First TWO hatches at Mississauga Executive Centre!! As usual, MIDNIGHT and RENEGADE lead the way! Both arrived sometime during the night (April 27). Thank you Kathy Majich for the info and photo! Cheers, Lucie
The first two photos were from March 17 when there was lots of ee-chupping. I can confirm MacKenzie (29/Y, solid black) and Jo (68/U, black/red). Although fuzzy, you can make out MacKenzie’s band info. With Jo’s band, you can see the 6 and being black/red, it’s safe to say it’s her.
On April 22, no one was around and I got photos of the nest from a distance in case she was hunkered down. She wasn’t there. I waited for about an hour and didn’t see anyone at all.
Update on DON MILLS: Quest and Mystery continue to incubate…all good. I will start hatch watch around May 1st
NEWS FROM DON MILLS/AMEXON: Our new residents have 2 eggs!! I’ve been watching the past 6 weeks or so, on and off. Lots of drama. At first the new couple were just hanging around, getting familiar with the new neighborhood. Then it seemed like they were settling down and getting down to business, if you know what I mean. Then I stopped by and saw the male on the rooftop looking west…I saw 2 peregrines!! Was that one new , one intruder?? Oh oh. But then as they got closer, the one on the roof was off like a shot after them! There was contact, screaming…and then out front 150…a 4th peregrine!! After a short battle, the intruders were chased off. As Marion said…we’ve got some “Hot property ” here! For the next 3 days I witnessed a single intruder bother this new pair as they tried to protect their nest and eggs. Finally , it seemed to finally calm down and I only saw one peregrine at a time…eggs!!! I have been quite busy plus the weather has not been cooperating but my son and I got up to the roof today . I peeked over and saw the female on the nest tray…she eyed me for a bit and then started alarm calling and was off…to reveal 2 eggs! She flew around calling for back up…we moved back to see if he would show up and he finally did. And then we left . Hatch watch will start in 2 weeks. My son has named this pair(with Sally and my blessing lol) ….so meet Holden and Nagata! Any sy-fi fans out there?? If so , you’ll know this pair from an excellent show “The Expanse”..the fun is beginning …..Cathy
Checking the footage at the CTV Bell Media nest site today, it looks like there are now 4 eggs in the nest box!!!
CTV Kitchener Falcon Watch: April 10, 2022 | CTV News
Earlier, Kellie reported: “At 11:05, myself, my Mom, Annarita and her husband, Fred went to see the Peregrines. On arrival, it was fairly quiet. A few minutes later, we could hear a falcon calling, but could not spot it. Fred finally spotted an adult perched on a corner of the Grand River Hospital. It’s not a perch I’ve seen them use in past years, but perhaps a bit more protected from the wind.
A few Turkey Vultures were getting increasingly closer to the nest tower on their flybys, until one got too close. The adult on the hospital rocketed off their perch and caught up with the TV to escort it out of the area. In flight, it was easier to tell it was the male.
We noticed a few pigeons gathering around the apartment building balconies (King’s Tower) and the chimney of the shorter brown brick building behind the parking area. A few minutes later, the male flew into the nest box and switched off with the female, who looked especially monstrous compared to the male due to fluffiness (it was a cold and windy morning). She shot off of the ‘porch’ of the nestbox and then went barrelling through the flock of 8 pigeons (two pigeons smartly didn’t take flight). We lost the female behind the building after the pigeons scattered.
Overall, quite a lot of action for no babies yet and only a half hour or so of watching!!”
Both adults were seen this morning at 7:20. Taking turns over nest duty. A successful hunt was reported this morning at 7:50. At 6:00 tonight, it was confirmed that there are indeed 3 eggs in the nest box!!!
At 3:05, a turkey vulture flew close by the nest box and one bird came out and sat on the ledge while the other took off from the back side of the tower. It came back a while later and flew around and landed in the box briefly then took off again to parts unknown.
Photos courtesy of Karen von Knobloch
Hamilton Falconwatch News Updates
provided by the Hamilton Naturalists’ Club
HAS MCKEEVER FINISHED LAYING?
Sunday, April 3, 2022 - It was a week ago today that McKeever laid her first egg. Without being able to count them, we have two ways to estimate when McKeever has finished her laying. The first is a simple bit of math. Peregrines generally lay no more than 4 eggs, so, with an average time between individual eggs of about 2 days, the longest laying can last is about a week. On rare occasions, a fifth egg will be produced, which would make tomorrow the last day of laying.
Our other clue is to look at the color of the eggs. A freshly laid egg is much redder than one that has been sitting in the nest for a few days. This photo shows the difference quite clearly. The egg on the left has been laid more recently, while the one on the right has faded enough that we can be quite sure it is the first (or possibly the second) egg laid. Now, the waiting game begins. And in about a month we will see how many of these eggs are viable and actually hatch. With luck, and the youthful vigor of our two adults, we may see a very full nest this year!
There are 4 eggs laid now hope they all hatch. It`s may be a very busy season 