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London Home Page |
NEST SITE: The London nest site has been active since 1996 and under the watchful eye of 'Project Peregrine London,' which is made up of representatives from the Ministry of Natural Resources, Hawk Cliff Raptor Banders, McIlwraith Field Naturalists, Hawk Cliff Foundation, Emerald Properties, and Canada Trust / Friends of the Environment Foundation.
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London Nest Site Reports: |
Thursday June 21, 2007
Mark Nash reports: It is expected that a hatch should take place anytime now, and we are hopeful that the London birds will be successful again this season with their family rearing.
Fingers crossed that there is a hatch.
Monday January 8th, 2007
CPF Postmaster Reports: Peregrine Mortality
We are saddened to report that a telephone call received at the CPF office
today from a London resident has confirmed that the injured raptor found on
the sidewalk below the London nest building has in fact been confirmed as
the adult territorial female peregrine falcon. Sadly, it appears that she
died later this day of unknown injuries. The female named Penny by the
London group was actually produced in / hatched at the Pittsburgh Gulf Tower
nest site in Pennsylvania USA in 2000. Penny has been on sight / territory
since 2001, paired up with George until the late spring of 2003. George, an
Anatum sub was produced in captivity, purchased by the CPF as a 20 day old
chick along with his sister and was fostered into the failed nest site in
Hamilton Ontario in 1999. You can review the fostering history of George on
the CPF web site - http://www.peregrine-foundation.ca/programs/foster.html
Wednesday June 21, 2006
Andy & Joan Németh report: We live on the 24th floor of 310 Dundas, facing west. This is our first summer in London, & we were interested to see the peregrine watchers on nearby streets in the spring. Tonight we saw an immature sitting on the long opening near the top of the north side of the south TD tower. We have seen birds perched at the top of the Scotiabank building opposite us; tonight one dove almost straight down, then went sailing off to the south. We've seen them swooping in pairs; they seem to love it. We look for them from our balcony every day.
Nice to see your website.
Thursday June 1, 2006
Mark Nash reports: 3 Hatchlings confirmed, all females suspected, fledgling is underway.
The hatchlings have been names – Rogue, Phoenix and Mystique
We have just received an update from a watcher in London regarding the situation on the peregrine hatchlings.
Apparently three eggs at the London did in fact hatch, and it is believed that all of the hatchlings are female. As each one of the fledglings has come to the ground, - (and quite typical during the fledge time when the young are taking their first maiden flights), the opportunity is taken to band the chicks before they are put back up to the nest building roof top. While there is no guarantee that they will come to the ground and need rescue, we have learned over the past ten years that the much heavier female fledglings are far more likely to come to the ground on their maiden first flights than the lighter in weight male fledglings.
Banding is of course important for a number of reasons, most importantly, it provides a valuable tool to monitor the peregrines movements throughout their lifetime. Banding information is entered both in the American USFW and the Canadian CWS data bases, allowing biologist and scientists alike on both sides of the boarder to gain valuable knowledge on the history of the individual bird and its movements when the bird’s bands numbers are observed down the road.
Armed with this historical data and information on the individual birds, we have been able to communicate with many other wildlife organizations around Canada and the USA to identify many of our birds that have now been observed nesting and producing their own families throughout.
Wednesday May 31, 2006
Valerie M'Garry reports: Well - I haven't reported in for a while, and I'm sorry - but I've been busy and so have the birds - there is much to report!!!!
Turns out there were 4 eggs, but only three hatched. The day that I told you there were three did turn out to be an error, but sometime very soon after that, another egg did hatch. I saw them, I believe, two weeks ago - and they were just waddling, white fuzzy chicks, waving their stubby little wings about and eating. Then we had a miserably cold few days, and they sort of retreated into hiding and were hard to see - it's undoubtedly pretty cool on that perch in a cold wind!
Wow - did I get a shock when I say them today!
All are girls, as is now immediately apparent - they are all noticeably larger than Dad!!! (He was just perched on a different ledge on the building a few feet away.)
Two have flown, fallen, been rescued, banded and released (all since last Friday, I believe). One weighed in at 1000 grams, roughly - don't know if the other one was weighed. One has not been seen leaving the nest yet, perhaps the one that hatched the latest? She is active, though -- no sign that she will not fly - she's just a little behind the rest. She was grooming contentedly when I looked at her today, and, to my completely untrained eye, she looks smaller than her siblings, so it may just be a function of her being a few days younger.
Watched Mum scoop a bird on the fly and take it back to feed the two youngsters on the very top of the TD building (i.e., at the spot they had both flown to). The one youngster was still hanging around on the ledge where the nesting box is, but the other two were feeding actively up top. Although still in juvenile plumage, they are already almost as big as their Mum - Mum and daughter were side by side, facing opposite directions for the feeding exercise, so it was really easy to compare. In fact, if anything, either one baby so well fed that she appears fatter than Mum, or she just had her feathers fluffed out on her chest and body a bit - she's the same height as Mum, but looked rounder.
Then the parents began swooping around in the vicinity of the building, riding the air currents and looking for all the world as if they were saying "Come on, you can do this".
They have at least a couple of dedicated watchers, one of whom is linked by walkie-talkie to the ground. She was reporting who is going where, so that the folks on the ground can follow, in case of accidents.
I'm so pleased, after having a couple of bad years for accidents, and then having the nest fail for a couple of years, that we have, hopefully, had a success this year. Let's just hope there are no early flying or falling accidents to change that! And, as I type this, a really vicious looking thunderstorm is about to hit - I'm seeing lightening - so let's pray for no misadventures from that either!
Will keep you posted as I can.
Tuesday May 16, 2006
Elizabeth McDonald reports: Hi, I just found this website and thought I would email my observations although I know very little about these beautiful birds.I love to watch them in flight, sometimes right outside my windows well above tree top level.
One bird visited the woods below my apartment building today as they often do. I am on the twelfth floor in West London. He or she was perched on a still standing dead tree below me, great camouflage, two small birds (blue jays?) were fluttering around this perch, that surprised me. He or she sat immobile for many minutes before taking off and soon disappeared over north east London.
I have been watching the falcon family ever since I moved into this building in August, I have seen some amazing aerobatc displays. Last year there were often three birds at one time. at the present time only one at a time, presumably the other is on the nest.
Hope all goes well with the chicks.
Tuesday April 25, 2006
Mark Nash reports: Hatch!!! – 2 chicks confirmed
As of yesterday, mid afternoon, I am told that the London pair has had a hatch, and now has two hatchlings. Mum was observed making a hunting trip, then feeding them and keeping them warm. Dad was directly overhead, perched on another building, and could be seen.
Wednesday March 15, 2006
Mark Nash reports: Incubation has started
Good news: It has been confirmed that that the London peregrines are in fact incubating an undisclosed amount of eggs. Given that it appears that the adults are into full time incubation, it could be assumed that within the next 33 to 35 days, there should be a hatch. Time will tell.
Wednesday February 1, 2006
Valerie M'Garry reports: A brown "bomb" zoomed by here twice this afternoon (he/she was kind of backlit, so the white underparts weren't as apparent), then had a more leisurely - wings flapping, instead of rigid - return. He/she was not in full "stoop" mode - I've seen that before, it was a straight drop, with wings tucked - this was a more angled descent, with the wings angled too, but, given the speed, there is no doubt the hunt was on! I suspect that the leisurely return means there is a sparrow or maybe even a pigeon or two less in Victoria Park today......sigh. But, needs must, as they say.
Wish I could tell who is the male and who is the female - I know the female is the larger, but I've never seen them both together to know! I'm going to assume this fellow is the male - he just seems a bit smaller - but truth to tell, I haven't a clue - can't realistically guess at a measurement of most still items in abstract space, let alone something moving at that speed.
Thursday January 19, 2006
Valerie M'Garry reports: At least one peregrine has been very active north of One London Place today - we've seen him or her (or perhaps both of them - I'm not very good at distinguishing them "on the fly") anyway - one has gone by three times in the past two hours - that's the most I've seen in one day and the most I've seen in quite a while.
Thursday May 19, 2005
Mark Nash reports: Great News
It has just been confirmed that 4 chicks have hatched at the London nest site!
News about the hatch has indicated that the eggs hatched in and around the last week of April and the first week of May.
Monday March 21, 2005
Mark Nash reports: It has been reported that there is an egg at the London nest site. Apparently, a male has finally been observed on territory throughout the
winter 2004-2005, and it would appear that a pair have been active on site.
Monday October 4, 2004
Jason McGuire reports: Today I saw the 2 Peregrines clinging to the south TD tower in London, one just right of the nest, the other on the south face left side, same level.
Sunday July 4, 2004
It appears that a 2nd year (brown) male has in fact teamed up with the adult
female and they
mated and she laid some eggs. No one seems to know how many. But none
hatched. As it has now been 50 days since they were laid, they
obviously are not going to at this point, and the nest site has failed.. So
the site is barren again this year. One
fellow said that when George was injured last year (and later put down)
he had a battle with a Hawk and by the damage to his wing they figure he
hit a wire or sum small immovable object. So the London peregrines seem to
have a high mortality rate. Maple (battle with George) Calypso
(lightning) and then George. All in 4 years.
Wednesday May 5, 2004
According to some of our sources, here is the latest on the London Peregrines.
The female was away for a while, but is back and has a 2nd year male Peregrine with her.
He is
still in juvenile plumage. No mention of bands or numbers. Sadly, no one is sure if
it's the same female which I assume
has been here since 2001.
If we remember, if it is the same female, she teamed up with George in 2001 after Calypso was killed by lightning in 2000. George was injured and put down last year as a result of a battle with another male Peregrine during late spring. I was downtown yesterday and checked the nest ledge about 6 times over 2 hours. We did see the female on the South side of the building briefly, but not on the nest box which is on the West side of the building. Who knows, as they may have eggs?? However it was a cold windy day and I think she would have been on the nest box. Too bad we do not have a Camera on the nest. Then we would be able to both monitor the site and check for bands numbers. It would be nice to give something back to the London community as a hole, for all their support of the peregrines over the years.
Saturday March 20, 2004
Valerie M'Garry reports:
I work on the 25th floor of One London Place (unfortunately, facing due North - so no view of the
TD tower or the nest site). But I have regularly seen a peregrine, often hunting, out my
window. It/they appear to have over wintered here. I don't know if I'm seeing all the same
bird - it/they come quite close, but is/are always moving rather swiftly. I'm not very
knowledgeable about birds generally or peregrines in particular but, like so many other Londoners,
always felt a special pride that they were here, and so supported by the community. Is there
any news of a new male or use of the nest site? In any event, I thought someone should know that,
as far as I can tell, at least one peregrine still seems to be around.
Thursday June 5, 2003
Joe Milner reports:
I checked around the London site looking for
Peregrines but didn't see any activity. I also talked to security staff at 1 London
place who generally supplies a suite with a view of the nest for the London
Peregrine group. They said that the nest was not in use. So it looks like the
nest has failed this year. I hope someone reports I am in error or a late
nesting takes place.
Saturday May 10, 2003
Juanita S Woods, Columbus Ohio:
I just wanted to express my sympathy with everyone in London over the loss of George. His mate
Calypso was the daughter of Szell and the mighty Zenith of Cleveland, Ohio's Terminal Tower.
I grieved over Zenith's death last March and I grieved over Calypso's death June 2000. Now I
grieve for George and I loved him for being such a wonderful, devoted father who raised his
young to successfully fledged. I will never forget that as he was still in his brown plumage
but he was a caring, wonderful father.
Please extend my heartfelt sympathy as I grieve with everyone who grieves over the loss of George. RIP, brave one. Please, can anyone tell me if there is another male who has moved into the territory and if there is, is he taking care of George's mate? I know how fantastic everyone was when it came to the loss of Calypso so I know George's mate is going to have her human guardian angels. This just breaks my heart - I really get attached to these wonderful raptors. Thanks for listening.
Quick history about George and the Hamilton and London nest site: The CPF provided the chicks for the Hamilton foster, and one of the chicks was named George. George later the following year turned up at the London nest site, and killed the adult male down there. George took over the territory, claimed the adult female and raised several chicks on his own after the adult female was killed by lightning in a rain storm. The eggs had already hatched, and George had to feed and raise both the chicks and himself that year.Well, now George has been killed this year in a fight with another raptor (a red-tailed hawk) during the time that his mate was in the middle of laying the third egg. The female abandoned the nest ledge shortly after laying the third egg. Needless to say, the London nest site has failed this year.
Friday April 18, 2003
Joseph Milner reports:
The female is still using the nest as a roost or home, but has moved the eggs to one side
and has not incubated them since a few days after George’s accident. Hopefully a male will show
up during April and take up residence with her. She and George wintered over this winter.
Further to Georges accident. Apparently some saw George driving off a Red Tail a few days before
he was found. But the thinking is that he may have hit his wing on a wire or some other
obstruction. Also it is likely he had a battle with another Peregrine to receive the lacerations
on his body??. So maybe the battle with another Peregrine and the wounds or infection made him
less than 100% and MAY have caused the collision with ??? Like so much of our knowledge, this is
mostly conjecture. To conclude, the
nest may yet become active if a male shows up, but right now is in idle.
Saturday March 22, 2003
Joseph Milner reports: (Update
on George) - I finally got to talk to some guys. Apparently he was found on 6
Mar on the ground. He had a broken wrist on one wing, puncture marks and other
damage. They put him down about a week later. No one saw the battle. He was a
very aggressive Peregrine around the nest. I saw him put a TV (Turkey Vulture)
almost down to Dundas St. one day. As of yesterday there is no male at the
London nest and there are 3 eggs.
Thursday March 20, 2003
Mark Nash reports: I have just
received sad news that George, the young peregrine falcon that was fostered in
Hamilton in 1999, and later the following year found his way to London Ontario
to sire his first offspring, has had to be put down at the OVC after sustaining
serious injuries consistent to that of a battle with another raptor.
It appears that George (supplied by The Canadian Peregrine Peregrine Foundation
on May 21st/1999) and fostered in Hamilton by the territorial nesting pair has
run into his final bad luck.
His mate is currently sitting on at least two eggs at the nest ledge.
If we remember back in 2000, when George arrived in London Ontario, he battled
with the adult territorial male Maple for the territory, and was successful in
driving off the adult male. Later that season, his new mate - Calypso, the adult
female was killed in a storm, and left the yearling George (still in his
juvenile feather covering) to care for the 16 plus day old chicks on his own.
We are very saddened by the news in London.
Wednesday May 29, 2002
Michelle Mylemans reports: The fledglings have been
flying more in the past couple of days. The one that was not banded (Frodo)
is looking better each time that he flies which is great. Gandalf was 41
days old when he flew and Frodo was 43 days old.
Sunday May 26, 2002
Michelle Mylemans reports: Frodo (this year's two
chicks, both males, were named after characters from Lord of the Rings) flew off
the nest box ledge at 6:21 am and landed beside his brother who was so happy to
see him that he playfully bit Frodo's wings and legs with joy.
As of Sunday when I left at 8:30 there was a few short flights by the boys but
not a lot of flying going on. Both Gandalf and Frodo look strong and have
stayed high so we are hoping that this continues.
Friday May 24, 2002
Michelle Mylemans reports: Gandalf flew from the nest
box ledge at 6:05 in the morning. He then took a couple of short flights
(one where we couldn't find him then he reappeared). He then landed on a
short building and we had a feeling that he was going to fly again and land in
the street. He landed on Wellington Street around 5:20 pm when the traffic
is picking up (which is a miracle because there was no cars around when he
landed) near Dundas and was saved and banded (he weighed 700 g which is the
weight in between where he could have been a male or a female but measuring the
leg they called him a male) and released to the top of the South TD tower.
Friday April 19, 2002
Marcel Gahbauer reports: Pete Read has provided some
additional information on the London chicks. On Monday he observed one
chick, thought to have hatched the day before, and at least one other hatched
this week. There may be a third chick, or possibly still another egg -
from a distance it was hard to tell the small fluffy white blobs apart!
Before long it should be possible to see the chicks apart from each other and
get an accurate count.
Monday April 15, 2002
Shay Redmond reports: I just received an email from Hal
Schraeder saying he got word from Walter and confirmed by Pete Read that we have
our first hatch which they say probably happened yesterday April 14th.
Monday March 25, 2002
Marcel Gahbauer reports: Over the past couple of days,
we have received messages about the London peregrines from Shay Redmond, as well
as Pete Read, Monitor Coordinator of London Project Peregrine. As of
yesterday, there are two to three eggs in the London nest, the first of which is
thought to have been laid around March 14 or 15! This marks, by a
considerable margin, the earliest start to the nesting season by peregrines in
southern Ontario since the population recovery began in 1995.
It's thought that these are the same two adults which nested in London in 2001, namely George and a still-unidentified red-banded female. This winter was the first time that both adults remained in London throughout the winter. Perhaps this in part contributed to them beginning their nest season earlier than usual.
Wednesday February 20, 2002
Ron Hinton reports: Saw both London falcons circling
just southeast of the Galleria Mall on February 18. They looked great!
Saturday November 23, 2001
Ron Hinton reports: It appears that the adult falcons
(George and his significant other) are going to winter over. We have seen the pair together in October but there is
usually one in or around the nest box on the TD/Canada Trust tower every
day. Appear to be well.
Sunday July 1, 2001
Shay Redmond reports: This morning Xena was rescued from
a cooling tower on top of the Canada Trust building, put in a box and a call was
made to Russ Chantler from the Hawk Cliff Raptor Banders to come in and band the
young female chick. All three chicks have been successfully caught and banded.
All chicks seem to be flying well.
Thursday June 28, 2001
Shay Redmond reports: Two of our chicks had their first
flights today at 6:00am and both were females. Xena and Gabriel. The male, Joxer, was still on the nest ledge when we
packed up for the night at 9:30pm, while the two females were on different sides
of the street and seemed content on their perches. Tomorrow should be an
interesting day.
Friday June 8, 2001
Marcel Gahbauer reports: Shay Redmond has filled us in
on some of this spring's interesting developments in London. Recent
observations confirm that there are three healthy-looking chicks, now
approaching three weeks of age, and expected to start flying within the last
week of June. George has been confirmed as the adult male.
The identity of the female, however, is less clear. Earlier in the spring (March / April), Buffy was seen at the site; she was one of three young peregrines raised by George at this site last year. It is thought that she left the area before the breeding season, and that another female is the mother of the chicks, but there remains some uncertainty about this. There definitely has been a second female present, with a red leg band, but it is unclear at exactly what point she displaced Buffy. Observers hope to gain further insights into the identity of the female in the coming weeks while watching this year's youngsters.
Tuesday May 22, 2001
Marcel Gahbauer reports: The latest news sent by Shay
Redmond is that all three chicks have hatched, on May 18, 19, and 20. No
banding event is planned this year; rather, chicks will be banded if and when
they come down to the ground after fledging.
Saturday May 19, 2001
Shay Redmond reports: Su Ross & I were up to #1
London Place this afternoon and confirmed Walter's report of a chick hatched in
the last couple of days. Walter also reports that another one hatched today, but
we couldn't verify that, we also can't verify how many eggs are left to
hatch.
Sunday April 15, 2001
Shay Redmond reports: Today, Easter Sunday April 15th,
Su Ross & I went to #1 London Place and saw a Peregrine Falcon sitting in
the nest tray, we're not sure if it was the male or the female, we stayed for
nearly an hour and the bird turned the egg or eggs at least once. Unfortunately
we couldn't see how many eggs there were. I believe the first egg was laid
on April 10th. Also, above the nest tray on the Canada Trust Logo there
was what appeared to be a dead duck. Easter dinner I presume.
Thursday April 12, 2001
Marcel Gahbauer reports: Shay Redmond has passed along
to us the news that a female peregrine continues to be seen regularly in
downtown London in the company of George. Reports indicate that the
newcomer is still in juvenile plumage and thus just one year old. Though
yearling peregrines typically don't breed, there have been several exceptions to
this rule in recent years, most notably George last year in London, and Victoria
when she first arrived in Toronto in 1995. It appears that the female in
London is banded; we hope to soon have news on her background.
Saturday March 24, 2001
Marcel Gahbauer reports: After a few months of
wondering about the fate of George in London, we have some good news to pass
along. Joe Milner reports that he and Craig Brown were downtown around
noon on March 20 and saw two adult peregrines flying around the Canada Trust
building. More significantly, both landed on the nest ledge and were seen
sitting on the nest box. At times they were together, both on the ledge,
and in flight. They would take off for up to ten minutes, then return to
the ledge; while away from the site, they would perch on nearby buildings or
antennae. Though no actual courtship behaviour was observed, this
nonetheless is very promising, as it appears that George has been successful in
attracting a new mate. We look forward to learning whether she has leg
bands, and if so, what her history is.
Friday December 15, 2000
Marcel Gahbauer reports: Sad news today regarding one of
the first offspring raised in London in 1996. Orville, the brother of
Amelia Earhart and son of Hazel, had been living in Lima, Ohio for the past
couple of years at least. Unfortunately on October 3, 2000 he hit a wire
and was killed. Thanks to Shay Redmond for passing this information on to
us.
Thursday July 20, 2000
Marcel Gahbauer reports: We have not received any news
from London in the past couple of weeks, but presume that no news is good news,
and that all three fledglings are faring well under the supervision of
George. The last reports we heard were in the first week of July, and
indicated that the two female chicks had finally taken flight successfully
several days after their brother Xander. George was apparently kept very
busy around fledging time - at one point he was seen bringing in four kills
within a period of only two hours. Xander showed interest in hunting
pigeons before his sisters fledged, though he was not successful. He did
eventually become trapped in an alcove on the roof, which allowed him to be
trapped and banded.
Friday June 30, 2000
Shay Redmond reports: The big news is Zander flew
yesterday at about 2:00pm from the nest box to the top of the South Building,
then from the South to the North building, after which he tried again but had
some trouble and ended up on the mezzanine. He stayed there for a while then
slipped off and after a bit of a harried flight landed on Mexicala Roses on
Dundas Street. He spent the night on top of their sign and this morning had 2
strong flights. One to the top of the Axa Insurance building - then again from
there to the CN building. The two girls still have a ways to go.
Thursday June 29, 2000
Marcel Gahbauer reports: Shay Redmond has sent us the
following report from the London watchers: We started watching last night
(Wednesday) and so far no one has tried to fly. The male (Xander) has been
flapping quite a bit including right on the ledge. On Tuesday he flew about 6
feet inside the alcove. I got a look at just one of the female's (Buffy or
Willow) and she still had lots of down, so it will be a while for her.
Dad fed them once during our stint from 6:00pm to 8:15pm. It appeared to be just a small catch. They are tracking the feedings in the log book and so far the feedings have been: Tuesday (June 27): 7:40am, 3:00pm, 7:35pm; Wednesday (June 28): 5:45pm, 7:39pm.
Thursday June 22, 2000
Marcel Gahbauer reports: Shay Redmond has spoken with
Hal Schraeder and Pete Read, and has learned that the three chicks are still
fine, although it appears that George is bringing in just small prey (i.e.
starlings) and doesn't seem to be taking the meat being left for him on the
roof. However, Shay's observation is that (as of Monday at least) the
chicks weren't as ravenous as they had been, and that one was already beginning
to get quite dark, with flight feathers replacing the down. All three are
beginning to flap quite a bit.
Friday June 16, 2000
Shay Redmond reports: This is day 5 since
"Calypso" our adult female peregrine falcon was struck and killed by lightning. George the male juvenile peregrine falcon who is
only one year old, is coping to the best of his ability. He is providing food to
the three chicks. We have been monitoring the nest from 8:00am to dusk on a
daily basis, with some tense moments when George didn't show up with food for
long periods of time. This absence of feeding extended from 8 to as long as
24hrs. Thus prompting the OMNR to start supplemental feeding today.
Hal Schraeder and Russ Chantler delivered an assortment of ducks, small birds, and a pheasant to the roof of the South tower, placing them strategically for George to find. Observers from #1 London Place believe they saw George at "Hal's meat". Previous to today the chicks were quite ravenous and would go into a frenzy when George brought food, today they seem calmer. The general condition of the chicks seems good, with moderate activity, some wing flapping and continued feather growth replacing the down.
Monitoring will continue as these chicks are at a very vulnerable and critical stage. We wish George and these chicks every success, but as with the rest of the community we are very concerned for their well being!
Sunday June 11, 2000
Shay Redmond reports: Today, the adult female London
peregrine was stuck and killed by lightning during one of the violent storms
that have gone through London all day. We will be assessing and monitoring the
situation here closely over the next few days. As you may recall, we have
three young peregrines on the nest. As you can imagine, we are shocked at
this tragedy.
Sunday June 4, 2000
Shay Redmond reports: Banding day has been set for June
13th. An Open House will be held on June 17th from 9:00am to 12:30pm from
the 24th floor of #1 London Place - everyone is welcome to come and hear the
latest information on London's Millennium Peregrine Family, and hopefully have a
chance to watch them as well.
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED: Volunteers are needed for the falcon watch later
in June. A schedule will be set up for volunteer times. Contact Shay Redmond at shayredmond@home.com
or (519) 453-4288.
Wednesday May 24, 2000
Shay Redmond reports: I just returned from #1 London
Place where I observed three chicks and one unhatched egg. According
to Walter the first egg hatched on Sunday May 21st. While I was there one
of the adults brought food and two of the chicks were standing up and reaching
to Calypso for the food. Judging by the size and agility of the oldest
chick I would say the first egg hatched as early as the 19th or 20th of
May. If only we had a camera !!!
Friday April 21, 2000
Shay Redmond reports: Su Ross & I went to #1 London Place
where we met Walter who informed us that the fourth egg was laid just minutes before
we arrived, so full incubation should now be started unless of course she decides to lay
another egg - so now we wait and see.
Monday April 17, 2000
Shay Redmond reports: Su Ross and myself were up at
#1 London Place to see if there was any activity, we noticed the male was laying down in
the nest tray and appeared to be on eggs, when he got up to turn we noticed there were at
least two eggs, he was sitting for at least two and a half hours, all this time Calypso
was sitting above us at #1 London Place. I believe Cascade is still in the area but
whenever she gets too close she is driven off by Calypso.
Monday March 27, 2000
Marcel Gahbauer reports: There has been a lot of news out of
London in the past two weeks, some of it good, and unfortunately some of it bad.
Thanks to Shay Redmond for providing most of the following information:
Back on March 17, there was an aerial battle over downtown London involving two male peregrines. Maple (the long-time resident male) was injured in the attack, rescued by Pete Read the next day, and brought to Ross Schneider at the Tamarack Raptor Rehabilitation Centre. The attack took place in full view of several observers, at least one of whom was able to read the leg band of the attacker. It was subsequently discovered that he was none other than George, the young male released as a foster chick at the Hamilton nest site in 1999. Sadly Maple died over the weekend from his injuries.
At the time of the attack, Calypso hadn't yet returned to London, but Cascade was still in the area. It is thought that she has stayed in town through the winter, since first arriving back in November. Whether the two males were fighting over territory or over Cascade is unclear.
Around the same time, Calypso came back on to the scene, and she and Cascade became engaged in a fierce battle above the Canada Trust Tower. They locked talons and spiraled down, landing on the roof of the building. An observer in a nearby office tower alerted Pete Read to the situation, and he was able to intervene and separate them. Calypso had Cascade pinned down at the time, and was trying to bite her. Cascade flew away, but was wounded, and her chances of survival are uncertain.
After a tumultuous few days, things seemed to settle down again. It would appear that George and Calypso are now getting along, and presumably if London is to have a breeding pair this year, they will be it. Often peregrines do not breed until they are two years old, so it is uncertain whether George is ready to become a father. However, it would not be unprecedented, and we hope that there will be fertile eggs in London this spring.
Monday November 8, 1999
Marcel Gahbauer reports: Shay Redmond has passed some exciting
news on to us. In early November, Russ Chantler saw a peregrine land on a window
ledge of the Canada Trust Building (where the London peregrines nest) and was able to read
the band numbers. To everyone's surprise, the band identified the bird as Cascade,
one of the peregrines hatched at Niagara Falls in 1998.
This is significant simply because it is the first sighting of any of the three peregrines from that nest since they dispersed at the end of last summer. But what's particularly interesting is the fact that Cascade ended up in London, since that is where her mother (Amelia) was hatched.
Tuesday July 20, 1999
Shay Redmond reports: Another one of the juveniles has been found
dead. Anakin, one of the males, was found by mainenance workers. He had
apparently crashed into a building and had a starling in its talons. We now have one
remaining young peregrine left, Obi-Wan.
Saturday July 3, 1999
Shay Redmond reports: Unfortunately we have bad news to report.
Yesterday Queen Amidala made an attempt to fly back to the nest ledge, was having
difficulty and flew full impact into a window. It appeared to be a dead fall, so we
feel she died on impact. Pete Read climbed a ladder to retrieve the body from the
roof of the mezzanine.
It fell on Sue and Pete Read's shoulders to break the news to volunteers and interested passers-by. Conincidentally Scully, last year's female, met the same fate on her second day of flying also. For some reason the females seem to have problems, perhaps due to their larger size, more weight, have more difficulty gaining altitude and being successful in their flights. The two boys appear at this stage to be doing well - we hope they continue to do so!
Friday July 2, 1999
Shay Redmond reports: We are currently having slight problems with
Queen Amidala, our only female. She collided with the window and slid down almost to
street level, flew and landed on the Galleria Mal roof and spent the night there. I
arrived there this morning at 5:30 am and Pete and Sue Read and some volunteers were
already there, and the Queen was still on the roof.
Thursday July 1, 1999
Shay Redmond reports: At 6:15am the last of the chicks, Queen
Amidala, took her maiden flight from the South Tower to the North Tower without incident,
and from then on she made several flights giving the observers below great satisfaction.
Both males Obi-Wan & Anakin are almost professionals, one of the males actually
took after a red-tailed hawk and was soon joined by the Dad and chased the intruder out of
the "no fly zone". Frequent feeding occurs on the rooftops and on the TD
Bank sign across the street from the Canada Trust buildings. If all goes well in the
next day or so the watch may be officially called off on Saturday.
Sunday June 27, 1999
Shay Redmond reports: When I arrived downtown this morning at 9:30
am both males had taken their first flight from the south tower to the north tower; the
female stayed on the nest tray.
Both parents took up positions on the north tower - Mom on the north side and Dad on the west. Mom was keeping an eye on the two young males and Dad was in a position to see if and when the young female would take the plunge and join her two brothers. Don and Sheila Fowler were on the 23rd floor of #1 London Place armed with spotting scope and binoculars while Pete and Sue Read and a host of volunteers were at various positions surrounding the Canada Trust Towers. Except for some flapping and downpours of rain everything remained the same until 1:00 pm when I left.
Wednesday June 23, 1999
Shay Redmond reports: The Falcon Watch and rescue started today
and so far there were no incidents. We had two people on the street and two more on
the 23rd floor of #1 London Place keeping an eye on the birds as they flapped their wings
and ran up and down the ledge getting ready for their maiden flight. The chicks
still have some fluffy down feathers to lose. We are hopeful that all will go well
in the next few days.
Tuesday June 8, 1999
Marcel Gahbauer reports: Today the three London chicks were
banded. The one female and two males were both in excellent health, and were feisty and
vocal throughout the procedure.
The banding was carried out by Pud Hunter of the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and
Russ Chantler of the Hawk Cliff Raptor Banders. Hal Schraeder of the Ontario Ministry of
Natural Resources and Shay Redmond of the McIlwraith Field Naturalists also performed an
essential role by volunteering to ride the swing stage up to the nest ledge, catch the
chicks, and remain there as decoys while the chicks were inside.
One of the issues to be addressed today was whether the adult female was in fact Calypso,
the four-year old female from Cleveland which nested here last year. So far this spring
she had eluded observers trying to read her leg bands. Today, however, she was most
cooperative. First she landed just metres away from Pud and Russ on the roof of the Canada
Trust tower, as they waited for the chicks to be collected from the nest ledge below.
Minutes later, the female flew down to the ledge itself, giving Hal and Shay excellent
views. All confirmed that the bands identified her as Calypso. Earlier in the season the
male was identified as 'Maple 1992', the long-time resident male, so this is definitely
the same pair as last year.
An unhatched egg was also collected from the nest tray. This egg will be taken in for
testing, as it possible that it contains toxins which prevented the embryo from developing
normally (this would be especially likely if this were the first egg laid, as the female
tends to flush out most of these contaminants in the first egg, leaving subsequent ones
'clean'). However, the feeling is that it more likely was simply laid late and was
eventually abandoned by the adults. An egg collected from this nest in 1997 was tested,
and was not found to contain high levels of any toxins; we will hopefully know soon
whether the same is true this year.
Emerald Property Services, managers of the Canada Trust tower, were kind enough to provide
today's attendees with a board room for meeting before and after the banding, and a
separate private room for conducting the banding itself. One by one, the chicks were
weighed and banded, then had a few feathers removed for further analysis. All three were
very vocal, in particular the female, but all of them calmed down when they were lightly
squirted with water, some of which they drank, and the rest of which cooled them down. In
honour of the current popularity of Star Wars, the chicks were named Anakin, Obiwan, and
Amydala.
The entire procedure took only about half an hour, and the chicks were then brought back
to the roof and lowered down to the nest ledge again. The adults had been surprisingly
relaxed about the whole affair today (much to the relief of those on the swing stage) -
Calypso only made the one appearance early on, when she hovered nearby, then went to stand
on the nest box for a while. Not long after the chicks were back and the people and
equipment all removed, both adults returned - Calypso to the nest tray itself, and Maple on the Canada Trust logo above. All in all it was a very
successful banding operation today, and all in attendance enjoyed the opportunity to see
the young chicks up close.
Friday May 28, 1999
Shay Redmond reports: Today I was at #1 London
Place and watched the female feeding the chicks. She was standing in front of her
chicks, and I could see only two. While I was there the male was busy hunting for food.
I didn't see him bring anything back to the nest.
The OPEN HOUSE will be held on June 5 from 9 am to 12 pm (noon) at #1 London Place. People will be greeted in the lobby and brought to the 23rd floor to look through the spotting scopes at the baby peregrines. Volunteers will be available to answer questions about the peregrine falcons. The banding of the chicks is scheduled for June 8.
Thursday May 20, 1999
Shay Redmond reports: The third and final egg
likely hatched overnight - while I was watching the nest from #1 Longon Place yesterday
evening I noticed there was a split in the third egg, so it is possible that i hatched
sometime last night or early this morning. Yesterday evening the female was also
removing eggshells from the second hatch. So now we have all three chicks.
Tuesday May 18, 1999
Shay Redmond reports: The first of the three eggs
has hatched. I went to #1 London Place last night and observed that the female was
very restless, we estimated that she has been incubating for 31 days, and for some reason
the birds in London always go the full distance. The other two eggs should hatch within
the next few days.
Wednesday May 12, 1999
Shay Redmond reports: I went to #1
London Place last night to see if anything was happening. The female was sitting and
there was no sign of the male. I decided to wait 'till she got up to see if any eggs
had hatched. After a half an hour she got up to preen and I could see the three
eggs, then the male flew in to the logo on the west side of the North tower, the female
sat down again and that was the excitement for the evening .
Sunday April 18, 1999
Shay Redmond reports: We went to #1 London Place today and the
female appears to be fully incubating three or possibly four eggs. It's difficult to
get an exact count as she only gets off the eggs for a few seconds while she repositions
herself. The male is busy bringing her food and periodically he has to chase away
Turkey Vultures who wander into their territory.
We estimate full incubation started on April 15th, and they should hatch on May 15th, plus or minus a couple of days.
Monday April 12, 1999
Shay Redmond reports: I went to # 1
London Place to observe the nest only to find there were TWO EGGS. So I assume one
was laid on Saturday 10th April and the other on Monday 12t. As I was watching, the
female got up and turned the eggs and then sat down again; the male was busy flying about
and landing on #1.
Wednesday April 7, 1999
Sara Jean Peters reports: Orrville (who hatched in London) is
again present in Lima, Ohio. Although a female was present several weeks ago, she
has not been seen lately. He was not very aggressive yesterday when we inspected the
site so we don't think a pair is present at this time. He was not present this past winter when I checked the site. I suspect he left the area as I did locate
a juvenile bird from Pittsburgh, PA on the site.
Sunday April 4, 1999
Shay Redmond reports: Easter Sunday and no eggs yet, we observed
the peregrines for about ninety minutes today, the male was perched on the edge of the
nest on the South Tower while the female was on the logo of the North Tower. The
male flew over to the female and they copulated, this occurred twice in ninety minutes.
We are hopeful there will be eggs this week.
Sunday March 28, 1999
Shay Redmond reports: Both birds were seen flying around the
Canada Trust and #1 London Place on Saturday. The male seemed rather content to
remain perched on the edge of the nest tray while the female was flying from building to
building; periodically she would fly to the nest and check things over and fly back to #1.
On Sunday the male was perched at the nest and the female was on the Canada Trust logo on the North Towre. We stayed for thirty minutes and left.
Wednesday March 24, 1999
Shay Redmond reports: Today I spoke
to a fellow birder and he informed me that both peregrines are back at the nest site, and
have been for a couple of weeks. I took a ride downtown to confirm and saw both birds
perched on the edge of the nest tray . I am assuming they are the same male and female as
last year.
Sunday March 21, 1999
Shay Redmond reports: At 11:00am Su
Ross and I went to the 23rd floor of #1 London Place to check if the peregrine falcons had
arrived back and we saw one of the falcons sitting on the edge of the nest tray . We
assumed it was the male; there was no sign of the female but we did notice a dead mourning
dove on the Canada Trust logo above the nest tray.
Some construction work is in progress on the rooftop but the male doesn't seem too bothered as yet , hopefully this will not affect the birds.
Tuesday, July 21, 1998
Shay Redmond reports: Both males are coming along fine, flying around
and honing their hunting skills. The monitoring has been called off as there is nothing
any of us can do, especially as the birds are flying so well.
We had some exciting moments last week when a falconers hawk got loose in the downtown area of London. Some reports say it was a "Red tail", others say it was a "Swainsons". Anyway it was attacked by the adult peregrines and knocked to the ground. The hawk was recovered and taken to a vet by some of the volunteers. The hawk was a little shaken up but not injured.
For more information on the London peregrines, visit the London Project Peregrine Web Page.
© Canadian Peregrine Foundation