Inviato: mar mar 02, 2010 11:01 am
questo articoletto parla in generale dei falchi di rochester..
da il riferimento del sito (dove trovre gli aggiornamenti su Quest (il solito www.rfalconcam.com.) e il sito dello genesee valley aubudon che ha ora in gestione cam e nidi : www.gvaudubon.org.
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Peregrine falcons aren't just fast fliers. They are also determined, traveling thousands of miles until establishing a suitable nesting territory.
Falcons hatched atop Kodak Tower have dispersed across North America with members of the Genesee Valley Audubon Society's Falcon Watch team tracking their whereabouts through leg band reports. Some falcons have been fixed with tiny radio transmitters.
"Many of our birds seem to go to Canada and vice versa," said veteran watcher Carol Phillips. "We have a foreign exchange program going on."
Quest, hatched in 2008, flew to Cape Cod, where she developed a taste for sea birds and is now spending her time on the north shoreline of Lake Ontario in Canada. You can track her journey on the imprint page at www.rfalconcam.com.
"Peregrine means 'wanderer' and that's what these birds do," said GVAS president June Summers, whose organization has contributed greatly to falcon research. Once a territory is established, peregrines will defend it fiercely and some stay year-round. Unlike songbirds that migrate to find insects, migration is a choice for meat-eating raptors.
"Pairs don't bond to each other as much as they do to a territory," Summers said. "You need space to find food, so that territory is very important."
Like the Genesee River Gorge teeming with prey and a city flush with starlings and pigeons.
"There is no better place for these young birds to learn to fly and hunt," Summers said.
Biology: Courtship and mating occurs in March, eggs are laid in April, and chicks are hatched in May around Mother's Day. Fledges learn to fly mid-June to mid-July. Males (tercels) are a third smaller than females.
Lifespan: Up to 15 years, but the mortality rate in the first year of life is 50 percent. Great horned owls are a main predator.
Falconry: Hunting with falcons is a legalized sport practiced for thousands of years worldwide.
Falcon cam: Rochester's peregrine falcons were introduced to the world in 1998 when three enterprising Kodak employees — Kenn Martinez, Brad Carney and Matt Bernius — placed a Web cam in the nesting box. The Genesee Valley Audubon Society now has sole responsibility of maintaining the "birdcam." When repairs to Kodak's façade began two years ago, nesting boxes and cameras were relocated to the Powers and Times Square buildings. The Court Street Bridge is a good viewing location.
===============================================
e qui si parla di mariah, posto e appena ho un po' di tempo riassumo entrambi gli articoli in italiano.. per chi non se la cava con l'inglese
=======================================
BRIGHTON — Carol Phillips of the Genesee Valley Audubon Society was busily keeping an eye on a pair of notorious peregrine falcons, a Bonnie and Clyde of the skies, when she was approached by two schoolgirls.
"I was at Midtown and these girls get off the bus and ask, 'Are those the two birds that mugged Mariah?'" Phillips said. "Everyone loved Mariah."
Yes, everybody loved Mariah.
And it's those same falcon lovers who are trying hard to warm up to Beauty, the female peregrine that has taken over as winged queen high above the streets of downtown.
For 11 years, Mariah ruled Rochester's roost, in this case a manmade nesting box placed atop Kodak Tower as part of the wildly successful Peregrine Project hatched in 1994 by environmental steward Dennis Money.
Thanks to a Web camera, Mariah became a worldwide Internet star, endearing herself to thousands for her fearsome survival and gentle motherly instincts. Her legacy: A record 43 offspring reared with two loyal males, Cabot-Sirocco and Kaver.
But everything changed in 2009.
Kaver didn't return from his winter migration and after attempts to hook up with other males failed, Mariah was alone last Easter when she lost a territorial aerial battle with Beauty, a spunky 2-year-old newcomer fledged in Pittsburgh. Watching it all was Beauty's mate, Archer — Mariah's grandson.
Love. Betrayal. Conflict. Or as Phillips called it, "Peyton Place."
Now comes March and the start of another mating season. Understandably, the Falcon Watch team at the Audubon Society is filled with anxiety after last year's drama.
Will Beauty and Archer produce offspring this time around? Will Archer even return and be as protective as Kaver, who would drive off larger hawks and eagles? What will become of the boyfriend Beauty was recently photographed hanging out with?
Will Mariah, nursed back to health after suffering a deep chest wound that fateful day last April and has been seen near the Medley Centre in Irondequoit, find new love and establish a new nest in the city?
Tiger Woods has nothing on these birds.
"Stay tuned for the drama of spring," said June Summers, GVAS president during a packed meeting to update falcon fanatics and recruit new ones at Buckland Lodge. "We've learned a lot watching these amazing raptors. It's never boring."
Peregrine falcons are one of nature's most impressive creatures, capturing prey (smaller birds) midair at speeds of up to 200 mph.
The sight of falcons soaring through the Genesee River Gorge on hunting raids has left urban wildlife watchers spellbound. They've witnessed Mariah teach her young to fly and feed them midair by dropping prey into their mouths. They've seen dazzling aerobatics and flamboyant courtship rituals.
Such things were not possible a half-century ago when peregrine falcons became extinct in the eastern United States. Their egg shells had been thinned by the effects of DDT pesticide poisoning in the food chain and their chicks perished. But thanks to a DDT ban and captive rearing and release projects, peregrines have become one of nature's greatest comeback kids. According to the Department of Environmental Conservation, there were 67 known nesting pairs in New York in 2008 producing 129 chicks or twice as many as a decade earlier.
Helping the falcons' cause has been city living.
Natural cliff dwellers, peregrines have adapted to life on bridges, window ledges and bell towers. These perches provide excellent hunting vantage points in the performance of a vital role: controlling populations of pigeons, starlings and weaker songbirds.
The historic range of peregrines in New York had been the Adirondacks and Hudson River Valley but it's now 70 percent urban.
Being a symbol of what can happen when man quits polluting the planet makes the peregrine falcon an important educational tool for conservationists. Caring about what happens at the top of the food chain filters down.
"They are the poster animal of an endangered species that has made a comeback," said Summers, a 53-year-old mother of two, whose son, Wylie, is serving in the Army in Afghanistan. "They are not as well known as eagles but they are charismatic because they are so gorgeous and highly skilled.
"We really use them to draw people in and make them aware of our urban wildlife and to get them to think about taking that next step in wanting to protect the habitat we have left."
Joyce Miller took that step after clicking on the falcon cam and joining the Falcon Watch team four years ago.
"I'm hooked," said Miller, whose purse strap is adorned with tiny stuffed animal falcons. "My first watch, I had a broken ankle, but I still showed up. I watched from a wheelchair."
The Falcon Watch team numbers about 30 and more are needed. With repairs to the façade at Kodak Tower under way, the nesting box has been relocated to the Powers Building. Another was prepared atop the Times Square Building a block away to enhance the chance of occupancy.
Both sites are equipped with cameras.
"We'd love to have anyone come and help us out because these are new buildings we're dealing with," Phillips said. "We have fun and a lot of friendships are made on our watches. And the more eyes we have out there the better as we have rescued quite a few falcons.''
Young falcons are most susceptible to being injured or killed when they obtain their learner's permits. First flights take place from mid-June to id-July and crash landings on sidewalks and streets do happen.
It's then that the Falcon Team flies into action, scooping up the birds and returning them to the nest box (falcons have a bad sense of smell so human touch isn't a concern).
"It's nerve-wracking wondering what they'll do next," said Phillips, a Kodak contract employee who was part of the original falcon cam team. "Those first fledgling flights, they are like a kid with a hot rod."
It was certainly Mariah's good luck that Phillips and Brian Herne were watching for fun last Easter when her territorial battle with Beauty took place. They witnessed Mariah fall into a parking lot. She recovered at a wildlife rehab center in Syracuse and after being released at Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge was back in Rochester a day later.
She is now keeping a safe distance from Beauty as her fans cope with nature's way.
"We're trying to get used to Beauty now because we do miss Mariah," said Phillips, who sported a Mariah necklace charm. "We're hard-core watchers. We're at it all the time trying to figure out what's going on."
They are hooked on nature's Peyton Place ... drama in the skies over Rochester.
da il riferimento del sito (dove trovre gli aggiornamenti su Quest (il solito www.rfalconcam.com.) e il sito dello genesee valley aubudon che ha ora in gestione cam e nidi : www.gvaudubon.org.
=============================================
Peregrine falcons aren't just fast fliers. They are also determined, traveling thousands of miles until establishing a suitable nesting territory.
Falcons hatched atop Kodak Tower have dispersed across North America with members of the Genesee Valley Audubon Society's Falcon Watch team tracking their whereabouts through leg band reports. Some falcons have been fixed with tiny radio transmitters.
"Many of our birds seem to go to Canada and vice versa," said veteran watcher Carol Phillips. "We have a foreign exchange program going on."
Quest, hatched in 2008, flew to Cape Cod, where she developed a taste for sea birds and is now spending her time on the north shoreline of Lake Ontario in Canada. You can track her journey on the imprint page at www.rfalconcam.com.
"Peregrine means 'wanderer' and that's what these birds do," said GVAS president June Summers, whose organization has contributed greatly to falcon research. Once a territory is established, peregrines will defend it fiercely and some stay year-round. Unlike songbirds that migrate to find insects, migration is a choice for meat-eating raptors.
"Pairs don't bond to each other as much as they do to a territory," Summers said. "You need space to find food, so that territory is very important."
Like the Genesee River Gorge teeming with prey and a city flush with starlings and pigeons.
"There is no better place for these young birds to learn to fly and hunt," Summers said.
Biology: Courtship and mating occurs in March, eggs are laid in April, and chicks are hatched in May around Mother's Day. Fledges learn to fly mid-June to mid-July. Males (tercels) are a third smaller than females.
Lifespan: Up to 15 years, but the mortality rate in the first year of life is 50 percent. Great horned owls are a main predator.
Falconry: Hunting with falcons is a legalized sport practiced for thousands of years worldwide.
Falcon cam: Rochester's peregrine falcons were introduced to the world in 1998 when three enterprising Kodak employees — Kenn Martinez, Brad Carney and Matt Bernius — placed a Web cam in the nesting box. The Genesee Valley Audubon Society now has sole responsibility of maintaining the "birdcam." When repairs to Kodak's façade began two years ago, nesting boxes and cameras were relocated to the Powers and Times Square buildings. The Court Street Bridge is a good viewing location.
===============================================
e qui si parla di mariah, posto e appena ho un po' di tempo riassumo entrambi gli articoli in italiano.. per chi non se la cava con l'inglese
=======================================
BRIGHTON — Carol Phillips of the Genesee Valley Audubon Society was busily keeping an eye on a pair of notorious peregrine falcons, a Bonnie and Clyde of the skies, when she was approached by two schoolgirls.
"I was at Midtown and these girls get off the bus and ask, 'Are those the two birds that mugged Mariah?'" Phillips said. "Everyone loved Mariah."
Yes, everybody loved Mariah.
And it's those same falcon lovers who are trying hard to warm up to Beauty, the female peregrine that has taken over as winged queen high above the streets of downtown.
For 11 years, Mariah ruled Rochester's roost, in this case a manmade nesting box placed atop Kodak Tower as part of the wildly successful Peregrine Project hatched in 1994 by environmental steward Dennis Money.
Thanks to a Web camera, Mariah became a worldwide Internet star, endearing herself to thousands for her fearsome survival and gentle motherly instincts. Her legacy: A record 43 offspring reared with two loyal males, Cabot-Sirocco and Kaver.
But everything changed in 2009.
Kaver didn't return from his winter migration and after attempts to hook up with other males failed, Mariah was alone last Easter when she lost a territorial aerial battle with Beauty, a spunky 2-year-old newcomer fledged in Pittsburgh. Watching it all was Beauty's mate, Archer — Mariah's grandson.
Love. Betrayal. Conflict. Or as Phillips called it, "Peyton Place."
Now comes March and the start of another mating season. Understandably, the Falcon Watch team at the Audubon Society is filled with anxiety after last year's drama.
Will Beauty and Archer produce offspring this time around? Will Archer even return and be as protective as Kaver, who would drive off larger hawks and eagles? What will become of the boyfriend Beauty was recently photographed hanging out with?
Will Mariah, nursed back to health after suffering a deep chest wound that fateful day last April and has been seen near the Medley Centre in Irondequoit, find new love and establish a new nest in the city?
Tiger Woods has nothing on these birds.
"Stay tuned for the drama of spring," said June Summers, GVAS president during a packed meeting to update falcon fanatics and recruit new ones at Buckland Lodge. "We've learned a lot watching these amazing raptors. It's never boring."
Peregrine falcons are one of nature's most impressive creatures, capturing prey (smaller birds) midair at speeds of up to 200 mph.
The sight of falcons soaring through the Genesee River Gorge on hunting raids has left urban wildlife watchers spellbound. They've witnessed Mariah teach her young to fly and feed them midair by dropping prey into their mouths. They've seen dazzling aerobatics and flamboyant courtship rituals.
Such things were not possible a half-century ago when peregrine falcons became extinct in the eastern United States. Their egg shells had been thinned by the effects of DDT pesticide poisoning in the food chain and their chicks perished. But thanks to a DDT ban and captive rearing and release projects, peregrines have become one of nature's greatest comeback kids. According to the Department of Environmental Conservation, there were 67 known nesting pairs in New York in 2008 producing 129 chicks or twice as many as a decade earlier.
Helping the falcons' cause has been city living.
Natural cliff dwellers, peregrines have adapted to life on bridges, window ledges and bell towers. These perches provide excellent hunting vantage points in the performance of a vital role: controlling populations of pigeons, starlings and weaker songbirds.
The historic range of peregrines in New York had been the Adirondacks and Hudson River Valley but it's now 70 percent urban.
Being a symbol of what can happen when man quits polluting the planet makes the peregrine falcon an important educational tool for conservationists. Caring about what happens at the top of the food chain filters down.
"They are the poster animal of an endangered species that has made a comeback," said Summers, a 53-year-old mother of two, whose son, Wylie, is serving in the Army in Afghanistan. "They are not as well known as eagles but they are charismatic because they are so gorgeous and highly skilled.
"We really use them to draw people in and make them aware of our urban wildlife and to get them to think about taking that next step in wanting to protect the habitat we have left."
Joyce Miller took that step after clicking on the falcon cam and joining the Falcon Watch team four years ago.
"I'm hooked," said Miller, whose purse strap is adorned with tiny stuffed animal falcons. "My first watch, I had a broken ankle, but I still showed up. I watched from a wheelchair."
The Falcon Watch team numbers about 30 and more are needed. With repairs to the façade at Kodak Tower under way, the nesting box has been relocated to the Powers Building. Another was prepared atop the Times Square Building a block away to enhance the chance of occupancy.
Both sites are equipped with cameras.
"We'd love to have anyone come and help us out because these are new buildings we're dealing with," Phillips said. "We have fun and a lot of friendships are made on our watches. And the more eyes we have out there the better as we have rescued quite a few falcons.''
Young falcons are most susceptible to being injured or killed when they obtain their learner's permits. First flights take place from mid-June to id-July and crash landings on sidewalks and streets do happen.
It's then that the Falcon Team flies into action, scooping up the birds and returning them to the nest box (falcons have a bad sense of smell so human touch isn't a concern).
"It's nerve-wracking wondering what they'll do next," said Phillips, a Kodak contract employee who was part of the original falcon cam team. "Those first fledgling flights, they are like a kid with a hot rod."
It was certainly Mariah's good luck that Phillips and Brian Herne were watching for fun last Easter when her territorial battle with Beauty took place. They witnessed Mariah fall into a parking lot. She recovered at a wildlife rehab center in Syracuse and after being released at Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge was back in Rochester a day later.
She is now keeping a safe distance from Beauty as her fans cope with nature's way.
"We're trying to get used to Beauty now because we do miss Mariah," said Phillips, who sported a Mariah necklace charm. "We're hard-core watchers. We're at it all the time trying to figure out what's going on."
They are hooked on nature's Peyton Place ... drama in the skies over Rochester.
