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Banding the Five Peregrine Falcon Chicks, May 14, 2012
Jeff Meshach, director, World Bird Sanctuary, lead the banding operations of the five chicks. Jeff observed that the chicks appeared healthy and well fed. The banding took about 60 minutes and involved removing the chicks from the nest, transporting them to a nearby trailer and returning them to the nesting box. (view video) |
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Placing Chicks Back in Nesting Box, May 14, 2012
Jeff Meshach, director, World Bird Sanctuary, places the five peregrine falcon chicks back in their nesting box. The chicks were banded with leg bands issued by the U.S. Geological Survey.
Jeff Meshach commented that the chicks appear healthy and very well fed. The average number of chicks per nest is below four, so it is fairly rare to have five chicks. (view video)
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Removing Chicks from Nesting Box, May 14, 2012
Jeff Meshach, director, World Bird Sanctuary (WBS), removes the five peregrine falcon chicks from the nesting box and places them in a travel crate. During the banding process, the WBS staff drew blood samples and took weights and measurements of each chick.
The 3 male chicks should be fledging the nest around June 4. The 2 females will probably fledge around June 15. Female peregrine falcons are up to a third larger than the males - they take longer to develop. (view video)
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Getting Up Close & Both Falcons Feeding Chicks, May 1, 2012
One of the falcons perches very close to our camera, providing a wonderful close up of the bird!
Also on the video, both parents feed the young chicks. (view video) |
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Feeding the Chicks, Apr. 23, 2012
As of Apr. 21, the first chick hatched from our pair of peregrines. Activity at the nest will definitely increase from now until fledging time. Males usually mature to fledging and leave the nest first, and that time will be about 45 days from now. Females will leave the nest about 55 days from now.
Because males are significantly smaller than females, it is presumed they leave first so they don't fall prey to the females. If the parents stop or can't feed for any reason, the smaller chicks could fall prey to the larger chicks. As cruel as this sounds, if one or 2 chicks survive, at least the nest would not be a total failure. From what we've seen thus far, it seems both parents are very attentive, and we should see all chicks survive to fledging. (view video)
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Hatching, Apr. 21, 2012
As of Apr. 21, our pair of peregrines at Ameren Missouri's Sioux Energy Center had their first chick.
Activity at the nest will definitely increase from now until fledging time, which is when the young falcons leave the nest on their first flight. As you view our live video feed, you'll notice the female brings the food item to the chicks. The food source was probably killed by the male falcon and given to the female; she will eat some and bring the rest in for the chicks. (view video)
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Looking at the Camera, Apr. 2, 2012
We caught one of the peregrine falcons flying in and sitting very close to the camera for a few seconds! (view video) |
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Sitting on the Clutch, Mar. 19, 2012
A clutch is the number of eggs laid at one time. Because of the time spent on incubating and chick raising to fledging (when they leave the nest), birds of prey have one clutch of eggs per year.
In this video, you'll see the male fly in on the right side of the box, and almost immediately the female stands up and moves away from the eggs. It looks as if the clutch is four strong, and the fact the female is now sitting tight probably means four eggs will be the full clutch this year (she had five eggs and then five healthy chicks at banding time last year).
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After the female flies off, the male gingerly moves over the eggs and positions himself as best he can for incubating while the female takes "some time off." It's comical to watch the male get into the incubation position. He's considerably smaller than the female (a trait with all raptors), so he uses his wings to help keep in the warmth even more so than the female. He'll incubate about 30 minutes twice a day.
Toward the end of the video, you will see the female fly by - out behind the box. (view video)
More about the female peregrine falcon: Both the nesting male and female peregrine falcons have bands on their legs. Almost always, peregrine falcon chicks are banded, and their bands are registered with the U.S. Geological Survey for historical purposes. (see Banding Chicks)
We've not been able to identify the male yet, but the female was hatched May 10, 2005, at a power plant in Louisa County, Iowa. She was one of four chicks. Her father was banded but never identified. Her mother was hatched May 24, 1999, at the "Riverside" nest in Minneapolis, Minn. and was the only chick hatched from four eggs.
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Sharing a Meal, Mar. 9, 2012
This short video clip shows the male peregrine falcon with part of the bird he killed earlier in the morning. The male is on top of the nest box that his mate will eventually use for laying eggs. Peregrine falcons, being birds of prey, hunt and kill almost strictly other birds to survive. From "out of the blue," another peregrine falcon flies into the picture and seems to steal the food from the male. Notice how much larger this "other" peregrine is! This is the female, and she actually is not stealing the food from the male. The male is presenting the food to her. This presentation of food helps to stimulate and strengthen the bond between the male and female peregrine. The female peregrine is about one-third larger than the male, which is typical in falcons and most other birds of prey. (view video)
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Getting Ready for the Falcons, Dec. 29, 2011
At the Ameren Missouri Sioux Energy Center, preparation started early for the peregrine falcons. In Dec., crews began constructing the scaffold, which supports the nesting box for the peregrine falcons adjacent to the center's scrubber. A camera was then mounted in front of the nesting box to capture the life cycle of the peregrine falcons.
The camera provides a live video feed to the websites of the partners in this project: Ameren Missouri, Missouri Department of Conservation and World Bird Sanctuary. (view video) |
