Memorial Day started off under overcast skies with fog and mist, wind from the north at 9MPH, and temp at 52F.  Sunrise time was at 5:12 AM.  The forecast for the day ahead calls for patchy drizzle before 10am. Cloudy, then gradually becoming mostly sunny, with a high near 68. Northeast wind around 5 mph becoming calm in the morning.  WOW!….from near 90F Saturday afternoon, to stuck in the 50s yesterday afternoon, it was about as big of a turnaround as you’ll see around here as August weather went to April real quick.  The week ahead brings warmer temps and lots of sunshine for the growing peregrine chicks!

Now we are around day 15, and the chicks are beginning to enter the “hunchback” phase, during which they are often seen in the pose above, with their feet splayed out in front of them and their head angled forward.  Today, we continue to observe the chicks in the ongoing lazy mode of lounging and sleeping in the back left corner of the nest box, with the attentive female always nearby.  Around 2PM, the female returned to the nest with prey in talons.  Once she settled inside, the chicks gathered in the semi-circle position, and they provided a nice look at their feet splayed out and they all stood in hunchback mode! 

Literature cited:

Ratcliffe, D. 1993. The Peregrine Falcon. 2nd ed. Carlton, England: T. and A. D. Poyser.

The Canadian Peregrine Foundation, Peregrine Falcon Development – Age Guide; http://www.peregrine-foundation.ca/info/ageguide.html

The peregrines started the day off under clear skies and bright sun, calm winds, and the temp at 53F.  The day ahead calls for mostly sunny skies, with a high near 69. Light north wind increasing to 5 to 9 mph in the morning. Just before 5:30 AM, the female was seen hovering near the chicks but not really brooding them.  The little ones continue to stay close ton one another in a constant huddle formation.  By 5:30, the female moved out to the perch pole, keeping an eye on her chicks but remaining very close.  Finally, around 6:30 AM, she returned to the nest box with prey in talons and feed the hungry little ones!

By day 11, the beak is already beginning to acquire a slightly yellow tinge, as opposed to the pink color it has had to this point in the chick’s development.  In regard to feeding behavior, hungry chicks solicit even if the adult arrives without food, but when satiated they remain indifferent. R. W. Nelson observed that chicks tend to form a semi-circle in front of the parent or to one side and all received portions of the prey item. Another researcher found that each chick was fed in turn until satiated, when it dropped back and was replaced by the next in line. After 10-12 days, chicks which called most received the most food

Literature cited:

Ratcliffe, D. 1993. The Peregrine Falcon. 2nd ed. Carlton, England: T. and A. D. Poyser.

The Canadian Peregrine Foundation, Peregrine Falcon Development – Age Guide; http://www.peregrine-foundation.ca/info/ageguide.html

The morning started off under mostly cloudy skies, winds from the SW at 6MPH and temp at 57F.  The day ahead calls for partly sunny skies, then gradually becoming sunny, with a high near 83. Southwest wind 5 to 9 mph becoming northwest in the morning.  The sunshine will arrive later today and stay with us into the weekend.

Just before 6 AM, the female was seen in the nest box preening, wind stretching, and watching over the little ones.  She departed and returned moments later, again with food in her talons. The hungry chicks were happy to receive a morning meal.  The egg has been moved back into the huddle!  After the feeding session, the female moved to the perch outside the box for a while, and then hopped back inside the nest box.  She settled back in for a bit, spent more time on perch and then returned to hover over her brood!

By day 10, the chicks have already grown visibly, but remain covered in white down with pink patches of skin still showing through in some areas. Around this time, the young peregrines grow a second coat of down. From this age onwards, nestlings become more active and strong though the nature of their movements does not change markedly for another week or so. They are brooded less and less during the day and become more vigorous in their movements about the nest box, including backing up to squirt their feces outside the nest box. Vision develops strongly and the young, when hungry, scream and clamber towards an arrived parent. Most of the day is spent sleeping, up to about 16 days, but the comfort movements, become more developed, and include foot nibbling and hitching of the wings into adult position.

Literature cited:

Ratcliffe, D. 1993. The Peregrine Falcon. 2nd ed. Carlton, England: T. and A. D. Poyser.

The Canadian Peregrine Foundation, Peregrine Falcon Development – Age Guide; http://www.peregrine-foundation.ca/info/ageguide.html

Fair skies, calm wind, 54F with sunrise time at 5:16 AM. The forecast for today calls for showers likely, mainly after 5pm. Increasing clouds, with a high near 72. Calm wind becoming south around 6 mph in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.

The female started the day off hovering and brooding over the chicks, including the remaining addled egg.  Towards 7 AM, she walked over to the far edge of the nest box and spent time gazing out to the west.  She will begin to do this more and more, getting the chicks use to her taking breaks, and then later breaks away from the nest box, but always nearby.  In the early afternoon, had a nice look and noticed the addled egg has been moved a bit away from the huddled chicks.  It may remain there for now, and be pushed off a bit further in next few days.  The female resumed her position at the far edge of the nest box and spent time preening herself, before feeding the chicks.

In the early days, brooding and feeding are by the female alone, but the male later takes a share, though a lesser one, in feeding. Both parents are inclined to encourage the chicks to eat more than they appear to want: at 8-9 days, repeated gaping disappears, for the nestling watches the feeding actions of its parent and reaches up to take the food as it is presented. Treble whining increases in volume and is uttered between mouthfuls, but ceases when satiation is reached.

Literature cited:

Ratcliffe, D. 1993. The Peregrine Falcon. 2nd ed. Carlton, England: T. and A. D. Poyser.

The Canadian Peregrine Foundation, Peregrine Falcon Development – Age Guide; http://www.peregrine-foundation.ca/info/ageguide.html