Diary - 2007

December 30, 2006 - Saturday

I'm jumping the gun a bit here - it isn't breeding season yet - but wanted to share with you some photos and information about a tiercel with an injured leg. (He's been named "Dylan" by Cleve, who is reminded of the equally scruffy singer.) Our Dylan was first spotted in the back bay over a month ago. When he flies, his right leg dangles. We were, of course, concerned about his ability to hunt and survive. He seems to be doing just fine though. If you want to see him, he is often sitting on the tallest boat mast in the State Park Marina, just south of the campground. He is sometimes accompanied by a female Falcon.

These photos were taken by Cleve Nash. Click here to be taken to a page with enlarged versions. Oh, and a disclaimer. Cleve is letting me use the photos despite his protestation, "these suck photographically, but . . ."     Thank you, Cleve.

Ok, two more . . .

  
A nice little smile . . . then a bad mood.

February 9 - Friday

The characters at Morro Rock this year again include Khaos, the south side female, and her mate, Elvis. There are two Peregrines on the north/east side. The female is, as yet, unnamed. (Any suggestions?) The male is Esteban. None of these birds are banded, so we will just go with the assumption they are the same ones from last year until we have reason to believe otherwise.

This morning around 9:00, Elvis suddenly flew from the diving board and, making a lot of noise, dived at a hawk that had come near the Rock. In one swift blow, he struck the hawk and it fell very quickly to the ground, landing with a thump right next to the parking lot. It all happened so quickly that at first I wasn't sure if Elvis had struck the hawk or an immature gull. A wing held at an odd angle seemed to indicate it was injured. The bird lay on the ground for about 15 minutes. I went down to see it, but as I approached, a man walked up on it. The bird flew up and very awkwardly flew towards the base of the Rock, landing about 30 feet up. It was obvious, when he flew, that this wasn't a gull. Cleve took these photos. Click on either image to see a larger version.

The immature Red-Tailed Hawk was still in the same place at the Rock tonight at 5:00. His injuries obviously seem to involve his right eye also. We'll be checking on him tomorrow and let you know what's going on with him.

Beyond this drama, breeding season seems to be underway, with more frequent copulations and aggressive, territorial behavior by Elvis evident.

February 10, Saturday

This morning at 7:00 the Red-Tailed Hawk was still sitting on the same boulder, looking pretty much like he did yesterday. As the sun rose and the parking lot below him became more active, he did lift his head and look around. He even made a little hop onto the boulder next to him - about a foot away. Several people had arrived to consider his situation. Both Elvis and Khaos were in evidence. The hawk flushed, and as he flew off towards the ocean side of the Rock, Elvis was in fast pursuit. Before they were out of view, the hawk took another smaller hit, but continued his flight. Elvis returned within just a few seconds. Whatever happened, I'm choosing to think the hawk was far enough out of the Peregrines' territory and he got away without further harm.

The rain was beginning to fall at around 9:00 when I started home. Two adult Red-tailed Hawks were hanging above the Rock, Khaos and Elvis - vocal and protective of their territory - were gliding below them, and dozens of Brown Pelicans were gathering on the jetty. It's breeding season.

February 17, Friday

Be sure and catch the PBS program, Nature - Raptor Force on Sunday night. Check your local listings for times, but it is likely being shown 8:00 Eastern/Pacific, 7:00 Central. This week definitely includes some Peregrine information, including how the speed record stoop is achieved.

February 23, Thursday

Because of the rain this morning, there isn't much to tell you about the Peregrines
today. But Bill Bouton reported an interesting experience at the Rock yesterday that involved a Red-Tailed Hawk. He and a friend were birding when the gulls on the north side of the Rock flew up into the air and began screaming. Noticing the gulls great agitation, they drove to the power plant outflow and watched as the hawk, a youngster, struggled there on the Rock with an adult Western Gull in its talons. Now, Western Gulls are big birds, with a longer wingspan and length than a Red-tail. Bill says, "The gull kept its head turned down and as far away from the hawk as possible. Occasionally it struggled and both birds would slide a bit farther down the slope toward the brush." People inadvertently coming close to the birds caused the hawk to release the gull, who managed to slide to the base of the Rock and disappear into the brush. Bill and his companion left after about ten minutes of watching the hawk trying to figure out how to get to the gull.

On a Peregrine related note, Dylan has a female companion. They both spend time at the marina, sometimes on sailboat masts, sometimes in the eucalyptus trees nearby. Dylan is becoming more aggressive in defending that territory from other Peregrines
(another tiercel sometimes wanders through). I'm becoming increasingly interested in this pair. With their adherence to this area, there is a chance they will take over a hawk's nest and raise some youngsters there. Purely speculation at this point, but something to keep an eye on.

If you go there to get a look at this pair, check the boat masts in front of where you drive into the area, at the end of pier 3, and then the trees over the cafe and down to the pier 3 area.

February 23, Friday

A gorgeous morning and all six Peregrines in their places. The four at the Rock were active but sticking pretty close. Elvis brought in a smallish brown and white bird for Khaos around 8:30. The other Rock pair were aggressively clearing gulls on the north side and, at one point, chased off what appeared to be a Cooper's Hawk.

This evening Dylan left his perch in the tree above the Bayside Cafe to hunt over the salt marsh. He returned within just a few minutes, carrying a bird that appeared to be about a third his size. As he approached the marina, the female flew out to meet him. Before a food exchange could be made, another tiercel took chase, causing the prey item to be dropped. Dylan managed to reverse the situation, chasing the intruder away. One of the Peregrines landed in the area the food had dropped. The sun was setting, so I lost track of which Peregrine got to eat.

Cleve got these shots of Dylan's female companion (the feathered one, not me). Click on either image to see the larger version.

February 25, Sunday

Today was the first time I've seen Dylan copulate with the as yet unnamed female. Of particular interest is a second tiercel that keeps trying to intrude on the territory and is chased off by Dylan. He's a feisty little guy. Always has his feathers in a ruffle. Of course, that's just kind of his look.

Check out this blog from Paul Andreano, a raptor biologist with the SCPBRG. He's monitoring Peregrines on the Channel Islands. The Channel Islander

March 5, Monday

Every evening this week around sunset, the female Peregrine at the State Park Marina is perched on her favorite mast, usually facing west. Dylan is often on his favorite mast or in the eucalyptus next to the Bayside Cafe. Tonight I couldn't find Dylan, but the falcon was in her spot, for all the world looking as if she was watching the sunset with me. Immediately after the sun disappeared, she swooped down towards the water, then circled back into the eucalyptus tree. A minute later Dylan flew out of the eucs over the driveway that comes into the parking lot. He also did a low pass over the water, then flew to the top of a tall cypress tree across from the boats. He was still perched there, facing west and eating a small bird he had grabbed, until I could no longer see him because of the dark. What a lovely way to enjoy the end of the day.

Cleve got some fantastic photos of the Morro Rock Peregrines, Khaos and Elvis, mating. You can see them at his site: www.clevenash.com/docs/peregrinefalcons.html. Just scroll down the page.

March 10, Saturday

I have some photos to share with you today. The first are some Cleve took of Khaos having a meal this morning. She was eating when a White Crowned Sparrow landed right in front of her - and didn't immediately take flight. You have to wonder what was going through each of their minds. Click the photo below to see more.

The other interesting event took place tonight at the State Park Marina. Dylan was sitting on his usual mast perch when a Western Gull began dive-bombing him. There is often a gull perched on that mast when Dylan isn't around, so I'm guessing this gull was upset to have his spot taken. Click here. Sorry about the photo quality, but it's the best my camera can do at a distance.

March 11, Sunday

Cleve and crew report having seen an incubation exchange this morning between the south side Peregrines. It is their feeling that Khaos is sitting eggs.

March 15, Thursday

A couple of people this week have mentioned to me that they have been told one of the ways to determine when a falcon is laying eggs is that she is not eating during that period. This isn't true. According to the patron saint of this site, Janet, "A female Peregrine weighs about 1050 grams and is churning out an egg about 55 grams roughly every other day. Of course she's eating."

March 17, Saturday

At the marina this morning the female falcon was being harassed by a gull. I don't know if it is the same gull that was bothering Dylan last week, but only one out of about a dozen gulls seemed to even notice the Peregrine on the mast.

March 31, Saturday

It isn't that I have forgotten about the Rock Peregrines while concentrating more on the falcons at the State Park Marina, there just hasn't been much to talk about.

The south side pair at the Rock is sitting eggs in the diving board hole. Some are anticipating that eggs will hatch any day now, and that may be true. It's pretty early though, based on previous years. Recent hatch dates have been:

2000 / April 26 / South Side
2001 / April 10 / North Side only
2003 / May 10 / South Side
2004 / April 11 / South Side
        / April 13 / North Side
2005 / April 8 / South Side
        / Nesting failure / North Side
2006 / May 28 / South Side (after earlier failure)
        / April 16 / North Side

There were other nesting failures in there and a couple of years I was absent. The failures, especially in the most recent years, were frequently apparent results of rainstorms. 

If incubation began on the 15th, as Cleve suspects, we can anticipate a hatch date of approximately April 15. That's pretty much on schedule.

Steve Schubert reports having seen egg sitting behavior on the north side, centered on a nesting site from a couple of years ago. This is a ledge below the dome shaped boulder high up on the Morro Bay-facing side of the Rock. 

Dylan and his falcon continue to perplex me. They are both still spending a great deal of time at the marina, though not nearly as much time sitting on the boat masts as before. They are most frequently seen flying out of and into the trees next to the natural history museum parking lot. If anyone has the chance, perhaps you can take a thorough look through those trees to see if a nest can be located that they may have taken over. I can't see a thing in all those leaves.

Anyway, other than guessing at the possible arrival dates of babies, this is probably the dullest time of the year for watching Peregrines. One bird is almost always sitting on eggs, out of view, and the other is doing double-time hunting. Things will soon pick up.

April 12, Thursday

I am not 100% positive on this, but it looks as if the eggs of both the south side and the east side falcons have hatched. This morning I watched on the south side from around 6:15am, before dusk. Elvis was sitting to the right of the aerie when I arrived. Around 7:00 he went out towards the sand spit, returning 20 minutes later, taking a smallish brown prey item into the aerie . Khaos exited just a moment later, taking the bird with her to eat. When she returned, she didn't seem to be carrying anything. However, Elvis brought her another small bird at 10:00. This she took from him at the diving board hole entrance, taking it inside with her. Elvis circled above me, then swept some gulls from the face of the Rock, then perched to the right of the diving board, facing inside.

As I was leaving 20 minutes later, I just happened to spot the falcon on the east side carrying a somewhat larger bird into the ledge space Steve Schubert had thought to be their nesting site. She had not brought it out 15 minutes later when I had to leave. Let's call it a "probably."

April 15, Sunday

Food continues to be taken into both aerie s. In fact, on the south side this morning the Elvis was very busy, arriving three times between 6:30 and 10:00 with birds about the size of, oh, maybe Brewer's Blackbirds. But brown. The first two times Khaos kept the food for feeding chicks. The third delivery she grabbed eagerly, then flew out of the aerie with it. I thought she seemed to be extra hungry; Cleve tells me that she apparently ate some of it, but took most of it back in for the chicks. Click on any of the photos below to catch the action.

April 29, Sunday

Time is nearing for youngsters to show themselves at the Rock. Cleve is standing by with his camera, ready to get photos of them. Based on the day I first saw food being taken in to the chicks and giving leeway for my having missed earlier deliveries because of fog or my own inattention, I'm guessing this coming Wednesday / Thursday as the likely day. I'll post here as soon as chicks are sighted looking down at us.

I have pretty much given up on anything happening with Dylan and his falcon. They are still in the area of the State Park Marina, but seldom sit out on the masts. They are still spotted coming out of and going into the trees by the museum, but no nesting site has been found. Who knows, they may surprise everyone with their own youngsters someday, but it seems doubtful.

May 4, Friday

There was next to no activity this morning while I was at the Rock - from 6:30 to 10:30. Most likely the first feeding of chicks happened long before I arrived. Khaos sat near the entrance of the aerie for most of that time, leaving only once. That was to dive on a hapless gull and then land nearby. This is day 21 from when I first saw food being taken into the aerie , which doesn't mean a lot except that surely fluffy little white critters must surely be ready to show themselves. We do get impatient.

Two of my heroes, Brian Latta and Brian Walton of the Santa Cruz Predatory Bird Research Group, banded two Peregrine chicks at the Diablo Canyon Reactor site yesterday. This link may not be good for more than a couple of days, but today you can see the KSBY television coverage through the "Featured Videos" links at www.ksby.com. Both of these men have been absolutely essential in the Peregrine Falcon recovery effort and continue to do amazing work. If you haven't visited the SCPBRG site lately, be sure and take the time to do so. You will especially get a kick out of watching the web cam trained on the Peregrine Falcon chicks hatched on the San Jose City Hall building. Check it out.

And speaking of fantastic peregrine video, click here for some of what YouTube has to offer.  The first video is of peregrine chicks learning to hunt - amazing glimpses into the serious world of play.

May 6, Sunday

It's a bit like pacing outside the delivery room for Morro Rock Peregrine watchers, waiting for fluffy little white chicks to peek over the edge of the aerie . But, still no sightings as of 1:30 this afternoon. Cleve waited patiently, as he always does, for baby pictures. Day 23 by my estimate and counting.

May 7, Monday

Finally something different showed up at the diving board this morning. Cleve, ever patient and on-the-spot, was there to capture it for us. Click on the photo if you want to see the larger version.

May 8, Tuesday

Well, here, at last, is the first glimpse this year of a peregrine chick in the south side aerie . Cleve, of course, got this photo this morning.

May 10, Thursday

Roy Burke reports seeing a second chick this afternoon. He scoped the aerie from the beach and got a different vantage point. He figures the youngsters to be about three and a half to four weeks old. Seems right to me, but it will be easier to make a determination when we get a full-body look.

May 12, Saturday

And then there were three. This morning a third chick showed itself and Cleve got some photos of them. I'm hoping a fourth will appear, but then I'm greedy. Click the image below for a larger photo.

May 16, Wednesday

This morning Khaos arrived at the south side aerie with a smallish bird in her talons. She dropped it just to the left of the diving board, creating a flurry of activity from the chicks, who must have been just out of sight. They were finished pretty quickly and were soon sitting around fluffing themselves and flapping their wings. Two sat off to the left, while one was on the diving board. Hard to believe they will be fledging in about a week or so. Other than Peregrines who accidentally end up outside of the aerie earlier, typical fledging happens at 42 days of age. Males tend to fly first, with females right behind them within a day or two.  My best estimate is the 24th (next Thursday).

This morning brought a glimpse of the youngsters on the east side. The tiercel was sitting on the far right of the ledge while the falcon flew overhead. Just back and to the right of the tiercel, two sets of wings could be seen flapping. From what little I could see, there didn't seem to be any white on the wings. Perhaps these chicks are a few days ahead of Khaos' brood.

I'd like to encourage you to join the Raptor Watch email list (see link at bottom of page). Cleve is posting some terrific photos of the youngsters there, along with other raptors you don't want to miss. To join, just enter your email address in the form at the bottom of the home page.

May 18, Friday

More terrific photos of the south side youngsters from Cleve. These were taken yesterday. Click on any of them to be taken to a page with larger versions of all.

There is a lot of flapping of wings going on with these guys. Branching (scrambling around outside the aerie ) should begin any day now, with possible fledging by Thursday.

May 19, Saturday

This morning I arrived at the Rock around 6:45 to a lot of raucous noise. One of the chicks was hopping/clawing/flapping its way up the vertical crack just to the right of the aerie . He was screaming at the top of his lungs, while his siblings screamed back. Khaos flew in with a prey item she could barely carry, dropped it off in the diving board hole, then perched in the hole to the right of the aerie . Well, as the two chicks in the aerie were eating, the branching chick was not happy about being left out of the meal and seemed to think it would be a good idea to go pester mom. He did manage to scramble over to where she had landed, though she obviously didn't seem interested in feeding him.

Cleve arrived, got his camera set up, and captured some terrific photos to share with you. As you will see, it was a busy morning. The photos are not all of the same chick - just a representation of the morning's activity. Click on any of the photos below to see all of the larger versions.

May 21, Sunday

Surprising me, but not Cleve, one of the youngsters took flight this morning at 9:15, suddenly flying across the face of the Rock. He landed with a lot of fuss, clinging to a flat expanse of rock to our right. The first fledgling wasn't even the one branching yesterday - that one was still out of the aerie , pretty much where we left him yesterday morning. There was a lot of excitement among the Peregrines and us as a group of onlookers gathered to see what all of the noise was about.

The fledgling managed to find a flatter perch within several minutes. Khaos flew off toward Morro Bay, returning quickly with a pigeon. She used food to entice her youngster to fly again, following her to her usual feeding spot, where she fed him for about 20 minutes. I left around noon. The other two youngsters had yet to fly. In the morning it will be interesting to see if the others have taken the big leap.

This has now become the most interesting time of the year for Peregrine watchers. Come on out and enjoy the fledgling antics.

May 21, Monday

It was quite foggy this morning, so while we heard all of the chicks, it was impossible to see them most of the time. When it did finally clear a bit, two of the youngsters were in the aerie . It sounded as if the third was in the area right above the end of the parking lot, but we were unable to locate him.

Steve Schubert and I were watching around 8:30 when Khaos suddenly took a steep dive off the Rock, barely cleared the head of a woman standing about 20 feet from us, and then hit a Whimbrel  on the beach below. With considerable effort, she carried the bird back up to the aerie to feed her screaming babies.

Jeff Sipple is in town and dropped by. He brought this photo, taken just a few days ago in Newport. Notice two things - there are five babies in this clutch and one of them is 5 days younger than its siblings. Pretty cool, huh?

Let's hope there is less fog in the morning. Surely the other two chicks will fledge within a day or two.

May 22, Tuesday

On this beautiful, clear morning there was a lot of action. It seems that one of the chicks still hasn't fledged, but the other two are out and about. One obviously has a lot more experience at flight than the other, making me wonder if she didn't just take her first flight earlier this morning. Jeff says he believes we have two females and a male.

Jeff, Roy, and Cleve were all watching when Khaos took another steep dive off the Rock, this time hitting a Phalarope that was actually still in the water. Take a look at the first photo in the sequence below. She took several passes at the bird before finally grabbing it out of the water and delivering it to the aerie . The second photo is of a juvenile in flight.

A short time later one of the fledglings was in flight when a Western Gull started chasing it. Khaos came to her youngster's defense, driving the gull away. The fledgling landed fairly low, allowing for the rest of the photos to be taken.

Click on the photos below for a page of the larger versions.

May 23, Wednesday

I've been meaning to tell you that there are three chicks (two females and one male) on the east side of the Rock also. They have only recently made themselves seen, but that is due more to their location (on a sloped ledge) than their age. I'm guessing one of them is ready to fledge, with the other two being a few days younger. I'll try to dig up a photo of the ledge they are on and give you directions on how to get a look at them. My best advice right now is to stand near that stone plaque in front of the restrooms, look up and locate the domed boulder near the top, then scan down from there a couple of ledges. Or, if that fails, watch for protective parents circling nearby.

Cleve sends this photo to share with you. It was taken today. The kids are growing up fast.

May 24, Thursday

Norm Sherr spent some time today at Shell Beach and was rewarded with the sighting of the female and three youngsters.

May 27, Sunday

This morning was very busy, with all three juveniles in flight, following each other around, being sent back when they ventured over the border into the other peregrine pair's territory, and bothering their parents to bring them food. Lots of human critters were wandering the parking lot, doing pretty much the same as the Peregrines.

These photos were taken today and are a good representation of the differences between adult and juvenile Peregrines in flight. Click on the images for a better view.

June 9, Saturday

Using April 15th as the most likely hatch date for the south side youngsters, they would now be 55 days old. I spent over three hours at the Rock this morning without seeing even one of them. Both adults were in view for all but a few moments of that time, sometimes vocalizing noisily when one of the fledglings from the other side of the Rock ventured over the border, but that was about it. Yesterday was the same story, as was the day before. On Wednesday I saw two youngsters; on either Monday or Tuesday three were spotted. It's beginning to look like the south side three have taken off on their own.

We can't complain though. This has been a good year for Peregrine Falcons . . . six fledglings at the Rock, two (or was it three?) at Diablo Canyon, at least one at Hollister Peak, and three at Shell Beach. There are certainly more that we haven't heard about, are uncertain of, or that I'm not thinking of right now.

If you hope to catch a glimpse of fledglings this year, I'd suggest you come out and watch for the family on the east side in the next week - they are a bit younger and are still around and quite active. Seeing them on the south side is likely going to be pretty iffy from now on.

June 10, Sunday

Well, "iffy" kicked in. This morning, hidden behind the shifting mist and fog, came the distinct calls of juveniles. Two were visible at one time; three may have been there, but the visibility just wasn't good enough to be sure. Cleve was still at the ready with the camera - perhaps he will have photos to share later today. Three juveniles were in flight on the north / east side of the Rock, with one peregrine nearby, wailing. Maybe you still have an opportunity to catch all ten Peregrines
in action.

June 16, Saturday

Although it was another gray, overcast, boring day with the Peregrines on the south side of the Rock, the fledglings on the east side more than made up for that. Two of them perched about 35 feet up the Rock and posed prettily for about an hour for the several cameras pointed at them.

My favorite part of the morning when the female took off from her perch and swooped just a foot or so above my car. Very cool.

Cleve may be days going through all of the shots he got, but here is a sampling. As usual, click on any photo to see the larger images.

July 18, Wednesday

Yesterday morning Brian Latta and five others made a climb up the Rock to collect egg shell fragments from the south side aerie . The group who made the climb was made up of colleagues and relatives of Brian Walton, who passed away a month ago at the age of 55. Brian was the head of the Santa Cruz Predatory Bird Research Group for many years. Watching from below was a large gathering of Brian W's relatives, colleagues, and admirers. An informal remembrance of Brian was held right before the ascent, with words being said about the amazing impact he had on the recovery effort of the west coast Peregrine Falcons. It was an emotional day. Brian lived his life well and contributed greatly to all of us. If you would like to honor Brian and his work, consider making a donation to the SCPBRG. Without their work, we wouldn't have these amazing birds to enjoy.

Join the Raptor Watch email list for continuing information about raptors on the Central Coast and all over the country (and world) throughout the year. That list and CleveNash.com will also be the best places to keep up with Cleve's photographs.

If you have any observations you'd like to share with our site visitors,
send email to me at allthatrazz@gmail.com.