astrid? The minutes went by; an hour went by before she finally came back to the fold. She came into the box looking rather exhausted but apparently unharmed, and she got back onto the eggs. The eggs were uncovered for a total of 40 minutes – well into the red zone, I’m afraid. That could very well mean that the first two eggs laid in the clutch will not be viable, but we shall see. This pair of Peregrine Falcons has shown us that holding their territory is more important than a clutch of unhatched eggs. That makes sense since as long as they keep the territory, they retain the ability to create more clutches in the future.