Author: Matt Perry

Update for Monday, March 18, 2024

The falcons kept vigil at the nestbox overnight despite the snow, cold, and wind. Although their activities were hampered by the cold weather they did manage to get in some breeding behavior. A couple of intense ledge displays at the box; a few matings, and at least two food giftings were observed. Astrid was pretty inactive through most of the afternoon, opting to perch on the State Building. Ares repeatedly tried to get her to come over to the nest but she resisted until late afternoon/early evening.

Update for Sunday, March 17, 2024

Astrid and Ares guarded their nestbox for most of the night. At 5:00 AM Ares brought a Woodcock to the east veranda. Astrid, unsurprisingly, wasn’t interested in taking it. He did bring her something more palatable later on. The falcons shared two ledge displays at the nestbox and they were observed mating several times during the course of the day. They were fairly inactive for most of the afternoon – at least Astrid was. For a few hours she was content to remain on a high ledge on the State Building – although at one point she did fly up to the lookout post on the roof. Ares tried to coax her over to the nest several times during the afternoon but didn’t succeed in getting her to come over until evening.  Once in the nest we wondered if she was going to do her first sitting of the season – something a female falcon does at least several times before egg laying begins. However, today she only sat for a few minutes and then did some housework around the box – mostly digging in the corner.

The Canyon Hosts Saint Patrick’s Day Parade

Update for Saturday, March 16, 2024

In a departure from recent days, the falcons did not guard the nestbox all night but instead didn’t start their routine until dawn. At that point, both Astrid and Ares piled into the box for an impromptu dance. This morning the Saint Patrick’s Day parade took place in the Canyon. Ares watched a bit of it from the crossperch at the box – however, Astrid mostly hid out on the ledge on The North Face of the State Building. At one point she did fly out over Genesee Street but then went back into seclusion. In other news, the Falcons held 3 ledge displays at the box although two were rather short. They also mated several times and Ares brought Astrid food at least once.

Update for Friday, March 15, 2024

Astrid and Ares had another busy night guarding the nest box. Why they feel it necessary to guard the box all night long this year when they didn’t do it in previous seasons is a mystery. During the day Ares provided Astrid with at least three meals. They conducted three ledge displays at the nestbox, and several matings were confirmed. Once again, both falcons were accounted for during most of the day – guarding the nest site by day as they do by night. At one point during the afternoon, both were up on the roof of the State Office Building on the lookout perch. Whether they were on the watch for intruders or for prey is unknown – the two activities are not mutually exclusive.

Update for Wednesday, March 13, 2024

Astrid and Ares had a very active day in the canyon today. They guarded the nest most of the day. Ares arrived early, at 2 AM. They performed three ledge displays in the nestbox and mated many times. At one point during the day Ares seemed to get inspired by the sound of sirens going off in the Downtown canyon. He joined in with many long calls. I thought only dogs did that kind of thing? Ares did some practice egg shading Inside the box, which is one of the weirdest things that Peregrines do. Astrid appeared to be doing it too, but on the east veranda. We did not see any completed food exchanges, but we could have easily missed one since they happen so fast. We did see one attempted exchange, but Ares wouldn’t let go of the food. It was more like a scrap of something anyway.