27 April 2020
Though there aren’t as many observers as usual, I have some Pittsburgh peregrine news this morning.
The ongoing COVID-19 shutdown has prompted the PA Game Commission to cancel all peregrine bandings in Pennsylvania this year because it’s impossible to maintain physical distance while banding raptors — one person must hold the bird while the other applies the bands. This is no great loss at Pitt since there are no eggs this year.
Meanwhile Dana Nesiti and Lori Maggio report from two local nest sites.
Westinghouse Bridge:
Amid yesterday’s fog and rain, Dana Nesiti stopped by the Westinghouse Bridge to see if the peregrines were at home. He found the banded female (Black/Blue 48/N) but no one else.
It’s normal to see only one peregrine when a pair is on eggs because the other one is incubating out of sight. Even so, we don’t know if there are eggs at Westinghouse.
Downtown:
If you use a scope or zoom camera from Mt. Washington near the incline, it’s possible to see into the Downtown Third Avenue nest. Lori Maggio reports that she saw Dori sitting in the incubation position in the back left corner of the nest on Saturday 26 April. This is Dori’s usual spot for laying eggs so it’s a pretty good guess that she has some.
If you observe peregrines in southwestern Pennsylvania, leave a comment and tell me what you see. Thanks!
(photos by Dana Nesiti)
Both the male and female were sitting together during the rain yesterday below the McKees Rocks bridge deck . Considering the weather, it was surprising that the female would not be on the nest if she has eggs.
thank you for the info. about Oakland Falcon.I have bee wondering abot them
At 6:55 pm on 5/3, Morela and the unbanded male were together in the nest. He hopped out of view and came right back. Whereas Terzo usually heads to the back of the nest, this fellow stayed at the front, even sitting on the green astroturf for a part of the visit. They were not very loud. Morela joined him on the turf. She left first, at 7:01, and he left shortly thereafter.
(PS – Hope it’s OK to post here, as this is not about the Westinghouse or downtown birds.)