Peregrine Breeding Log for April 30 – May 1, 2019:
Tuesday, April 30th (day 30 of incubation) was another chilly day. Fog and misty rain prevailed in the morning. The temperatures hovered in the forties. Astrid was on the eggs all night. We didn’t see Ares until 5:40 AM when he came to relieve Astrid at the box. After she left the nest, Ares chirped for a while as he watched her fly. However, we couldn’t see her on the cams. At 7:10, we located her on one of the Hotel’s ledges. Five minutes later she came to the box and the pair switched. During the changeover, Deb got a good view of the eggs and no pips were visible. A few minutes after leaving the nest, Ares was heard screeching in the canyon. Did he catch something? At 8:20, we heard Ares calling again. This time Astrid was calling back. It wasn’t an alarm call though, it was the half-donkey call, half-begging call she gives when she’s anxious and/or hungry. We think she was hungry and wanted Ares to bring her something. Of course, when Ares landed on the steeple, we cold see he had a nice big crop. Apparently, he had eaten, but neglected to bring anything for her. She continued calling for quite a while. He came to the nest at 8:36, but she didn’t want to leave. He left and flew over to the north face of the State Building. Astrid proceeded to do some picking at stones while on the nest and at one point she came off the eggs. That gave Deb another chance to peruse them for pips. She saw none.
At 9:45, Astrid was calling again, but Ares didn’t seem compelled to do anything. At 10:20, Ares flew to the nest and the pair switched. Astrid then flew over and landed on the State Building on a ledge very close to where Ares had been. Deb had a few more chances to examine the eggs – once during the switch, and again when Ares got up to move some stones around. She still saw no pips. The first egg that was laid has a small white spot on it that resembles a pip, but that’s always been there. Meanwhile the workers on the State Building were actively cleaning the west face of the building. Astrid was remaining on the north face, but then when the workers began concentrating on the high northwest corner of the building, Astrid left her perch. She flew in circles around the canyon twice and then came to the nest. It was obvious that she was uncomfortable with the work going on. Ares didn’t want to get off the eggs and she didn’t press him, but flew into the canyon again. After than she landed on the steeple – on the side that cannot be viewed from the west face of the State Building.
At 1 PM, Ares was calling – possibly he wanted to be relieved. She was busy preening on the steeple. At 1:37 she came to the box and the pair switched. By 3:30, Ares had been up and down from the State Building a few times. Perhaps he was hunting. She was calling as if she wanted to switch. After a visit to the hotel, he came to the box and they switched out. That happened at around 5:22. She first went to the hotel and then to the steeple. By 6:34, she was on the State Building. She seemed to be intent on having an evening off, but Ares didn’t seem to mind. She came to the box at 7:48 and relieved Ares on the eggs. After that Ares was off to some unseen perch and she was settled for the night.
Wednesday, May 1st (day 31 of incubation) was off to a cool and wet beginning. Steady rain backed off and by 10 AM, it was drier although still overcast and cool. Astrid was on the eggs all night, but before 5:30 AM she began calling to be relieved. At 5:34, she came off the eggs and flew into the canyon shrieking. Ares came in from the darkness and took over on the eggs. Meanwhile, she was flying around the canyon and around the State Building probably looking for food. We never saw her feeding yesterday, so most likely she was hungry. At 5:47, she was on a corner of a ledge at the hotel and definitely appeared to be in hunting mode. At 6:47, we relocated her on the hotel and this time she had prey. It appeared to be a fresh Pigeon. She plucked and then fed for only a short time before flying off with the food. We think she probably stored it somewhere. Afterall there may be nestlings to feed shortly. At 7:41, Astrid came back to the box and Ares left after a little coaxing. We noticed that Astrid had some blood on her bill and talons – all from her recent meal. At 9:17, Astrid was doing some vocalizing. Did she want to be relieved on the nest? Ares landed on the crossperch at10:20, but Astrid didn’t want to go and he jumped right out again.
At 11:30 Astrid was shuffling the eggs around a lot – something she sometimes does close to hatching time. It compels chicks to start hammering their way out of the egg shell. Deb thought she heard some calling coming from an egg but wasn’t positive. Both of us have thought we heard chicks in the last couple of days. We probably weren’t. At 11:35, Ares came into the box and was very insistent in taking over on the eggs. He got in behind Astrid, stomped on her and muscled her off. She looked pretty outraged, but she did leave. That was the most aggressive we’ve ever seen Ares be about getting his turn on the eggs. After leaving the box Astrid zoomed around through the canyon and went around the State Building at least once. At 12:39. Ares became agitated. He began calling and flew out of the box. Astrid was perched on the north face of the State Building and he joined her over there, perching a few ledges east of her. They called back and forth a few times and then he returned to the box and climbed back onto the eggs. What was that all about? Only a few minutes later Ares gave a cackle alarm call from the box. Astrid flew off her perch and went to intercept a raptor that was winging its way through the canyon. It appeared to be a Red-tailed Hawk. Without striking it or even hazing it, she ushered the bird out of the canyon and then returned to the State Building. At 1:30, the falcons switched and Astrid took over on the eggs.
At 2:49 PM Astrid called out. Ares came to the box and “asked” for his turn on the eggs. She denied him and he went out onto the west veranda. A little later he had moved again and was on a window pillar to the west of the nestbox. Astrid gave a cackle alarm call at 3:15 and Ares left the ADK Bank building. In less than five minutes he was back at the box and trying in earnest to get another chance to incubate. He crowded her and stomped on her tail and wings a bit, but she wouldn’t go this time. He left instead. At 4 PM he was calling a lot and we located him on the east veranda. He came to the box at 4:15, but she still wouldn’t budge. She still wouldn’t relinquish her post. He left again while giving some screech calls. When he returned forty minutes later, she did give him the turn he had been asking for. We didn’t see Astrid for a while after the switch, but then Deb located her on the south face of the State Building. They switched for the final time of the day at 6:42. Astrid came onto the eggs and Ares was out. Ten minutes later he was on the hotel ledge, but not for long. Soon he was gone to some undisclosed location. We expect the first and possibly the second hatch to occur within the next two days. Stay tuned!
