Parents at William Osler Enjoying the Day Without Kids
- All Reports
Tracy Simpson Reports:
Frank and I took a trip this evening at 6:00pm to the William Osler Hospital site to check in on the family of falcons there and found Hurricane, the resident male, on top of the east facing “H” and O’Connor, the resident female, on her usual southeast corner of the nest ledge. A quick check of the nest tray and hydro towers revealed no juveniles in the area at the time and the adults actually looked rather relaxed. Half an hour after our arrival, both adults left their perches and were soaring above the roof of the hospital. A moment later, O’Connor took off and headed to the northeast with intent and power and so Frank and I tracked her with our binoculars as she remained in our sights. Hurricane took off and joined her and left Frank and I wondering what she was up to. A moment later, she broke off her flight and circled back towards the hospital as Hurricane continued northeast and disappeared. O’Connor was gone for at least 20 minutes or more before she reappeared on the southeast ledge she likes to call home. Hurricane had also returned and was back on the east facing sign consuming a recent kill he had made while he was gone. As the sun set, there was no appearance by any of the juveniles and both adults had settled in for the night.
While the young falcons may be flying further afield in preparation for a successful migration, both parents are still using the nest site as a night roost and feeding station and will continue to defend the territory although not as vigorously as they would with juveniles present. The adult pair will also be spending more time away from the nest site hunting and feeding but will return to it periodically throughout the day and each evening. The juveniles will also continue to periodically use the nest site as a roosting spot; an observation of this behaviour seen recently at the Toronto Sheraton nest site.
At almost all urban nest sites, the adults remain on territory even in the winter as prey is abundant in the form of pigeons and other small birds and the buildings provide microclimates where they can escape the winds and cold of winter. The juveniles, on the other hand, will be leaving this fall for the south, following the smaller birds that they prey upon. Over the next week, we will be making a trip out to Islington and Rexdale where the adult female likes to take the young to train, as evidenced by our sighting of Wind giving some gulls a go at that intersection, and see if we can spot any of the juveniles practicing their skills. Check back as we watch the progress of the young ones training for their big flight!!