Eight days after the first Peregrine chick hatched, plenty of changes have taken place at the nest box. Most notably the 3 chicks have been spending more time by themselves and without a parent standing nearby. Usually they are all huddled together, but today the eldest did some wandering around by itself and even eliminated over the edge of the box! Litter trained already? Well, probably not, but it’s a beginning. We’ve seen some amazing changes in their bodies too; most obvious is the size disparity between even the youngest chick and the infertile egg. The chicks’ throat pouches called “crops” have also become very prominent. Feedings have been fairly frequent and a diverse array of bird prey has been brought in by the parents. Just in the last day or so we’ve seen Blue Jay, Mourning Dove and Goldfinch brought to the nest. Lots of people have been concerned that the last chick to hatch hasn’t been getting enough food, but its growth rate would seem to indicate that it has received more than adequate nutrition. Now that their feet and legs are being seen more clearly, we’re coming close to announcing the sexes of the chicks. We’re fairly sure now what we have, but we’ll be giving it a few more days just to be even more certain.
