Though their scheduled removal date was supposed to be Thursday May 3, the Downtown peregrine chicks remained with their parents yesterday.
John Shumway explains why in his afternoon update, above. The full story was on KDKA’s evening news, 3 May 2018 (below). Click on the screenshots to watch the videos.
(screenshots from KDKA, CBS local, 3 May 2018)
The careful action is heartening. Sounds like voices from somewhere are being heard.
I bet it will either be done this afternoon (Friday) or Sunday morning. Businesses usually save bad publicity for Friday afternoons or a quiet time over the weekend.
It would seem with all the risks as well as the costs involved it would make sense to wait.if there was bad weather their work would be delayed. Let nature take its course. Make everyone happy especially the falcon family.
Truly hoping for them allowing the chicks to remain. Appears they are reviewing the situation and let’s pray that they may change their minds. I noticed in the video, that there appears to be an unhatched egg off to the right of the chicks. Another one further to the left by the chicks (that one may just be a shell). Are those unhatched eggs still taken after the chicks leave. I believe I read somewhere before that they are taken for study? Keeping the faith…
Considering removal is far more likely to arouse the parents than calm them down, coupled with the difficulty of removing the eyases increasing the possibility of human and bird injury – not to mention the resultant bad press for the developer, let us hope common sense prevails and they delay the move until the falcons fledge.
But if I were to bet on it, I would bet on them waiting until they think the human furor has died down.
If BET is paying for it, then why not take the peregrine chicks to a raptor rehabilitation center? The Medina Raptor Center in Ohio is a bonafide center that specializes in raptors.
[edited]
Robin, the chicks will be monitored and must stay in Pennsylvania.
Why even consider that THEY SHOULD BE WITH THEIR PARENTS
You have to ask yourself, “What would Rachel Carson do?”
With the Pittsburgh marathon this weekend with streets closed all over downtown I would think the chicks may be safe from removal. Or I could be wrong! If the chicks were not buzzing the workers which was originally stated then why move them at all?
Not the CHICKs buzzing the workers; the PARENTS!
It wasn’t the chicks that were buzzing the workers. It was the parents, trying to drive the intruders away from their nest. The (wrong) idea was that if the chicks were removed the parents would give up and go away.
Actually they would stay at the nest, frantic about their missing chicks and still trying to drive away the workers.
Kate, where are our chicks at the Cathedral?
Kate, never mind they were in the front out of camera view. Hope woke them up with her big mouth. Thanks