Author: Matt Perry

Utica Peregrine Falcon Update for May 9, 2018 –

It was a nice summer day in spring, and few were complaining. The temperature got into the mid 80’s by mid-aftenoon. It was breezy and mostly clear.

Astrid had returned to the box at 7:12. One of the eggs – the first one laid in the clutch (back on April 1^st), had an obvious pip in it. Astrid stayed on the clutch all night. Ares came to the box at 2:12 AM. He had prey in his talons. Astrid took it and flew off with it. Ares took over on the eggs for a few minutes until she returned. She most likely stored the prey somewhere. At 5:05 Wednesday morning, the pair switched and Ares took over on the nest. The hole in egg # 1 was larger and we could hear a chick calling from inside. He/she wanted out! An hour later, the hole was much expanded. It looked for a few minutes that Ares was going to be on duty when the egg hatched (something that has never happened before), but it was not to be. Astrid came back to the box just before 6 AM, and Ares was out. At 7:02, the first hatch of the season took place. Astrid was seen eating part of the cast off egg shell. The hatchling was pink and wet, but within a few minutes it had whitened up quite a bit. At 8:05, it was clear that a second egg had a large pip in it. It looked like the hatchling wasn’t going to be an only child for long. Sometime before 9:25, the pair switched again and Ares got to see the new chick for the first time. Less than ten minutes later, Astrid was back and she took over the show.

At 10:37 AM, the second hatch of the day occurred. The new chick was briefly glimpsed before Astrid tucked it back under her. For those of you that have some memory of last year, you might think you’ve seen this show before. Last year we also had two hatches take place on May 9^th. At 12:19, Ares brought food to the box, but Astrid sent him away. Evidentially she didn’t want to start feeding the chicks yet. Of course, mother knows best. At 1:00, Astrid gave a cackle type alarm call, but she didn’t leave her brood, nor did Ares leave his perch on the State Building. It turned out it was just a few Turkey Vultures passing overhead. Now that the falcons have hatched young in the nest, we expect them to be much touchier about who comes through the canyon. Ares brought different prey to the box at 1:33, but Astrid again sent him away. At 2:08, Ares was back at the box, but this time he was there to take over brooding. It was awkward, folks. He doesn’t quite know what to do when chicks are looking up at him and begging. If he had food, he would be feeding them, but Astrid didn’t want them to be fed yet. So Ares could only stand there – kind of half shading and mostly just waiting for Astrid to come rescue him. She did just that at 2:30. When there are hatchlings in the nest, she’s rarely away for long even on the hottest afternoon – and this was one of those. Poor Astrid looked majorly stressed in the box. She was almost constantly shading the chicks and eggs through the balance of the afternoon. At 2:50, the first feeding took place. Astrid tore miniscule pieces of meat from the carcass and fed them mostly to the first chick. The second chick got a little bit towards the end of the meal. Astrid then took the leftovers out of the box and stored them. Ares came and sat with the brood until she came back. She wasn’t gone for long, lucky for him.

At 4:15, there may have been an intruder of some kind. Ares was up on the roof of the State Building on his old lookout spot. Astrid left the box, but was back after only a minute.  Ares came to the box at 5:35, but Astrid didn’t want to relinquish the nest. He was next seen feeding on the steeple at 5:40, but he wasn’t there for long and likely stored the food in his pantry on the State Building. Astrid left the box right before 6 PM and Ares came in shortly after. After about seven minutes of awkward dad time, Astrid was back and Ares was out. But then Astrid left the box again only two minutes later. She came right back – maybe she left to get a drink of water. That’s just what Ares was seen doing on the ledge of Hotel Utica at 6:15. The heat seemed to be affecting Astrid in the box. She kept acting like she was ready to leave. She finally did leave at 7:15 and Ares took her place after only a few minutes. Again, it was awkward. The chicks both looked up at him and started begging and he seemed at a loss about what to do. At 7:18, he left the box, but then he came right back with food. Astrid converged with him, took the food and began the chicks’ second feeding of the day. Again, it was mostly the older chick that got fed, but the other did get something. Interestingly, at one point Astrid left with the food, but then came right back with it again. She fed the second chick one little shred of meat and then she left. She came back at 7:30 and began shading and brooding alternately.  This is how it’s done, Ares! She was out of the box by 7:34, And Ares was in. Hats off to Ares; this time he was doing a much better and more competent job of brooding and shading. By George, He’s got it! The last switch took place at 7:28. Astrid was in and Ares was out. We thought for a while this afternoon that a third egg had a pip in it. However, we couldn’t see it well enough to make a call. We shall see what tomorrow brings.

Utica Peregrine Falcon Update for May 8, 2018 –

It was very cool in the early morning – temperatures were in the high 30’s. That changed very quickly after sunrise. The temperature eventually got up to around 70 degrees. The wind was light and cool and the sky stayed mostly clear. It was good weather for falcons.

Astrid had returned to the nest box at 7:49 last evening. As usual, she stayed on the eggs all night long and until Ares relieved her at 5 AM sharp. He had appeared on the Sate Building close to an hour before that. After not being in view for a while, Astrid showed up on the State Building at 6:07. The pair switched again at 6:32. During that switch we got to view the eggs and from one camera’s perspective there was a white spot visible on one egg. Both Deb and I looked at it but couldn’t say conclusively what it was. Was it pigment or a pip? From the angle we viewed it, there didn’t seem to be any dimension to it and a pip should show some dimension. It is a hole after all. Ares was next seen on the State Building at 6:45. An hour later Ares flew after something, missed it, and came back to the south side of the steeple. At 8:53, he was on Hotel Utica. Ten minutes later he stretched out his wings and flew to the east. At 9:33, the pair switched and Ares came on to the eggs. No pips were visible during the changeover. They changed again at 10:25, which made for a very short shift for Ares. Does Astrid sense a hatch is near? In past years she has not wanted to leave when a hatch was near.

At 11:15, Ares was getting some sun on the ledge of Hotel Utica. He laid down and spread his feathers. After one o’clock, Astrid was doing a lot of vocalizing. Ares came to the box at 1:30. He tried to take over from her, but she wasn’t having it. He flew over to the steeple instead. She continued calling, but obviously she didn’t want to be relived. She was also jostling the eggs a lot. This all seemed to be consistent with her past behavior in past years when a hatch was near. Still, at every switch, we saw no pipped eggs in the clutch. At 2:33, Ares tried to relive Astrid again, and this time she did leave. Ares was taking his shift at the hottest time of the day. He did about 1/3 shading and 2/3 sitting on the eggs. At times he looked very stressed. Astrid came to the box at 4:30, but this time it was Ares who didn’t want to leave. Astrid stayed with him for about 6 minutes and then the rest of the afternoon was her own. He did plenty of jostling of the eggs, just like she had been doing. This is also behavior we’ve seen before. Moving the eggs in this way helps coax the chicks inside to break out.

At 7:11 PM, Ares got off of the eggs and left the box. It was abundantly clear that one of the eggs had an obvious pip in it and quite possibly a crack as well! It seemed to be the first egg that was laid, but we still need to confirm that. This means that we may have the first hatch of the season as early as this evening. Astrid came into the box about a minute later and got right on the eggs. At 7:53, I could finally hear what no doubt Astrid and Ares had been hearing all day. The chick in the pipped egg was calling. Astrid continued with her periodic jostling of the eggs. By 7:45, Ares had left his perch on the State Building. Perhaps he went off to his night perch, or maybe he was out hunting for the new mouth to feed. At 8:15, it looked like a second egg may also be pipped, but that needs to be confirmed.

Utica Peregrine Falcon Update for May 7, 2018 –

It was cool in the very early morning, but by a few hours after sunrise, the temperature was in the 60’s. Early cloud cover gave way to mostly clear skies. There was a cool breeze that persisted for much of the day.

Astrid came back to the nest and took over on the eggs at 7:10 Sunday night. She remained in place all night long and right until Ares relieved her at 4:36 AM on Monday. Ares had been on the State Building for at least one-half hour before coming to the box. After leaving Astrid went over to the State Building where she changed perches a few times. Ares chirped whenever she moved and even a couple of times when she didn’t. At one point, his eyes were closed and his head was tucked into his side feathers, he was apparently sleeping, but still he was chirping. Was he “dream chirping”? At 6:42, the falcons switched and Astrid came back onto the eggs. Ares went to the State Building; Over the next couple of hours, it was his base to make hunting forays from. He went over to Hotel Utica briefly and upset some of the resident Pigeons over there. At 9:30, he flew over to the steeple. Astrid noted his arrival with some chirp calls. Ten minutes later he was back over at the hotel and back to upsetting the Pigeons. One swooped at him.

The next switch occurred at 10:27. Ares took over on the eggs and Astrid went over to the State Building. During the switch, Deb got a chance to inspect the eggs and she saw no obvious pips. After a couple of changes of position on the State Building, Astird flew and was out of our view for a while. She appeared at the box at 12:27, but it was just a check-in. She darted off again and landed on the south facing steeple perch. She was gone about ten minutes after that. It was around that time that Ares gave a short cackle alarm call, possibly in response to an unseen migrant raptor. We don’t know for sure. At 1:18, Ares began loudly chirping, he got off the eggs and left the box. He flew with purpose towards the west and then turned north. He was probably chasing an intruder, but once again, we weren’t sure about that. Astrid arrived at the box only two minutes after Ares left and she resumed incubation. He returned to the canyon at 1:38 and took a perch on the steeple. At 3:40, Ares gave some chirping calls; Deb looked up and saw an intruder (a falcon) circling high above the canyon and then sailing north above the Adirondack Bank. Neither Astrid nor Ares made a move. Was it a Merlin and not a Peregrine? At 5:17, Astrid was relieved at the nest by Ares. Surprisingly, she had spent the hottest part of the afternoon in the box, but didn’t seem any worse for it. There was a cool breeze which probably helped her to tolerate it. She went over to the State Building while Ares adjusted the eggs. She remained there until just before 7 PM. Ten minutes later she was seen soaring around in the canyon. She landed high on the north face of the building, but only stayed there for a few minutes. Soon she was up and on a northward heading. She was up and down a few more times after that until they did their very last switch of the day at 7:49. Astrid took her place on the eggs and Ares sailed over to the State Building. Ten minutes later he was gone from view.

We expected to have our first pipped egg(s) by today, if not our first hatch. It’s too early to come to any firm conclusion about the viability of eggs # 1 and # 2. Of course we will continue monitoring the situation.

Utica Peregrine Falcon Update for May 6, 2018 –

The early morning was overcast, cool and windy. The sun never came out, but it warmed up quickly into the high 60’s. Light rain fell occasionally during throughout day. Afternoon was mostly overcast with a few short breaks of sun and temperatures rose into the seventies. By evening rain became steadier.

Astrid came onto the eggs at 6:15 on Saturday evening. She remained on the eggs throughout the night. Ares showed up on the State Building at around 4:30 AM on Sunday. At 5:00, he came to the box with a small food item. Astrid took it and flew off into the darkness. We looked around with the cameras, but couldn’t find where she took the meal. At 6:54, the falcons did a quick switch at the box and Astrid was back on the nest. During the switch no pips were visible on the eggs. After leaving the box, Ares was on and off the State Building several times before the next changing of the guard took place at 8:53 AM. As Ares got comfortable and adjusted the eggs, Astrid took a perch on the State Building. She remained there until about 9:30, and after that we weren’t sure where she got off to. She returned to the box at around 10:05. She hopped right in and perched next to Ares as he kept tight on the eggs. He really didn’t want to leave. She stood there next to him for close to eight minutes before pressing her point. Truth be said, she ousted in a pretty polite way this time. She beaked with him before moving in closer; she didn’t step on his tail nor did she stomp on the tips of his primary wing feathers. At 11:15, Ares flew from his perch on the State Building. He returned to the north face of the State Building at 12:25.

Ares came out of nowhere and the pair switched at 12:45 PM, This time Ares relieved Astrid on the eggs and she went over to take a relatively low perch on the State Building. Astrid was up and down a few times and then at 2:40, she flew down after something and then was out of view for a while. She showed up at the box at 3 PM, and they switched. Ares was on the State Building, but then at 3:15, he was out of view. Astrid stood up off the eggs at 4:00 and that gave us an opportunity to check for pips again. None were found. At 4:46, Astrid called like she wanted Ares to come and relieve her. He was nowhere to be seen. He showed up at the box at 5:12, and by then, for some reason, Astrid didn’t want to be relieved. He stood next to her for at least 8 minutes while she vocalized at him, all the while hovering over her clutch. Finally he took the hint and dove out of the box. He went over to the State Building for a while. At 5:26, she came off the eggs to do some digging in the corner. In a few minutes she was back incubating. Ares tried to take over incubation again at 6:05. At first it looked like she was going to turn him away again, but then she suddenly yielded. She got up and flew out of the box. She glided to a perch on the State Building while he settled on the eggs. At 6:53, she flew out of view and wasn’t seen again until 7:10, when she arrived at the nest. This time Ares left quickly and she took over on the eggs. By this point, rain had started and it seemed the falcons were through for the night.

Utica Peregrine Falcon Update for May 5, 2018 –

It was overcast, cool and windy in the early morning. Skies cleared later in the morning and temperatures rose into the 70’s by afternoon.

Astrid had come to the nest box just before 6:00 PM on Friday and she stayed in place throughout the night. Ares was visible on the State Building for a while before the pair switched at 5:19. At 5:48  Astrid was in view on the State Building. It was Ares’ squeaking calls that told us Astrid had come into view. The falcons switched again at 6:56. Astrid was back on the eggs and Ares had gone over to the State Building. At 8:10, Astrid lifted off the eggs high enough so we could examine them for pips. None were visible. At 9:10, Ares left his perch on the State Building. He was out of view until he showed up on Hotel Utica at 10:40. The falcons switched again fifteen minutes later and then Ares had a turn on the eggs.

At 11:00, Astrid was soaring around the State Building, but then went out of view. She was next seen on Hotel Utica at 11:20. Fifteen minutes later she was soaring again – this time around the hotel. Her next stop was the State Building. At 12:37, she was gone and out of view for about a half-hour – and then back on the State Building. Astrid returned to the box at 1:19 and took over incubating from Ares. After leaving he was on the State Building for a short time and then he was out of camera view. Just before 2 PM, Astrid gave an alarm cackle. A Turkey Vulture was flying low around the State Building. The vulture flew close to the top row of ledges on the north side of the structure and even touched one ledge with its feet. Astrid didn’t carryon giving alarm calls and neither did she leave the nest. The vulture continued flying west and passed low over Hotel Utica. We wondered if the scavenger was contemplating one of Ares stored meals. The whereabouts of Ares was unknown when the vulture was about, but at 2:31, Ares came back into the canyon and landed on the State Building. The Peregrines switched an hour later; he took over on the eggs and she went over to the State Building. During the switch we tried again to scrutinize the eggs for pips, but we could confirm nothing. Astrid left her perch a few times, but kept returning to the north face of the State Building. At 6:10, she went flew to the Grace Church steeple. Fifteen minutes later, the falcons switched and Astrid came onto the eggs. This was likely the last changeover of the day. Ares was on the State Building until about 7 PM, and then he was out of view.