Carching Up - Rainy Day Thursday at MEC
June 13, 2013 - Mississauga - Executive Centre
Tracy Simpson Reports:
Rain rain go away. We started out this morning’s watch with a misty and cold rain. It was really penetrating and was quite an uncomfortable feeling. Thank goodness for the overhang at MEC 3 or us watchers would have been soaked. Both Catherine and Ashley were on the ledge, had exited the box and were running and flapping like wild things. Ashley seem to be the more active of the two and both girls at one point had gotten themselves out into the rain just enough to enjoy their first bath. Each girl in turn got themselves nice and soaked and then retired to the nest box to preen and fix their feathers. There was a lot of napping today by both juveniles and the parents didn’t seem to mind that they were inactive on such a rainy day. By mid afternoon the rains had tapered off and they were waking up. Katherine, Shannon, Margaret and I now settled in for some action and a potential fledge. Ashley was running back and forth along the nest ledge and she was daring to jump the gap several times today. I don’t think Ashley will be long before she’s made it to the ledge next door. Unlike yesterday, mom and dad were hunting a lot more often and both girls were being fed to keep them down on the ledge. It certainly didn’t keep them from being bouncy though as they flapped, exercised and preened their feathers removing all of the last few bits of down that remained on their bodies. By the end of the day I had spoken to Bruce and he was telling me that out in Etobicoke the rains were getting really heavy and even quite torrential at times soaking both him and the birds. By that time it had actually cleared up here at MEC and at sundown there was a rainbow out to the east in behind the buildings. As I sat there enjoying the rainbow I couldn’t help but think to myself that I should tell the girls that there is a pot of pigeon at the end of that rainbow if all they would do is just FLY TO IT!! As relaxed and happy as they look right now sitting up on the nest ledge I do think that tomorrow were going to see our first flight from one of the girls. I think most likely it’s going to be Ashley as she seems to be the precocious one of the bunch up there. I would like to say a huge thank you to Katherine, Shannon, Margaret and Bruce for all of their help in keeping me awake and getting me through such a rainy cold day. Dawn to dusk fledge watches are never easy but our excellent team of volunteers at MEC are making it that much easier. Thanks again for all of your help everybody and I hope that tomorrow we have our first ledge to celebrate.