Author: Matt Perry

The first day of March started out cool and cloudy. A dense fog formed in the upland hills, but fortunately not in the falcons’ downtown canyon. The day did remain overcast and rather subdued lighting persisted. That made it difficult to get good still pictures from our cameras. Temperatures were in the 40’s. Large mixed blackbird flocks as well as flocks of Canada Geese streamed overhead and their calls were occasionally audible on our nest box microphone. Astrid and Ares were visible on the State Office Building before 5:00 AM this morning, but Ares held off coming to the box until just after 6 o’clock. As per usual, he was full of energy right of the bat. He didn’t linger for long at the nest box; instead he opted to take a perch on the northwest corner of the State Building’s roof. I recall at one point looking away from the monitor for a moment and then, poof, suddenly he was there in the box again. Well, I hear they are the fastest birds in the world. That’s something to live up to. At 7:00, Astrid joined Ares in the box for a ledge display. An hour later, Ares was on the hotel de-feathering a large bird – possibly a Mourning Dove. After taking his portion off the top he delivered the remainder of it to Astrid at the nest box. She took her breakfast over to the steeple and ate heartily. At 8:45, there was a failed mating attempt right there on the steeple. An hour later, a second failed attempt occurred. Astrid was just too close to the building again and he didn’t have enough clearance. Didn’t she read the manual?

Deb thought she heard Ares’ mating chatter , but it seemed too short and would have been another failure. At 10:50, Astrid was perched on a window ledge just west of the nest box’s veranda. There a successful mating took place. About 15 minutes later, Ares brought another food tribute to the nest box. Astrid wasn’t interested in accepting the gift and so Ares went off and stowed it somewhere. By 11:35, there were two more mating attempts but only the last one was successful. A period of relative calm in the canyon was broken at 12:40 PM, when Ares dashed around the State Building with purpose and then shot off to the northwest like a fighter jet. Astrid left her perch on the ADK Bank at about the same time. We had no idea what they were up to, but we had no reason to believe there was an intruder involved. We heard no alarm calls and saw no strange falcon.

Ares was back at the box by 1:20 PM and Astrid appeared shortly after that. She may have arrived before that, but she was concealed from our view on the south side of the steeple. Within a few minutes she was at the box and the pair did some lively vocalizing. She flew off and again, he followed right behind her. He circled the steeple and headed southwest past the State Building, but within a few minutes he appeared on the roof of the same building and she was back on the steeple. They then switched places and suddenly she was at the box and he was on the steeple. I don’t know about the birds, but we were starting to get dizzy. At 3:15, Ares came to the net box with prey – probably the remains of a Mourning Dove. Astrid showed no inclination to come over and accept it so it went back into storage in one of Ares’ many cupboards. By the end of the afternoon, Astrid was on ADK Bank, just west of the nest box and Ares was on the southwest corner of the hotel with the Utica Marsh behind him. They remained in those places until nearly 6 PM, when the two of them flew almost simultaneously to their night perches.

The day began on a cool note but a significant warmup was in store. Temperatures peaked out near 60 degrees. Ares came to the box with a fresh Woodcock at 5:20 AM and Astrid was right on his heels. He waited there on the perch with the bulky sandpiper dangling down from his left foot, but Astrid made no move to take it. After a few minutes, he flew off with the prey and stored it somewhere out of view. Soon both falcons were perched on the State Office Building.  Just after 6:30 AM, the pair converged at the box again and shared a spirited ledge display. Following the dance, Ares dashed over to a perch on the State Building and Astrid ingested a few small stones from the floor of the nest box. There’s nothing quite like stones for breakfast!

The first mating of the day took place on the State Building at 7:50. Directly after that, Astrid made a very loud arrival to the box (she actually startled Deb in her office!) Ten minutes later, the pair mated again – this time on the nest box’s long perch. At just before 9 AM, Ares was seen feeding on something over on the hotel ledge. It wasn’t clear what the prey was, but it wasn’t the Woodcock he tried to give to Astrid earlier. Only a few minutes later, he gifted the leftovers to Astrid. She took them over to one of the steeple perches and made short work of it – tearing away at it like she hadn’t eaten in a week. At 10:30, Astrid flew from the steeple and Ares flew right after her. He does like to keep close tabs on his mate particularly at this time of year. He was back at the box with another gift at 11:00. This time it appeared to be a Red-winged Blackbird. She came promptly to take it off his hands. Again, she took her meal over to the steeple and polished it off. Fifteen minutes later, there was a failed mating attempt. Astrid was too close to the wall of the steeple and Ares didn’t have enough clearance to come down on her. These things happen.

The falcons were somewhat hard to keep track of in the early afternoon, but we don’t think they were very active, that is besides Ares’ compulsive visits to the nest box. In the second half of the afternoon, the pair stayed mostly in view – perched on the State Building. Ares continued visiting the box regularly and at 4 PM, he landed on the cross perch with a Woodcock. It appeared to be the same one that he tried to give to Astrid in the early morning. Now it seemed to be headless and that, no doubt, made it easier to carry around. Again, she showed no interest in it so he returned it to the larder. We probably haven’t seen the last of that prey. Things in the canyon were remained status quo for the balance of the day. Astrid remained on the State Building and Ares bounced in and out of the nest box at irregular intervals. Rain arrived with strong winds in the early evening, but didn’t alter their behavior much. A group of crows flew right through the heart of the canyon and were barely acknowledged by the falcons. One crow flew very close to Astrid, but elicited no response. Finally Ares left his perch on the north face of the State Building at just before 6 PM, and Astrid followed about five minutes later. Goodnight falcons.

 

The day started out cool, but warmed up fairly quickly with temperatures ultimately reaching into the 50’s. It was windy and the skies were mostly clear, which is just how falcons like it. The falcons made their morning debut well before sunrise when they simultaneously piled into the nest box at 4:55 AM. They vocalized a bit and then Astrid soared over to a ledge on the State Building. Meanwhile, Ares kept his vigil at the box, periodically giving long screech calls and looking anxious. He left the box at 5:50 and flew by Astrid once or twice. We are not sure if there was a mating attempt or not. His mating chatter was not heard, so there probably wasn’t one. However, about 20 minutes later, he tried again and they mated successfully. At 6:30, both birds again converged at the nest box. They gave loud interactive vocalizations, but didn’t engage in a ledge display.

At 7:30, Ares came to the box with a food offering. Astrid came over to take it, but instead of relinquishing it, he flew off and stored it somewhere. He was back within a few minutes and the pair mated again. Following that, Astrid took a perch on the Grace Church Steeple. Ares retrieved the meal from storage and started plucking it on the State Building. After he took a share of it, he gifted what remained to Astrid. She flew with it over to the ledge of the hotel where she quickly polished it off.  While she was so engaged, Ares was sprucing up his feathers on the nest box’s long perch. At 8:40, the pair mated again; this time on the steeple. They really seemed to be making up for Monday, when they were  observed mating only one time. Two hours later they mated on the steeple yet again!

At 11:15, Ares was at the box and suddenly gave out an alarm chatter call, but he didn’t leave the box. We thought there must have been an intruder, but since neither bird left their perches and since Ares seemed to be looking straight up, we figured the culprit was merely a migrant raptor passing overhead and nothing to be concerned about. Only five minutes later, Ares dashed out and immediately returned with a huge chunk of food – probably the remains of a Mourning Dove. He must have pulled it out of one of his many “cupboards” on the State Building. He chirped at Astrid to come and take it and when she failed to stir, he buzzed by her with it. She still wasn’t interested, so he flew by her again, still grasping the prey in one foot. We assumed that he put it back into storage after that, since neither bird was seen with it. Just after 1 PM, the pair mated on the State Building. They did seem to be going for a record today; the record for the most matings by a Utica pair of Peregrine Falcons in the month of February.

Ares spent most of the afternoon, popping in and out of the box like a jack-in-the-box. He was chirping a lot and sometimes biting at stones. He wanted Astrid to come over in the worst way. At 3:30, Astrid seemed to be asking Ares to come over to mate again. He chirped back at her, but then his chirps turned into alarm calls – the type they give when an intruder is in the canyon. First Astrid took to the air and then (after a few minutes) Ares was up, but Deb noticed that their manner of flight more resembled leisurely soaring than aggressive pursuit.  Anyhow, no intruder was seen by Deb or recorded on the cameras. At 4:30 the pair converged at the box and shared a ledge display. After the dance, Astrid made at two scrapes into the stones on the floor of the box and then assumed a place on the perch for a while. At close to 5 PM, Ares was up on the Northwest corner of the State Building. The sun was starting to set behind him and it bathed him in light. He looked so tiny up there. It was hard to fathom; all that drive and personality was somehow packed into a two pound package. He was literally and figuratively on top of the world. His mate was in the box, which was right where he wanted her to be. Just then a group of four or five Ring-billed Gulls winged their way right through the canyon. Right after they passed by, Ares took off in their direction. We don’t know if he hazed them or not. Ares returned at close to 5:30 PM, but then we lost track of him. Astrid was visible on the corner of the County Building for a little while after that and then she left too. off to the night perches we thought.

The pre-dawn hours were mild and dry. Astrid came into camera view on the State Building just before 5 AM. Ares appeared on the roof of the same building at 6:15. An hour later he arrived at the nest box gripping a dead starling. Obviously this was meant as a food tribute for his mate, but Astrid wasn’t inclined to come over right away. Ares tried to peak her interest in the gift by buzzing by her high perch, but it still wasn’t working. He may have tried to entice her other ways as well, but not on camera. At 7:22, he was back at the box with the same prey. This time Astrid came and accepted the gift right there on the cross perch. She then brought it over to the steeple where it became her breakfast.

Just before eight o’clock, Ares gave a chirpy-type alarm call. The reason for the vocalization was to alert Astrid to the presence of an intruder in the canyon. Astrid was up in a flash and she and the interloper flew back and forth in front of the State Office Building several times. About ten minutes later, she landed on a ledge just west of the nest box. It’s not clear where the stranger was, but Ares was at the box proper. From her office, Deb was able to hear Astrid and Ares engage in an animated conversation. Following their discussion, both took to the air and presumably escorted the intruder out of the territory. The pair was gone for several minutes, after which Ares landed on the hotel ledge with prey (probably a Starling). Before leaving the hotel he let out a screech and then proceeded to bring his prize to the nest box. Deb heard Astrid calling, but wasn’t sure where she was perched. At about 9:15, she came to the box, but her visit was fleeting. A few minutes later, Ares was back at the box with the same prey he had before. Evidently it had been stowed somewhere. By then she was back at the State Building and didn’t seem interested in coming over to accept his tribute. That is, not until he left with it and returned again. For some reason that always makes a meal more interesting to falcons! This time she flew over to the box and unceremoniously yanked the food right out of his bill. From there she took it over to the State Building and deemed it brunch.

Surprisingly, we still had no confirmed mating at this point in the day. The pair spent the next hour and more perched on the State Building. The day had become sunny and by late morning a persistent wind had developed. These are conditions that falcons relish because it means free, effortless flying. Despite that our birds seemed content to remain on their perches.  At around 11 AM, they finally decided to do some soaring. Ares was the first to go. Deb saw him launch off the nest box perch and then just allow the wind to do all the work. Soon they were both tearing through the sky.

Ares made a few stops at the box in the early afternoon, while Astrid got some quality perching time in on the State Building. Finally, at 3 PM, the pair shared a ledge display at the nest box. The beginning of their dance involved plenty of beaking and the entire display lasted about 10 minutes. A little less than an hour later, Astird accepted another gift of food from her mate. At 5:10, the first mating attempt of the day (that we know of) happened. As it turned out it was a failed attempt, but a half hour later Ares gave a few long screeches, flew up to Astrid’s perch on the State Building, and tried again. This time it was a success and it also stood as the only confirmed mating of the day. The pair was out of camera view after that presumably they went off to their night perches.

 

It was rainy and dark in the pre-dawn hours. Temperatures were hovering at around 40 degrees. At 5:45, Astrid arrived at the nest box. She made a few “chirrup” calls but there was no sign of Ares. Perhaps he was sleeping in? I doubt it. It’s more likely he was attempting to hunt. He arrived at the nest box at 6:30 and the pair performed a ledge display. Unlike their last “dance” in which Ares seemed unsure of the rules (we think this was a consequence of his surprise ledge display with the intruder), this “dance” was much closer to the classic Astrid & Ares type. It featured their patented footwork, inimitable dosedo, and their gentle manner of beaking. The only noticeable difference with this display was that, at its conclusion, Astrid left the box first. An hour later when Ares vacated the box, he gave a volley of long screeches. We could hear his calls echoing through the canyon, but we couldn’t locate him.

At just before 9 AM, both falcons were at the box again. Well, sort-of. She was actually on the west veranda. Ares jumped out of the box and flew in a boomerang pattern. He came back chattering and mated with Astrid right there on the perch of the veranda. Directly after he made a short flight and managed to return with a small gift within two minutes. We think this may have been the fastest gifting after a mating we had ever observed. Astrid took the modest offering and (we think) ate it on the ADK Bank. Again today Ares was spending a lot of time at the nest box and often on one of the verandas. He was coming and going so much. He just seemed the very embodiment of energy and vitality. Just watching him was tiring us out. At 12:15 PM, Ares returned to the nest box and Astrid put down on a window ledge located west of the west veranda. Five minutes later they had mated again. Fifteen minutes after that another mating attempt happened, but that one failed . At 1 PM, the pair was back at the box and then they mated yet again, but this time they mixed it up some and did it on the east veranda. In mid-afternoon, the falcons were relatively low key. For a while, she was on the ADK Bank Building – located on a perch well west of the west veranda. At close to three o’clock, Astrid was back at the box. Ares came in and they mated one more time.

The rest of the afternoon was characterized by one or the other falcon at the box reacting to their partner’s flying antics. They would move their heads this way and that way as they followed the flight path of their partner. They would also vocalize as their counterpart dashed by. At one point while Ares was holding the fort, Astird zoomed by (probably after prey). Ares joined the chase, but we don’t think they managed to get anything. Indeed, he came right back to the box without prey in his talons. At 4:45, he screeched out of the box again and we could hear him continuing to screech in the canyon somewhere, but our technology wasn’t able to find him. Within 15 minutes, she was at the box; he boomeranged in and they mated yet again. That made a total of five full matings (at least) and one failed mating attempt for the day! That’s a quite an impressive number for this early in the season. The last falcon we saw this evening was Astrid. She was perched on the roof of the County Building and was possibly hunting. Either that or she was just watching the crows filter into the city from their rural and suburban homes.