July 08, 2009 - Etobicoke - Sun Life Centre
Kathy Reports:
What an exciting morning! Several of us just witnessed one of the juvenile males successful catch his own breakfast!! Big sister even joined in to cheer him on as he caught a decent size prey and proceeded to carry him up to the rooftop! The other male was on the rooftop already and proud Mama is now standing guard as they are no doubt enjoying a well deserved feast in the sun!
No sign of dad as of yet but Angel was on her webcam perch for the first time in several days…so perhaps he has made an appearence we’ve missed or she’s just adjusting to his prolonged absences.
Posted on July 8, 2009 9:11 am
July 07, 2009 - Etobicoke - Sun Life Centre
Kathy Reports:
Another cool and mostly grey day today, where has summer gone?! And where has our resident male gone? For the past few days myself and several other falcon fans in the area have noticed that we seem to be missing a peregrine falcon. The last time I observed him on-site was last Tuesday before I left for a few days off. Everything seemed normal, both parents on-site and 3 kids hassling them for food.
The past 4 days I have been at the site and checked several times over the day and still no sign of Jack. I’ve noticed that Angel is not on her usual perch at her habitual times and seems to be out hunting more than she normally would at this point. The 3 juveniles are still on-site and are learning to perfect their hunting skills.
There is a rumour out there that he may have absconded with a recently single black and white peregrine falcon with 3 kids of her own however I’m still holding out hope that it’s just a case of mistaken identitiy..after all black and white peregrine falcon with bright orange feet could be anyone, right???!!! Maybe he’s just checking out new real estate, a home with a lakefront view perhaps? Or just enjoying some ‘me’ time?
In the meantime, have no worries as Angel is more than capable of looking after her brood at this late date. She is an exceptional female falcon and the question remains, will she welcome him home from his vacation or tell him to ‘hit the road Jack’!
Stay tuned….
Posted on July 7, 2009 7:43 pm
July 03, 2009 - Toronto - Sheraton Centre
Jan Chudy Reports:
Checking in at 9, I found a juvenile on the Sheraton nest ledge and two juveniles together on the south side of the Sheraton roof. Virtually no further sightings until 4:15 when I spotted a juvenile flying around the south side of the Sheraton and one sitting on the “C” of centre. It was joined by the other juvenile shortly thereafter and both stayed together on the “C” until I left at 5:05. At this time, I spotted a third juvenile on the SW corner of 100 Adelaide.
Posted on July 6, 2009 9:24 am
July 04, 2009 - International, National and Local News
Kathy Reports:
I meant to post this a few weeks ago. It is news about a 2006 born female named Lara at our Etobicoke Sunlife location who is now nesting at the Ohio Turnpike Bridge. I received the information from a lovely lady named Alison who runs a great site covering falcons all over the world.
It was posted on her website by two avid falconers named Chad and Chris and I encourage you to go and check out their photos of Lara and mate Rocky. Rocky is a son born to the famous Buckeye who passed away in 2007 - if you haven’t read about him, I recommend looking up his history at the link I’ve included below - he was an outstanding male falcon and much beloved by falcon fans around the world including myself.
Here is the great news about Lara and Rocky:
“Great news– looks like we have a hatch here in their second attempt this year! After about an hour we saw Rocky fly in with food and land up at the nest site. Lara came out from back in, took the food, flew to the support across from the nest to eat some, then flew to the nest and went in with the food. Here’s one shot of Lara with the food before she went up to the support…”
Here’s the link to the thread, which has great photos of Lara and Rocky:
http://www.falconcam-cmnh.org/e107_plugins/forum/forum_viewtopic.php?40039
Thank you very much to Alison, and to Chad and Chris for taking such good care of our girl!
Monday, July 6th: Just received news confirming that Lara and Rocky have 4 chicks!!! If you follow the above link they even have pictures of the young!! Congratulations to the first time parents and thank you again Alison for passing the news along!!
Posted on July 4, 2009 8:04 pm
July 04, 2009 - Etobicoke - Sun Life Centre
Kathy Reports:
Went down to the nest site this morning for a few hours to check on our resident family. The first 15 minutes or so were quite, in fact I thought they must have flown off for a family day or maybe to celebrate July 4th with their American cousins!
It didn’t take long for Elena to come screaming into the area…she is flying like an adult now! She was diving, gliding, chasing her brother perry, trying to knock him off his perch. Both were having a great time, they even locked talons in the air. At one point I was up in the tower on the 17th floor and I saw her flying upside down..she was spectaculor!!!
Our litte Mackenzie seems to be living the life of a loner. I found him tucked into a ledge on the opposite side of the nestbox and he did take a short flight over to check on his siblings but then decided he was going to go hang out on mom’s webcam perch.
Mom came zooming in and kept trying to get him to give her spot back but he was having none of it. In fact he promptly turned around with his back to her as if to ignore her and started preening…kids!!!
No sign of the resident male the entire time I was there.
Posted on July 4, 2009 7:40 pm
July 04, 2009 - Niagara Falls
Mark Nash Reports:
We must apologize for the lack of updates and reports to the Niagara nest site pages, as we have had some challenges while working out the bugs in the new observation reporting system. Throughout the late spring, we have not been able to locate the nesting location of the Niagara Falls peregrines. While we have received several reports of activity (two adults and one juvenile) having been observed flying in and around of the Niagara gorge, the eyrie was never found this year.
While we don’t know why the adults did not return to the nest site at the old OPG facility located in the gorge area, it is apparent that a pair did in fact produce again this year - (at least one hatchling) somewhere in the immediate area, given the observation reports that we have received over the past weeks.
In addition to the CPF, both the New York DEC and the OMNR have been in search for an active eyrie throughout the spring in an effort to locate a nest site, but sadly, the adult pair have not made the search an easy one, as they have been done a great job in concealing their nest site this year.
Several mysteries still remain as to why the pair of last year did not return to the previous nest site where they were so successful over the past two years, and where did they set up house this year? Any information that can help us verify the nest site is most welcomed.
Posted on July 4, 2009 9:29 am
July 03, 2009 - Etobicoke - William Osler
Tracy Simpson Reports:
In summary: Day 2
AM – When checked, the Magarita was found on the wall perch at the back of the pen. She was standing in a perfectly aligned posture and was roosting quietly. My movement drew her attention and her eyes looked bright and alert.
Afternoon: – Magarita was observed on the back wall perch of the pen roosting quietly. Mutes present on the ground are small but well formed.
PM – Magarita was given 97 grams of food that was moistened and medicated. At opening the door, the she turned to face me and hissed slightly indicating her dissatisfaction of my presence. The food was taken within 30 seconds of placement and ½ of the meal was immediately consumed. Once again in true peregrine fashion, the choice food parts was consumed first, (the vital organs, breast meat and some bone). After filling her crop, she returned to the wall perch, scratched both wings and roused and then settled in quietly for the evening.
Stay tuned……
Posted on July 4, 2009 9:03 am
July 02, 2009 - Etobicoke - William Osler
Mark Nash Reports:
Magarita was transferred from the Toronto Wildlife Centre to the CPF Raptor centre this afternoon, weighed in at 1110 grams (2.4 lbs) on an empty crop, and quickly settled in to an indoor pen that has been specially prepared for her while she will be is in our care during her convulsive period. While she is obviously incapable of flight due to her injury, she had no problem accessing the floor perch that has been set up in the pen, (set up at approx. 22 inches above the floor). She was provided approx. 98 grams of food along with her prescribed medication and in true peregrine fashion, she quickly consumed seventy five percent of the food given, then stashed the balance of the food in the corner of the pen behind the nest tray.
After her meal was consumed, Magarita raised her feathers and completed a partial rouse. During the observation period, it was noted that she passed several mutes that although not large, in their volume, they looked clear and normal. Within ½ hour, she returned to her food stash and consumed the balance of the meal. She then jumped up to the back wall perch and settled in for sleep. It was noted that both wings were held tight to the body in a perfectly upright position while standing and a normal roosting posture was observed.
In summery, the first day has been good. Her overall condition is excellent, as she carrying a very good weight and has an excellent appetite. She is obviously having no problem consuming her prescribed medications and has accepted both the food source and her new temporary environment.
Magarita’s overall behavior, attitude, body posturing and spirits are excellent, and we are very confident that her short stay with us will be positive and hopefully lead to a quick rehabilitation period so that she can return back to the wild to be reunited with her waiting family.
Stay tuned……..
Posted on July 4, 2009 8:48 am
July 03, 2009 - Hamilton - Sheraton Hotel
Sarah Washington Reports:
Well this year has been another great one at the Hamilton Sheraton Hotel. The chicks are doing awesome! You can see them all playing tag in the downtown area, and can really see how well they are doing. They act like they have been flying for years. The hunting aspect with the parents is going vert well. They have been seen catching food mid air and learning to mantle it as well. I am very proud of them. They always come so quickly and there is a momwnt of sadness.
I wish them the best of luck.
Posted on July 3, 2009 3:53 pm
July 02, 2009 - Toronto - Sheraton Centre
Jan Chudy Reports:
For the whole day, one or more juveniles were spotted on various locations of the Sheraton - proving that it is the best place to stay in Toronto! First sighting was at 8:15, with a juvenile on the south east corner of the hotel roof. At 8:30 I spotted a juvenile on the east Sheraton antenna - I think this is a first for a Sheraton juvenile. At 10:05, one juvenile was sitting on the last “e” of Centre and one on the nest ledge. A third bird, later identified as Osler, was on the east side of 120 Adelaide. At 10:20. Osler joined his siblings at the Sheraton by landing on the north east corner of the roof. At 12:30, two juveniles were on the east side of the Sheraton roof, and so it continued until 2:10. One juvenile was on the east antenna and as I scanned the roof I realized a second juvenile was on the west antenna. As I got the bicoculars focussed on it, the one on the east antenna flew over and knocked it off! The two juveniles then put on a spectacular show of swooping and diving and talon tag, soaring higher and higher, then dropping down. After more than five minutes of this, one clearly had had enough and landed on the north east corner of the Sheraton roof. The other did a few more laps and then vanished above me over First Canadian Place. From then until 5, there were at least two juveniles in sight on various Sheraton perches.
Posted on July 3, 2009 2:36 pm
