Rochester

James River Bridge: growing tummies

Aren't they sweet, these three little toddlers. They have adorable tummies now and are so tired after dinner. Growing real fast and doing so fine all thre of them. They are very well taken care off by Sir James and Elizabeth.

Terminal Tower Cleveland

We are all very anxious to watch hatching of these 4 beautiful eggs from this so very special peregrine couple. SW and Buckeye are a very succesfull pair. SW took over theis Terminal Tower nestsite in 2002 when she killed the resident female Zenith in a territorial fight.
Zenith used to migrate after her juvi's fledged from the nestsite. Buckeye always stayed behind went she left for the southern sun. In 2001 Clearpath already laid 1 egg and occupied her nest when Zenith came back in March. In a horrible fight Zenith killed Clearpath. But in 2002 when Zenith came back SW occupied her nest and had already laid 4 eggs. SW was a young strong female who reacted immediately on the cacking of Zenith in the sky above her.
It was the 28th of March 2002. SW left her nest to Buckeye and attacked Zenith. There was a big fight between the two, they where beating eachother with their wings and attacking the other one with beak and talons. SW was on top of Zenith who laid on her back in the square. They flew up to the ledge of a building and started fighting again. SW was stronger and Zenith was killed.
This is the way of the Peregrine Falcon. No matter how sweet and adorable the little eyases are we are watching all day, they are raptors to be. They are fed prey. The meat they eat in those sweet feedings is from birds who where alive a few hours ago. These are birds of prey, the peregrine, and they are very territorial.
It is their way of life. If we love this time of year , with eggs, hatching and eyases , and want to enjoy it, we have to respect and honor the other side of them as well! The cruel side. At least we think it is. But it is not. Nature can only stay strong and keep existing when it is at its strongest. Birds of prey will never ever succeed in catching the strong and intelligent birds. They won't get catched! Only the weak will end up as prey. The same goes for these territorial disputes. In nature old and sick animals are replaced by the younger generation. Often after a fight.
It is the circle of life. It is their way of life. Not ours. Never try to filter the life and the ways of raptors through your values. That is impossible. They are different and for sure grand in their own way.
As long as we acknowlegde this and respect it, we can honor and enjoy this mighty bird of prey we all love so deeply: our Peregrine Falcon. May this phenomenal creature enlighten us all.

Oberhausen

The eyases here are now 21 days old. The first juvenile feathers begin to poke through the down on the breast and on the head beside the eyes. The chicks continue to rest on their tarsi much of the time, rather than standing on their feet, but this balance shifts quickly in the days to follow. Around the edges of the wings the feathershafts are very clearly visible now.
It strikes me that these eyases are not wandering about a lot, or trying to get to the entrance of the scrape. They just stay in the back of the nest and are not active at all. I have seen totally different behaviour in other eyries.

Brighton Sussex heights

Richmond Virginia

Here the two peregrines are going in to the last week of incubation. Calculating the hatchday is tricky but we know that incubation takes 33 days from the moment incubation really starts.
That will be after the second last egg has been laid. They do not start incubating before that. They just take care the eggs don't cool off to much.
It is essential that the eyases all hatch within 24 hours, or 48 at the most. That way they all have the same chance to be able to beg for food. Eyases grow amazingly in the first 2-3 days. They double their weight. A little newborn eyas will therefor never be able to compete with his sister who is twice his size. She will be the one who gets all the food and the last born will die.
So incubating starts at the same time. 33 days and the first laid egg will hatch.
How wonderful this strategy succeeds can be seen in James River Bridge where all three eyases where born within a few hours of eachother. They are all the same size and get all enough food.

De Mortel: waiting for the eyases

No pips yet, a lot of agitation of S2, much fuzzing with the eggs. Perhaps, the eyases are screaming softly already from inside? Maybe tomorrow we will know more.

Rome video's of today

In Rome both eyases are doing great. They are very alert, flapping their little wings already and trying to look over the fence! Two very assertive raptors to be. They are getting a fierce education, they are much left alone without protection. But it is not cold in Rome. In fact tomorrow will be a warm day.

Heidelberg: so small

Two very tiny and adorable baby peregrines, only 5 days old. Aurora feeds them, Phönix is not allowed too. And after all, in the Peregrine world the lady is the boss.

Harrisburg

Ohio Columbus

James River Bridge: so sweet

Indianapolis

The 5.2 earthquake that hit the Midwest this morning (4/18) did not seem to disturb the birds. Reports on TV and the Indianapolis Star said buildings in downtown Indianapolis shook but if the rattling effect of the helicopter last weekend didn't move them, this earthquake wasn't going to oust them either!

Zwolle

Oberhausen feeding

Cobb Island

Eemsmond: no pips yet

Tomorrow it will be 33 days after the last egg has been laid, so we expect the first eyas to make it's great excape some time tomorrow.
It's hard to tell if anything is going on here. So we just have to wait and see.

Derby peregrines

Hatching

The hatching process of the eggs the peregrines have been incubating for 33 days is a major event. It's awesome that we can see and watch it so close by webcam.
But what is going on inside. How does that tiny creature get him or herself out of the eggshell, out of it's tiny sophisticated incubator. That is quite a job and do not underestimate the enormous lot of energy this must take. Making the escape is a proces that takes many hours. From the first pip to actually hatching can take over 12 hours.

About three days before hatching, the embryo's head burrows beneath the right shoulder so the beak is positioned under the wing & against the two membranes separating the embryo from the air space at the large end of the shell. Sometime that same day, due to oxygen depletion, the beak pierces through the membranes into the air space & pulmonary respiration begins.
The little chick is starting to make sounds as well, a very weak shri-shri-shri is coming from within the egg. From alle eggs that are in this stage. The little ones are telling eachother to hatch too, so all of them hatch after eachother with little time interval.

About a day later, with a dwindling oxygen supply, the embryo begins to kick, to twist and to thrust its head and beak backward, until the eggtooth pips the first hole. The chick can now draw breath. As fresh air enters the shell and circulates, the membranes inside begin to dry, and the blood vessels within those membranes begin to shrink. At this moment, both eggs in James River Bridge are in this stage.

The embryo continues to pip, kick and twist. Small cracks advance counter-clockwise by millimeters around the big end of the shell. A special "hatching muscle" on the back of the chick's neck swells to several times its normal size with a great influx of fluid from the embryo's lymphatic system. Testosteron is catalysing this. The swelling accentuates sensory signals sent through the neck, stimulating the embryo to further activity. Eventually, the cap of the egg is cracked enough. The embryo pushes it off, unfolds from the tuck, and escapes from the shell.

Bologna

16 days old are these two and watch them excersising their wings. It is a kind of body building their flapping their wings.
We all know that without a daily work-put our muscles will stay small. For these fledgelings to be it's very important they train their major flightmuscles before they can take off in 3-4 weeks.
The flight muscles pectoralis & supracoracoideus are very large & located near the center of gravity: pectoralis or downstroke muscle - originates on the keel and inserts on the underside of the humerus.
The supracoracoideus or upstroke muscle - originates on the keel and inserts on the upper side of the humerus,
The last one is very important and is not strong enough by the time they fledge. Most fledgelings can not manage to ascend again once on the ground. There is the major danger with fledgelings. Only a few are able to gain hight once down.
So this wingflapping is getting stronger and preparing for first flight. There are eyases who start very early, like the Rome eyases.