Quest is still at Nantucket and she is managing the wintercold just fine. She must have found a nice place to rest because data from the transmitter’s temperature sensor continues to show that Quest is keeping warm, with temperatures from 18-25°C being recorded. She has many fans in Nantucket who keep track of her.
As it turns out Mariah and Kaver of Rochester and Freedom and Roosevelt of Fort Wayne have more in common then we think. A pair of Peregrine falcons have been nesting at the Toledo Edison’s Bay Shore power plant in Oregon, Ohio. The male, Swifty, was hatched in Fort Wayne, Indiana. His mate is Millie hatched in 2005 at an industrial facility in Port Colborne, Ontario Canada. Millie is the daughter of Freedom and Purity, and Freedom is the son of Mariah and Kaver!
Pic by Jim Pisello
Freedom, a male peregrine falcon was hatched at Kodak's world headquaters in Rochester, NY in 2002. Today he lives at an industrial facility in Canada on the northern shores of Lake Erie with his mate Purity.
In the summer of 2005 members of the Kodak Falconcam and Genesee Valley Audubon Society took a trip to Port Colborne to visit Freedom and Purity with their offspring Millie and Ellie.
Pic by Jim Pisello
Jim Pisello made some amazing pictures of Freedom. It is striking to see how much Freedom inherited a perfect blending of looks from both his parents. He has Kaver's snowy breast, dark, full hood and malar stripes, but also Mariah's characteristic white supracereal stripe (the one above her bill between her eyes). He also has Mariah's voice, and something of her personality.
Quest is doing very well! Rochester Falconcam member Jess reports on Imprints:
When she’s not in Tom Nevers, Quest is at the beach, hunting. With the help of Rochester Falconcam member Carol Phillips we were very fortunate to have received a note from Vernon Laux, who described his encounter with Quest only a couple of days ago.
Jan. 6, 2009 Quest Successful Hunt
The wind died here on Nantucket on the afternoon of Jan. 6, 2009, a most unusual occurrence. I headed out to Low Beach on the southeast corner of the island to witness the “gull show” -far and away the best on the eastern seaboard. While looking at some 120 Lesser Black-backed Gulls, 85 Iceland Gulls, 3 thousand Bonaparte’s Gulls, a couple of adult Little Gulls as well as finding some 15 Dovekies sitting in the water and flying about all the small gulls flew off the water and gathered in a dense flock. This is a sure sign of a falcon on the hunt. It was 2:30 in the afternoon.
Scanning everywhere I finally picked out the falcon, ringing at a considerable height and already almost out of sight in binoculars heading due east. The falcon then stooped on something and missed. Switching to a spotting scope I lost the falcon out over the water, guessing she was a mile and a half away. I had barely seen the bird and could not tell if it was fitted with a transmitter.
Approximately 15 minutes later I spotted a falcon coming back to shore from way out east. It was heading right for me and I could tell by the labored flight that it was carrying prey. As the bird flew almost directly me over me I could tell that it was a Dovekie in her talons. She flew right in to where I was on the beach and came fairly close heading down the beach about a half mile further to sit on a piece of driftwood. I could see the antenna as she flew past.
I decided to give chase to attempt to get photos for the folks in Rochester as I was aware that Quest had been hanging out. While not delighted that she was hunting Dovekies, quite a rare bird here and no match at all for a falcon, it was a good use of the hapless Alcid. Dovekies are always a scarce bird in these parts but that is the way it is.
She proceeded to pluck the bird with feathers flying. Normally falcons decapitate their prey and when done leave the head, feet, bits of the sternum and intestines. Dovekies being basically neckless, Quest was not able to do this and went to work plucking and eating. She allowed me to approach within about 25 yards when she moved up the beach a little further. At any rate she seemed to be enjoying her meal so I left her in peace. She went to roost with a full crop as the weather was about to get much worse. She looks very healthy and the transmitter does not seem to be slowing her down at all. Walking back down the beach I found a freshly dead Thick-billed Murre. Best- E.Vernon Laux
Vern took some great pictures of Quest. Here they are!
Quest is still on Nantucket island where she has spent Christmas. Jess reports on Imprints on December 19:
Despite some gaps in the daily emails from the ARGOS satellite tracking service during the past several days, there’s enough data to show that Quest is staying between the communities of Siasconset and Surfside on the southern shore of Nantucket Island.
The reliable data points indicate that she’s spending much of her time along Tom Nevers Road. Satellite imagery shows this to be a wooded residential neighborhood with plenty of single-family homes. Click the View Larger Map link then click the Satellite button to switch views. Some of the houseslook quite large. It’s likely that the woodland provides a refuge for Quest, sheltering her from the worst of the precipitation and especially the wind which has been quite fierce in recent days.
In order to make things more viseble I have been collecting some pics of the vicinity overthere, so we can imagine a bit where she is, and what she is seeing.
It looks like Quest has decided to leave the Cape for a while. Since December 5th she’s been visiting the old whaling port-turned-high class vacation spot.
She started at the northernmost tip of the island, spending the 5th and 6th at the historic Great Point Lighthouse. There are many shorebirds there to keep her fed. The data from the 7th showed her at the northeast end of the island.
The 8th and 9th found her moving south to Siasconset. The morning reading on the 8th showed her on the beach near Ocean Avenue, while a strong signal on the evening of the 9th placed her in the wooded residential neighborhood along Tom Nevers Road. So Quest appears to be seeking out sheltered spots where she can pass the night in relative comfort.
A look at the map shows Quest returning to some of her favorite haunts on the Cape, including Wellfleet Bay and Monomoy Island. But the timestamps tell a different story.
Quest usually takes her trips to Monomoy during the day, but our most recent data inhttp://rfalconcam.com/imprints/dicates that she has actually been spending her nights on the tidal flat. We didn’t receive any good data for the 3rd but the data for the 29th, 2nd and 4th places her there in the early morning and late evening. On at least one occasion we were fortunate to get consecutive good data passes at hourly intervals indicating that she is indeed spending the night on the northern end of Monomoy Island.
The data points are so closely spaced that it appears she’s found a particular area she likes. The satellite image doesn’t show any structures nearby, so it’s not clear where she’s staying, but something on the island seems to appeal to her.
As mentioned before the nestbox from Mariah and Kaver of Rochester has been removed from the Kodakbuilding. It was relocated on the Powers Building in Rochester back in October. Now 3 cams have been installed at the nestbox, so if Mariah decides to lay her eggs in 2009 in this nestbox we all will be able to watch it !
Quest in the meantime has been staying away from Monomoy, choosing instead to go into Chatham Port. In fact, the three data points in the Chatham area place her very close to the Middle School where she spent a few days back in September. Her night time destination continues to be Nickerson State Park.
Remember those 4 beautiful ladies of Rochester 2007. Like every year the Rochester youngsters have that extra bit of charme. In 2007 there were 4 female juvs: Linn, Grace, Sacajawae and Ananta.
At december 31, 2007 members from the Canadian Peregrine Foundation were able to positive indentifie a juvenile peregrine falcon in Ontario, Cananda.
This is what Mark Nash said:
Hello All, We have finally been able to get a positive identification on one of the two Pefa’s that have been calling this neck of the woods home for the past months. On Dec. 31st/2007, one of the CPF volunteers - Bruce Massey’s efforts paid off, and he was able to positively confirm the band number of the Pefa now calling the Bell building at Pharmacy and Eglinton her turf. This is the same building that we used for this past summers hack of four orphaned peregrine chicks that came to us from Quebec.
It is confirmed that we have a juvenile female - 91 over V - holding (and protecting) this territory, and its Linn from Rochester 2007!! She still [has] her red tape over the Silver USFW band.
Linn has been exhibiting very territorial behavior – (as she has been observed defending the Bell building on three different occasions over the past two weeks) while chasing off the local red-tails as they fly over and around of the Bell building.
She can be seen regularly roosting on the Bell building, - next to the hack box, and seems to be calling the building her own – (at least for the time being). She is no longer is being observed on the Water storage tank at Warden and Eglinton, as we pass both these places daily as we go into the CPF head office.
Sadly, we have not seen the adult male that was hanging around with her when she was roosting on the Water storage tank.
Sincerely,
Mark Nash
Director
The Canadian Peregrine Foundation
Linn disappeared some time later. But she is back! She molted into a beautiful adult Peregrine falcon. And she has a mate! Such wonderful news!
Mark Nash:
Over the past four plus weeks, we have been getting regular sightings of a pair of peregrines that have been hanging around the Bell hack site at Pharmacy & Eglinton. Both birds (a male and female) have been observed coming in and out of the hack box, as well as roosting, sleeping and feeding regularly on various elevations on the Bell building. This morning we were able to confirm Bruce Massey’s observation of the female’s band number that he [observed] this past weekend (November 8th & 9th 2008) - Black 91 over Green V. She has been identified as Linn from Rochester – produced at the Kodak nest site in 2007!! Her male friend also [wears] a Black over Green colour marker band (but we have nohttp://rfalconcam.com/imprints/t been able to get his numbers yet). BUT his USFWS band appears to be a purple/mauve colour. While it may be a coloured tape, it does not appear to be case. We will continue to monitor the site in the hopes that we might get an ID on this guy.
This really is exciting news. It so great when eyases we all saw hatch and grow into juveniles show up as adults a year later. And become parents in their third spring. Like Rhea Mae from Rochester 2006 become a mom in 2008.
We do hope Linn and her mate will continue to stay together and we can watch them go into courtship next spring!
I just want to remind you of this smashing and moving video by Lou Capuano of the Rochester 2007 season. Just sit back and let the music and the images take you back..... (And Linn is the one with the red legband.)
It looks like Quest has established a regular cycle of activity for herself. All of the November data thus far places her near Monomoy Island during the day, and at Nickerson State Park in the evening and at night. It seems the pineland in the park is providing a sheltered spot where she can rest. And of course, she’s likely taking advantage of the bird buffet at Monomoy during the day.
It’s shaping up to be a good life for Quest. She doesn’t appear to be in any hurry to leave the Cape, so this might be the pattern we can expect from her throughout the winter. Quest might have other plans though, so keep checking back every few days to catch up on her latest movements!
The first six days of November yielded more good positional data on Quest. She’s still spending her time out around Monomoy Island, but we also found her at Nickerson State Park which is on the inside of the elbow of the Cape, just north of State Route 6.
The best data for the 5th and 6th place her on opposite sides of North Monomoy Island at the south end. 9:23PM on the 5th found Quest on the tidal flats on the western side of the island. Exactly six hours later she was on the east shore. Both of these positions are about 2 miles (3.3km) from the mainland. It’s possible there was some light available from the coastal buildings, but if the skies were clear she likely had the benefit of the waxing crescent Moon to help light her way.
In line with her recent behavior, we find Quest continuing to spend her days at the Monomoy National Wildlife refuge. The data over the past few days places her on the north end of the barrier island. She got an early start there on the 16th, appearing over Morris Island at 5:19AM, well before sunrise. Otherwise, her night-time locations continue to be in the area around Chatham and Brewster.
The past few days have also given us some mid-day readings as well as early morning and late evening data. Accurate mid-day data are harder to get because the weak signal from the transmitter isn’t as easy to receive during the day, when there is a lot of radio-frequency interference. Since each transmitted message lasts less than one second, it is more likely that the Argos satellites will receive a weak or garbled signal, or won’t receive one at all. So we’re happy that we’ve been getting some pretty accurate data in the daylight hours over recent days.
Our Lady of Tocjester Quest is still hanging out around the Cape. Thanks to the data biologists are able to see her daily routine.
She’s spending the early mornings, and presumably her overnights, in the area around Chatham and Brewster. It looks like she’s occupying her days with jaunts out to Monomoy Island.
Melissa Lowe, Education Coordinator for the Massachusetts Audubon’s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary wrote to let all of us know that Quest has been spotted at Monomoy. "One of our volunteers, Don Manchester who conducts a spring hawk watch for us, counts migrant raptors in the fall down in Chatham at Morris Island for the USFWS Monomoy NWR. I just learned he has seen Quest on several occasions He has watched her chase and try to catch a flicker ([she] was joined by another falcon in the pursuit).”
So it seems Quest has a friend. The data prooves she's an active girl and is getting enough to eat!
On Friday Ocotber 10 the new nestbox has been installed on top of the Powers Building. The box is facing North slightly East. From the box Mariah and Kaver have a clear view on the River and the Kodak Tower.
The old one was facing slightly south. The DEC has choosen this position because of that clear view. More over, in the hot summer, the north facing will be more pleasant for the eyases, not having to cope with the burning hot sun. The box was installed with a lot of people present. Even TV was there and the newspaper.
Joyce made a series of wonderful pics, watch them all here:
On October 9 we became a message of Jess on the Rochester Board that they have been contacted by the DEC's Mike Allen, with news that he had recovered the body of an unbanded adult male Peregrine near the University of Rochester campus. It was apparently in good condition, and they've asked Mike to send some pictures so that it could be attempetd to ID the tiercel. Of course everybody was very afraid it would turn out to be Kaver. But since there are a lot of migrants passing through the area since the migration season has started, it could very well be a migrant. Watchers reported that Kaver was last seen in the area over the weekend, but a lack of a recent sightings could be pure coincidence.
So we were all anxious to know more. Fortunately we got the good news from Jess yesterday that the dead tiercel is definitively not Kaver:
After reviewing the photographs that Carol took of the dead falcon, we were fairly certain. There were just too many differences, especially in the color and shading of the falcon's bill. But the breakthrough came after some additional sleuthing by Carol, Mike Allen and Kathy O. It turns out that the report of the dead falcon came into the University's maintenance department at 4:57 PM on Saturday. Well, as it turned out, Kathy observed Kaver and Mariah together on the chase tower, where he stayed until 5:30! Proof positive came from Kathy's cell phone camera. She took a picture of Mariah and Kaver, and sure enough, the timestamp was 5:30PM. Just to be extra sure, Kathy took another picture tonight to confirm that the timestamp was accurate. You gotta love technology!
Thank goodness for that. Of course the dead of a falcon is a very very sad event, and I'm so sorry for this beautiful tiercel. May he fly high and soar free. Our Kaver is still very alive and kicking and hopefully checking out the new nestbox on Powers Building!
Just in time for the end of summer, it looked like Quest may be ready to do some more wandering. She began in Chatham Port where we last left her, but on the 19th she said good-by to the Cape and winged her way nearly 300 miles (483 km) to Washington, New Jersey, near the Pennsylvania border! For a Peregrine at normal cruising speed of about 50 mph/80 kph, that’s a good six hours of solid flying. Prevailing weather patterns during that time indicate that she’d have had a nice tailwind for much of the trip, as she flew out just behind a cold front.
But she wasn’t done stretching her wings. The next two days found her seaside again, but this time on Shelter Island, one of the small islands on the eastern edge of Long Island, New York. Then it was back to the Cape on the 22nd, where her transmitter puts her in the vicinity of the Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge, just off the coast from Chatham. It’s a stopping point for migrating birds, and it’s not far from where she started on the 18th. So not only is Quest proving to be a great distance flyer, she’s a hotshot navigator as well!
September 30: Quest has returned to her summering spot in the southeast corner of Massachusetts. She began where we left her at Chatham Port, after her brief trip into New Jersey and Long Island last week. During our most recent tracking period, Quest stayed within a fairly small area, venturing no more than 10 miles (16 km) or so on any single day.
A few weeks ago the wellknown nestbox of Mariah and Kaver has been removed because of renovation works at the Kodag Tower. This will take a long time and that's why a new location has to be found for the nestbox. On Imprints Jess posted the latest news about the relocation.
The Rochester Falconcam team has considered about a dozen sites so far. Some have been rejected because of concerns about human activity nearby, safety of people who might have access the nest site, or physical problems with the building’s layout. Two sites, the Powers Building in downtown Rochester, and the High Falls Brewing Company, look like promising locations. It has been decided to install the Kodak box on the Powers Building. He and the relocation team are working with the building’s managers to firm up an installation date.
The historic Powers Building isn’t as tall as the Kodak tower, but it has a lot of similarities, including a central tower with a flat area at the top, and plenty of nooks and crannies on the building’s facade. It’s about a half mile from Kodak and close to the river. There’s a good line of sight to Mariah’s former nest site, a desirable feature according to the DEC experts. The building’s owners are enthusiastic about hosting a nest box and they’ve expressed interest in working with the Rochester Falconcam to install cameras too! If it turns out this fall that Mariah has chosen the Powers Building nest box, the cams will be reinstalled later this year, in time for the falcons’ return next spring.
Quest stays at Cape Cod and travels up and down State Rt 6. She has been spotted by several people, and she difficult to miss out on with her antenna. Fortunately she is still very much alive and kicking after the remnants of Tropical Storm Hannah passed over the Cape. She was spotted by John Kaar, on the 7th of September. He made these wonderful pictures of our beautiful juvenile. Notice how much she takes after her legendary mother Mariah of Rochester. She has the same light buff above the cere. And a nice full crop. She sure knows how to take care of herself.
September 7 th: Quest has really settled down in her Summer territory. She has found herself a save place full of prey. Here she can practise her hunting skills and feed herself to build up power and strenght. It is great for her that she has flown all the way from Rochester, New York to Cape Cod. It is such a wonderful start for a young peregrine falcon. And it makes us all very happy to know she is doing well!
This blog is all about Peregrine Falcons and part of my website: www.falcoperegrinus.nl. At the start of the new breeding season 2009 I will observe several nests all around the world just like last year.
And I will write about the peregrines, their eyases who will turn into strong juveniles. Join me in a new adventure!
I want to thank Chris & Chad Saladin for their amazing pictures of the peregrine falcons of Ohio. I feel very honoured you gave me permission to use this wonderful collection for my Blog and Website. You guys are the best! Thanks so much!
" We need another, and a wiser, perhaps a more mystical, concept of animals. Remote from universal nature and living by complicated artifice, man in civilization surveys the creature through the glass of his knowledge and sees thereby a feather magnified and the whole image in distortion.
* We patronize them for their incompleteness, for their tragic fate of having taken form so far below ourselves. And therein we err, and greatly err. For the animal shall not be measured by man.
* In a world older and more complete than ours they move finished and complete, gifted with extensions of the senses we have lost or never attained, living by voices we shall never hear.
* They are not brethren. They are not underlings. They are other nations, caught with ourselves in the net of life and time, fellow prisoners of the splendor and travail of the earth.”
