Sam hatched in 2022 at the 150 Ferrand Dr. Nest Don Mills has been seen at the Scarborough Bluffs and Rosetta McClain Gardens yesterday. Thanks to a report and photos from Jason Milson and David Cooper we will be keeping an eye open for Sam and hopefully get more reports.
The 4th egg was laid on April 15th so we should see a hatch between May 17th to 20th. They have installed a camera so they can keep an eye on the nest without disturbing her.
Daniel was able to fix the issue with the web camera and it is back up and running.
Mark has been down to the Toronto Sheraton Hotel and there is no evidence of any attempt to nest there yet and no peregrines on site.
Mark got the new monitor hooked up today and got a camera image of mom and 2 chicks although he believes he saw a 3rd head. The chicks are about 3 days old and banding is booked for May 24th at 1 :00 PM. stay tuned for banding information and photos.
The Hamilton 4 are being fed May 3rd. We have booked the Banding of the chicks for May 18th at 1:00 PM. It will be a first chick extraction for our new climber John Beals but not his first time at a peregrine nest. John a window washer has had to deal with peregrines at several sights in the GTA.
You can watch the web camera on banding day at http://falcons.hamiltonnature.org/?wide
Stay tuned for banding information and photos.
Sunday, April 30, 2023 - Early this morning, McKeever flew in to feed her chicks, and we saw that there was now a third chick eagerly clamoring for food. As we watched the chicks get fed, we began to see the egg in the foreground crack apart, and, over the next half hour, our fourth and final peregrine chick hatched. As is usual, It had a little help from mom, who picked away the edges of the shell. You can see a piece of shell in McKeever’s beak in the last photo.
A month ago we mentioned how the adults carefully timed the incubation of the first eggs so that they would all hatch together, and this has now resulted in all four eggs hatching within 24 hours! With four in the nest, we will see a lot of feedings over the coming month. And needless to say, we’re going to need a lot of volunteer watchers. If you have some time to spare in June, please click the Volunteer button at the top of this page. Thanks!
TWO CHICKS SO FAR
Saturday, April 29, 2023 - Just beore 6pm, we caught our first sight of two new peregrine chicks in the Sheraton Hamilton nest. Their white down feathers were already dry, so it seemed likely that they hatched several hours before, while their mother kept them sheltered from the rain. Feeding began almost immediately (photos). We should see the other two eggs hatch within the next day or so.
HATCHING IS STARTING!
Saturday, April 29, 2023, 2pm - Just after 8am this morning we noticed the first tiny hole in one egg, then soon saw a crack appearing in another. We knew this was coming as McKeever fussed over the eggs in the last day, listening to the tiny sounds of chicks inside the eggs. She will continue to move and turn the eggs, which helps the chicks peck their way out of their shells. By this evening we expect to see the first little white balls of fluff.
