January is almost over already! Time to start planning for our 2012 reintroduction of another 20 young Peregrines in downtown Rapid City, SD. We will be at the Birds and Blooms event tomorrow, January 27 from 10:00 am - 4:00 pm with information.
Looking up, and looking forward to this summer!
Friday, January 27, 2012
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
They Grow Up So Fast!
The hack boxes are dismantled, the Birds of Prey Northwest crew has returned to Idaho and to colleges, and we have the last remaining Peregrine hanging around downtown Rapid City. Rio, re-released August 17th, visits the rooftop once or twice a day. We're feeding her smaller portions of quail, encouraging her to hunt on her own. It's with relief we see her as confirmation she is still an active bird, but also with some anxiety, wanting to make sure she's going to do well in her upcoming migration. The days are getting shorter, the nights cooler, and the biological indicators in her brain will send her south in the coming few weeks.
The 2010 Reintroduction project was a success. With only one confirmed mortality, we achieved solid results. Even though statistics say the majority of our 20 will not survive their first year, we can look to our northern neighbors in Fargo, ND. One of their first releases, who bolted immediately upon release, wasn't seen again for a couple years. Mature and ready to begin his adult responsibilities, he returned to sire many of the peregrines who now call Fargo home.
As our new friends are flying south, I'm driving west to visit the Birds of Prey Northwest Rehabilitation Ranch near Coeur d'Alene, ID. A full week observing Janie Fink as she rehabilitates and releases other birds of prey into the wild is in store. I'm sure there will also be some chores like cleaning aviaries. I no longer say "eeew!" at bird droppings and can give you a healthy or not so healthy indication by looking at them. I am also looking forward to some hiking and certainly planning for our 2012 project. I can't wait to share my trip pictures with you!
The 2010 Reintroduction project was a success. With only one confirmed mortality, we achieved solid results. Even though statistics say the majority of our 20 will not survive their first year, we can look to our northern neighbors in Fargo, ND. One of their first releases, who bolted immediately upon release, wasn't seen again for a couple years. Mature and ready to begin his adult responsibilities, he returned to sire many of the peregrines who now call Fargo home.
As our new friends are flying south, I'm driving west to visit the Birds of Prey Northwest Rehabilitation Ranch near Coeur d'Alene, ID. A full week observing Janie Fink as she rehabilitates and releases other birds of prey into the wild is in store. I'm sure there will also be some chores like cleaning aviaries. I no longer say "eeew!" at bird droppings and can give you a healthy or not so healthy indication by looking at them. I am also looking forward to some hiking and certainly planning for our 2012 project. I can't wait to share my trip pictures with you!
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Nearing Completion (for this year)
Shame on me for not blogging the past couple weeks. There has been lots going on atop the Assurant rooftop, and lots going on in the floors below. Afterall, we do have a business to run and customers to serve.
Our 2011 Peregrine Reintroduction Project starts to wind down this week. Hard to believe three months have flown by (pun intended, of course.) There are a few birds returning to the site every couple of days or so. They are hunting on their own for the most part, and with the days getting shorter, their instincts tell them it's time to start migrating soon. I think they know Blake and Ashley, the interns, left to finish their Biology degrees at university.
I recall the first arrivals on May 23, 2011. Four little fluff balls of down, two male and two female. Those fluff balls are long out on their own and haven't been seen in a long time. Yesterday was a wonderful day to celebrate a final release. Sunny, mid 70's, and one last success story to finish!
Recall in my July 27 post that Rio was injured in traffic, and had a small chance (estimated at 10%) of being returned to fly free. She spent a couple weeks at the Birds of Prey Northwest Rehabilitation Ranch in St. Maries, ID and was returned to SD Wednesday, healed and ready for release. After a couple of days of final observation in the hack box, she got her second release on freedom yesterday. Her feathers were checked, her shoulder and wing alignment checked, and after a moment of "should we or shouldn't we", the decision was made. She was ready to fly with one last command from Janie. "Okay, Rio. You are going to fly. But if you can't do it, I want you to come back."
Rio was placed in the blind, quail was set out along with fresh water in the water bath, and the roof was quickly cleared. Within a few minutes, she confidently stepped out of the blind, and walked out onto the open door. Since she'd already flown before, we weren't sure if she'd take immediate flight, or hang around. The quail proved to be a good diversion, and she spent the first 45 minutes of freedom filling her crop and drinking water. This time, however, there was no sitting on the ledge, dropping onto the Assurant sign, and sitting for a whole day. Satiated and ready, she confidently spread her wings and took to the air in a beautiful flight to the Qwest tower. Rio was on her own.
We have a week of educational programs with Pennington, taking down the hack boxes and storing them for next year, and a final report to the South Dakota Wildlife director. And lots of planning for next year!
Our 2011 Peregrine Reintroduction Project starts to wind down this week. Hard to believe three months have flown by (pun intended, of course.) There are a few birds returning to the site every couple of days or so. They are hunting on their own for the most part, and with the days getting shorter, their instincts tell them it's time to start migrating soon. I think they know Blake and Ashley, the interns, left to finish their Biology degrees at university.
I recall the first arrivals on May 23, 2011. Four little fluff balls of down, two male and two female. Those fluff balls are long out on their own and haven't been seen in a long time. Yesterday was a wonderful day to celebrate a final release. Sunny, mid 70's, and one last success story to finish!
Recall in my July 27 post that Rio was injured in traffic, and had a small chance (estimated at 10%) of being returned to fly free. She spent a couple weeks at the Birds of Prey Northwest Rehabilitation Ranch in St. Maries, ID and was returned to SD Wednesday, healed and ready for release. After a couple of days of final observation in the hack box, she got her second release on freedom yesterday. Her feathers were checked, her shoulder and wing alignment checked, and after a moment of "should we or shouldn't we", the decision was made. She was ready to fly with one last command from Janie. "Okay, Rio. You are going to fly. But if you can't do it, I want you to come back."
Rio was placed in the blind, quail was set out along with fresh water in the water bath, and the roof was quickly cleared. Within a few minutes, she confidently stepped out of the blind, and walked out onto the open door. Since she'd already flown before, we weren't sure if she'd take immediate flight, or hang around. The quail proved to be a good diversion, and she spent the first 45 minutes of freedom filling her crop and drinking water. This time, however, there was no sitting on the ledge, dropping onto the Assurant sign, and sitting for a whole day. Satiated and ready, she confidently spread her wings and took to the air in a beautiful flight to the Qwest tower. Rio was on her own.
We have a week of educational programs with Pennington, taking down the hack boxes and storing them for next year, and a final report to the South Dakota Wildlife director. And lots of planning for next year!
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Counting to Ten
One, two, three...TEN! Ten blessed peregrines accounted for. "Blessed" as in dang dammit, as in blessings and miracles, and as in lucky birds. Last weekend was full of fun with the Rapid City raptors. Bolt got her chance at independence last Thursday, but contrary to the aggressiveness she demonstrated from the beginning, she wasn't ready to fly off the roof just yet. So at dark, the observation team packed up and headed for a good night's rest in anticipation of another day of observation.
In the evening hours, Rio (released earlier in the week) was actively chasing prey when she flew low to the ground and was accidently hit by a car. Luckily, the accident was called in right away, and Blake Schioberg, the biologist intern on the project responded to the call. Quick obervation and response meant Rio got into a veterinarian right away for care and treatment.
Call two came in. Bolt had been blown off the building ledge and landed in the street below. A group of late night revelers thankfully saw her and got her moved out of traffic to safety. Rescue #2 was underway. By Sunday, both birds were xrayed, observed, and back in the hack for a couple days. Twenty-four hours after her re-release yesterday, Bolt is still atop the roof, moving around the perimeter skirting and taking her time to make that first real solo flight. Rio has a severely dislocated shoulder, will have months of healing and extensive rehabilitation ahead of her, with a small window of hope she'll be able to released to the wild at some point next year. You can observe her in box #2 where she is eating well and trying her best to fly with just one wing working.
That's two birds, and team observations sighted seven other birds dining on quail, or hunting prey on their own in the area. Diners at the Tuesday evening hack board included Lucky Linde, Roxanne, Hope, Wild Bill, Sky, Rex, Amelia, and Kanoa. Athena was observed in flight on Monday.
Ten lucky birds, and lucky me ten times over for getting to be a part of this project!
In the evening hours, Rio (released earlier in the week) was actively chasing prey when she flew low to the ground and was accidently hit by a car. Luckily, the accident was called in right away, and Blake Schioberg, the biologist intern on the project responded to the call. Quick obervation and response meant Rio got into a veterinarian right away for care and treatment.
Call two came in. Bolt had been blown off the building ledge and landed in the street below. A group of late night revelers thankfully saw her and got her moved out of traffic to safety. Rescue #2 was underway. By Sunday, both birds were xrayed, observed, and back in the hack for a couple days. Twenty-four hours after her re-release yesterday, Bolt is still atop the roof, moving around the perimeter skirting and taking her time to make that first real solo flight. Rio has a severely dislocated shoulder, will have months of healing and extensive rehabilitation ahead of her, with a small window of hope she'll be able to released to the wild at some point next year. You can observe her in box #2 where she is eating well and trying her best to fly with just one wing working.
That's two birds, and team observations sighted seven other birds dining on quail, or hunting prey on their own in the area. Diners at the Tuesday evening hack board included Lucky Linde, Roxanne, Hope, Wild Bill, Sky, Rex, Amelia, and Kanoa. Athena was observed in flight on Monday.
Ten lucky birds, and lucky me ten times over for getting to be a part of this project!
Thursday, July 14, 2011
July 13 to 14, 2011: Lazy Day to Crazy Day
Tuesday found our new and previous releases hanging out on the Assurant rooftop, the Qwest communications tower, and the Hotel Alex Johnson.
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| "You go first." |
Wednesday dawned early and wild, with a call to Janie from the Rapid City
The officers were instructed to grab Athena and hold onto her until Janie arrived. Senior Officer Holt stated, “As a police officer I have been called upon to do many unique tasks. This was one of the most interesting. When I arrived, I recognized the bird as an incredible animal and one not commonly found in the Black Hills . Even though saving a raptor falls far outside our typical duties, I knew it was important for us to do our best in helping to save the bird. I am glad we were able to help and this will always be a call I will remember.”
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| Our Heros |
Athena will spend a couple days in Box 2with Bolt while her bruises heal, and she’ll be released on Monday. It’s easy to tell the two girls apart. Bolt is still covered in her white down.
As if THAT wasn’t enough, Athena’s sister Rio spent the night atop the Assurant “T” in the rain. By mid morning, being wet and hungry, she started getting a little antsy, and struggled to get in a position that allowed her to confidently expand her wings and catch an air current. It took some jostling around and several tries, when she finally took a leap of faith for her first short flight to another rooftop in downtown Rapid City
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| I think I can. I think I can. |
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| OK. Here I go!!! |
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| I can fly! |
Throughout the day, bird watching was eventful and exciting. Our experienced fliers were active chasing and playing their developmental war games. Our new releases were testing their wings with shorter, point to point flights that gained altitude as they gained experience. One of our earlier releases did a little showing off for some guests atop the Hotel Alex Johnson as he or she flew in to land on a railing, but discovered the balcony occupied by pesky humans. Talons came out, wings adjusted, and the mighty peregrine quickly changed course midair five foot in front of us. It was beautiful, but also a great reminder that in this urban release, we must learn to co-exist with these beautiful birds, and respect their space for them to survive and flourish in the coming years.
Monday, July 11, 2011
July 11, 2011 - Release Day
A week ago, our four young birds were covered in down and standing in the back of the hack, not sure about their new surroundings. In eight short days, they learned about urban things like a loud train whistle, fireworks, honking horns and thunder storms. They lost the down, and today demonstrated they were strong enough to be free to move outside their protected enclosure.
Rio, Amelia, and Athena were sisters, accompanied by their little brother Wild Bill. I emphasize little. Two of the girls maintained their status as the heaviest of our releases this year, still weighing over a kilogram each.
At 3:00 pm, all four had been weighed, feathers and bands checked, orange marks painted on their wings, crops noted as full (they'd been eating well) and they were judged ready to go by Janie Fink, our project biologist. All four ventured out of their hack box when it was opened. A late afternoon release plus rain showers helped keep the birds from trying to fly too quickly and getting into trouble. But it didn't take long before they were hopping to the ledge of the building to look out at the horizon and look down the straight vertical seven story drop below them. The anticipation and watching is much like having kids! Same sort of worries: Are they eating enough? Will they stay where I can watch them? Do I know where they are going? Don't stand so close to the edge! When Amelia slipped off the ledge to the rooftop, there was a gasp or two from the observers.
Little Wild Bill isn't wild at all. He is a calm, sweetheart of a bird. He has sleek, dark feathers and a lean body. While his sisters are quite vocal in expressing themselves, he quietly watches and observes. Yes, I am head over heals enraptured with this raptor.
We still have a number of free flying birds from previous releases hanging around the area. Lucky Linde, Kanoa, Vito, Hope, and Sky were all observed on the rooftop today. They flew in shortly after the newbies were released to the open hackbox; almost like a welcoming committee or coming out party for debutantes. One thing is certain: they may be fond of the quail being provided to fill their crops, but they certainly don't like humans being present. They seem to appear from nowhere when the hacks are being refurbished with food, circling above the rooftop and verbalizing their dissatisfaction with distinctive screeches of warning.
Our final falcon arrived from Colorado Springs yesterday. Bolt is a 30 day old female fluff ball full of vinegar. With lightning speed, she managed to draw blood on a couple of the handlers when they banded and weighed her. It will be about 10 days before she will be ready for release. You can observe the difference in appearance these birds take on in a short period of time. Check out the webcam, and see Penny in the left box at 55 days old, and Bolt in the middle box at 30 days old. Their proportions, feathers, and coordination are very different.
Again, if you have questions about our birds or the project, we welcome you to post below or email Janie Fink at Janie@bopnw.org.
Rio, Amelia, and Athena were sisters, accompanied by their little brother Wild Bill. I emphasize little. Two of the girls maintained their status as the heaviest of our releases this year, still weighing over a kilogram each.
At 3:00 pm, all four had been weighed, feathers and bands checked, orange marks painted on their wings, crops noted as full (they'd been eating well) and they were judged ready to go by Janie Fink, our project biologist. All four ventured out of their hack box when it was opened. A late afternoon release plus rain showers helped keep the birds from trying to fly too quickly and getting into trouble. But it didn't take long before they were hopping to the ledge of the building to look out at the horizon and look down the straight vertical seven story drop below them. The anticipation and watching is much like having kids! Same sort of worries: Are they eating enough? Will they stay where I can watch them? Do I know where they are going? Don't stand so close to the edge! When Amelia slipped off the ledge to the rooftop, there was a gasp or two from the observers.
Little Wild Bill isn't wild at all. He is a calm, sweetheart of a bird. He has sleek, dark feathers and a lean body. While his sisters are quite vocal in expressing themselves, he quietly watches and observes. Yes, I am head over heals enraptured with this raptor.
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| "He's not a pet. He's not a pet. He's not a pet." |
Our final falcon arrived from Colorado Springs yesterday. Bolt is a 30 day old female fluff ball full of vinegar. With lightning speed, she managed to draw blood on a couple of the handlers when they banded and weighed her. It will be about 10 days before she will be ready for release. You can observe the difference in appearance these birds take on in a short period of time. Check out the webcam, and see Penny in the left box at 55 days old, and Bolt in the middle box at 30 days old. Their proportions, feathers, and coordination are very different.
Again, if you have questions about our birds or the project, we welcome you to post below or email Janie Fink at Janie@bopnw.org.
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
July 6, 2011 - Round and Round They Go
Dining outside for a late lunch today, we looked skyward and witnessed another milestone in Peregrine development. One of our free fliers was high above downtown Rapid City, gracefully gliding in the warm summer air in a clockwise circular pattern. Their wings were fully extended, but not flapping. Only their feathers and wing tilt guided our friend higher and higher, lifting him on the air current created from the warming urban landscape. Janie explained this as ringing up. Peregrines learn to use the thermal current to naturally rise further and further into the sky, so high they eventually speck out, or are no longer visible to the naked eye below. Sure enough, after a few minutes of watching this poetry in motion, we lost sight of the bird.
Ringing up is a key development in the young peregrine. It means they are another step closer to their adult skill of diving at 200 miles per hour (stooping) to unexpectedly snatch their prey in midair. It's also a key element in their forthcoming migratory journey, allowing them to rise high above the earth with little effort, and use the wind currents to carry them the long distance to the southern hemisphere in as little as a week. Peregrines are their own energy conservationists!
Our newest arrivals are settled into the hack. They arrived last Sunday from Brad Mitchell, a breeder in Watertown, SD. We consider it a special group, as they are Mr. Mitchell's last clutch before retirement from the falcon breeding program. Two of the girls are our largest babies yet, each weighing over 1 kilogram! On a wing and a prayer, we hope they will thrive after their release this following Sunday, and return to breed and re-establish the species here in western South Dakota. Once a Dakotan, always a Dakotan! Here are three of the newest arrivals in the blind right after we weighed and banded them.
Our other free fliers are doing very well. Lucky Linde proudly brought his first kill back to the Assurant rooftop yesterday, a sign he has imprinted to the area and in adulthood more apt to return to breed. His prize was also admired by the others, and a game of tug-of-war and snatch ensued between Linde, Roxanne, and Rex. In addition to being fun to watch on the UStream web cam, it's also an important development. Now our young ones know the taste of fresh, warm food and will wean off the prepared quail that has sustained them as growing babies.
Finally, we received great news that our older birds, released in early June, are dispersing. We have a confirmed sighting in the Omaha Street/Deadwood Avenue area. These older birds are now completely on their own, hunting, perching on high poles, cell towers, and buildings. We encourage everyone to keep their eyes on the sky (but not while driving!) and call Janie at cell # (208) 582-0797 or respond to this blog to report a sighting. Look for the red band on the right leg to tell you it's one of our peregrines.
We are very pleased with the progress of our project, and invite you to share this blog and the UStream Falcon Cam with your friends. Post questions below, and let us know if there's a particular topic we can address here.
Ringing up is a key development in the young peregrine. It means they are another step closer to their adult skill of diving at 200 miles per hour (stooping) to unexpectedly snatch their prey in midair. It's also a key element in their forthcoming migratory journey, allowing them to rise high above the earth with little effort, and use the wind currents to carry them the long distance to the southern hemisphere in as little as a week. Peregrines are their own energy conservationists!
Our newest arrivals are settled into the hack. They arrived last Sunday from Brad Mitchell, a breeder in Watertown, SD. We consider it a special group, as they are Mr. Mitchell's last clutch before retirement from the falcon breeding program. Two of the girls are our largest babies yet, each weighing over 1 kilogram! On a wing and a prayer, we hope they will thrive after their release this following Sunday, and return to breed and re-establish the species here in western South Dakota. Once a Dakotan, always a Dakotan! Here are three of the newest arrivals in the blind right after we weighed and banded them.
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| Athena, Rio and Wild Bill. Not pictured is Amelia (she's shy) |
Finally, we received great news that our older birds, released in early June, are dispersing. We have a confirmed sighting in the Omaha Street/Deadwood Avenue area. These older birds are now completely on their own, hunting, perching on high poles, cell towers, and buildings. We encourage everyone to keep their eyes on the sky (but not while driving!) and call Janie at cell # (208) 582-0797 or respond to this blog to report a sighting. Look for the red band on the right leg to tell you it's one of our peregrines.
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| An example of the red band on the right leg, identifying the bird with this project. Blog or call with a sighting; unfortunately, these fellas don't send post cards home to let us know of their travels. |
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