Just before I logged out this morning I checked the Pitt falconcam one last time and saw Morela bowing and e-chupping to “no one.” Yes, a male peregrine was perched and bowing above the falconcam, out of sight to us but visible to her.

Soon the unbanded male jumped into the nest and bowed with her. Then he looked around in a nervous way as if another male (Terzo?) might show up at any minute.

Only time will tell which male peregrine is in charge at the Cathedral of Learning. In any case, the new guy is still here.

(snapshot from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

Without a peregrine family at the Cathedral of Learning this year I’ve turned my attention to other falconcams. Here are two of the many cameras to watch.

My favorite outside-of-Pittsburgh peregrines are in Rochester, New York where Dorothy’s daughter Beauty and her mate DotCa hatched four nestlings as of Sunday 3 May. (Of course I’m partial to this family. Beauty hatched at the Cathedral of Learning.)

@rfalconcam has live streaming video and eight cameras trained on the nest. Watch the live stream, view snapshots from 8 cameras, and catch up on the news at @rfalconcam’s Imprints blog.

The three peregrine chicks in Harrisburg, PA are much older than those in Rochester having hatched by Earth Day, 22 April 2020. They are already on the verge of growing flight feathers! Watch them live at the PA Falcon Cam. Catch up on their news at Falcon Wire News.

Do you have a favorite falconcam? Share it by leaving a comment below.

(snapshots from @rfalconcam in Rochester, NY and PA Falcon Cam in Harrisburg, PA)

Since there are no eggs at the Cathedral of Learning peregrine nest our last big news came on April 24-25 when Morela spent a lot of time wailing on camera (click here for more info). Since then the falconcam has been boring for more than a week until late yesterday afternoon.

During the 6pm hour on 3 May 2020, Morela and the unbanded male challenger courted twice for extended periods of time. Unlike typical pre-nesting courtship these episodes were not intense events but each lasted more than 6 minutes. This is in stark contrast to Terzo’s history of only 15-second appearances.

The video below shows more than 8 minutes of courtship between the Morela and the unbanded male, beginning at 6:17pm on 3 May 2020.

Then the pair came back for a second round at 6:55pm, lasting 6+ minutes.

So for the moment the new guy is back.

Thank you to everyone who keeps me up-to-date on happenings at the Pitt peregrine nest. I have a busy, distracting week ahead so I look forward to your news from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh.

(snapshots and videos from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

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)

I have never seen a peregrine nesting season as strange as the one that’s unfolding at the Cathedral of Learning this year. Since February Morela’s mate Terzo has been dealing off and on with an unbanded male intruder but the contest never ends. Morela courts with both of them and has not laid eggs though she looks like she wants to. Her body is probably confused. So are we.

Yesterday was a little different. Morela watched the sky and wailed repeatedly from the front perch.

I asked Kathy Majich, a peregrine monitor in Canada, what she thought of this behavior. Here’s her response, edited for length:

I’ve seen Morela yelling her head off at times in an agitated manner and that’s the same vocalization I hear when there are intruders in our territory. The female will race to the nest box and run up and down the ledge yelling her head off. That’s how I figured that other male was still around.

I’ve never seen a situation go on for so long. And her behavior tells me she’s young – an experienced female would have sent that other male packing during nesting season. I remember our first female here, Angel, had just laid an egg and suddenly another male came in and her mate got into with him. It was quite intense and she just pulled herself out of the nest box and flew over to both of them and went into a stoop and thumped the intruder and that was that – he took off like a rocket.

— Kathy Majich, 24 April 2020

My years of experience with the Pitt peregrines did not prepare me for this kind of contest. Intruders never lingered with Dorothy, Erie and E2 and with Hope and Terzo intruders were not the main problem.

Watch the National Aviary falconcam at the Cathedral of Learning to find out what happens next. Morela is learning and so are we.

What a strange spring it’s been!

(photo and video from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

Based on the lack of courtship activity at the nest, I think it’s safe to assume that the contest between Terzo and the unbanded male is still ongoing.

On Tuesday 21 April at noon, Karen Lang and I visited Schenley Plaza for 5-10 minutes (social distancing from our cars). We were extremely lucky to see two peregrines fly to the Cathedral of Learning, land on the bulwark and mate! Of course we couldn’t identify the male from that distance.

Yesterday, 22 April 2020, Pa Gal saw Terzo at the nest for 15 seconds at 7:07pm. In the video below he bows briefly with Morela and leaves.

If you see any activity on the National Aviary falconcam, let me know. With so little courtship activity it’s no surprise there are still no eggs.

(photo and video from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

This spring Dana Nesiti has seen several peregrine scuffles at the Westinghouse Bridge between the resident adults and a persistent immature bird. On Monday he captured photos of the immature’s bands and, thanks to Art McMorris, we now know who she is. Her story is paraphrased from Art’s description.

03/B Green/Green is a one-year-old female peregrine who fledged from the Fulton Road Bridge at Cleveland Metroparks Zoo. After fledging she ended up on the ground, was rescued and banded on 29 June 2019, and released to re-join her parents. Ohio peregrine monitors Chad and Chris Saladin named her “Zoetic.”

When Zoetic dispersed from her birthplace she moved east along Lake Erie’s shore. On 11 Oct 2019 she was photographed at Presque Isle State Park. A week or so later, she was back in Cleveland at Edgewater Beach where she spent at least part of the winter. Chad+Chris Saladin’s photo at top shows her wheeling as she harasses a snowy owl at Edgewater.

This spring Zoetic moved southeast to Pittsburgh where she’s been trying to oust the female peregrine at the Westinghouse Bridge. So far she’s been unsuccessful but she keeps on trying.

On Monday 20 April 2020 Dana saw…

The banded (resident) female flew in pretty hot to the scrape area squawking. The un-banded male flew in and then what I think is a juvenile came in. The juvenile and the male were flying around the bridge and then the female came from the scrape and they all flew in different directions. I then noticed 2 falcons really high up circling around.

— Dana Nesiti email, 20 Apri l2020

Zoetic has much to gain if she wins the Westinghouse site even though it’s already late April.

To find out more about her, check out this post at Chad+Chris Saladin’s C&C’s Ohio Peregrine page.

(Thanks to Dana Nesiti and Chad+Chris Saladin for photos of Zoetic)

Back on 8 April 2020 when I wrote Wailing In The Dark And Rain, I described how a male peregrine was wailing before dawn at the Cathedral of Learning while Morela paused to listen. I know that wailing means “I want [unknown something] to change” but my guess on the unknown something was wrong. I now think the wailing meant, “I want you (my rival) to leave.”

Since at least 25 February, Terzo and an unbanded male peregrine have been vying for ownership of the Cathedral of Learning in a contest that wanes and intensifies. In mid-March Terzo would reclaim the Cathedral every morning and evening, even if the unbanded male was present all afternoon. Now I’m not so sure.

Without @pittpefaALERT I’m unable to find extremely short visits to the nest — Terzo tends to pop in for 15 seconds — but on Wednesday April 15 several of you saw Morela courting in the 2 o’clock hour. (Thanks for the heads up, everyone!)

Both visits were with the unbanded male peregrine who looks like the challenger we’ve been seeing since February. The first courtship sequence at 2:18pm was relatively brief, lasting less than two minutes.

Here are two snapshots of the unbanded male showing his left cheek. Sometimes it resembles Terzo’s though the lines are not as crisp.

Later the pair courted at 2:50pm for five minutes.

And here are two more snapshots of his blurry right cheek.

Well, that explains it. The ongoing contest is probably the reason why there are No Eggs This Year. Neither male has fully claimed the Cathedral of Learning and, thus, Morela.

I’m sure there’s more to come. Watch the National Aviary falconcam at the Univ of Pittsburgh to see what happens next.

And let me know what you see!

(photos and videos from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

What an unusual year! Not only are we dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic but, on a less important level, Morela has not laid eggs at the Cathedral of Learning peregrine nest and I don’t think she will this year. I would never have predicted this.

I have no idea what happened but I do know that Morela looks healthy and active with good feather quality. If she was egg bound she would look ill and move slowly. (I have seen an egg bound peregrine on camera: Dorothy in 2014.) Notice how active Morela is in this Day In A Minute video from Sunday 12 April, 7am-7pm.

Meanwhile Terzo no longer visits the nest but I’m sure he is around. A male peregrine is providing Morela with food which she sometimes eats at the nest. She sees him, calls and bows, but he won’t come court with her.

I have a story in my head that has no basis in fact, but I will tell you anyway. I like to think that the wailing in the dark on 8 April was Terzo telling Morela that he wanted her to lay an egg. She asks for courtship? He’s done with that! … By the way, my story is wrong. Click here to find out what’s really going on.

2021 should be a better year on many levels. I’m hoping that a happy family at the Pitt peregrine nest will be one of them.

p.s. With very little on camera, I’m rarely checking the Cathedral of Learning nest. If something exciting happens, let me know.

UPDATE 15 April 2020: Folks have pointed out that two different males visited the nest with Morela in the 2p-3p hour. The ongoing conflict would explain why she hasn’t laid eggs. I’ll look for the footage later.

(photo and video from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)

8 April 2020:

This morning it was raining when I woke up at 4am and saw this snapshot of Morela wide awake and hunched over the scrape. What was she doing?

I pulled the 4am video and found out she was listening intently and sometimes ee-chupping to a peregrine wailing in the dark.

Ee-chupping is a greeting to a potential or current mate. Wailing means “I want [unknown something] to change.” Morela was speaking to a male peregrine and a male peregrine was wailing. We don’t know who was wailing and we don’t know why.

At this point I doubt there will be a peregrine egg at the Cathedral of Learning this year though Morela has been trying. This short video from Sunday 5 April 2020 at 6am shows her pulsing her vent. It looks as if her plumbing is stopped up.

We are left with more questions than answers.

• Who was wailing and why?
• Is Morela egg bound? Is she feeling ill?
• Is Terzo still at the Cathedral of Learning or did the other male peregrine take over?
• What will happen next with Terzo, Morela and whoever else might be at the Cathedral of Learning?

The answer to every question is: We don’t know.

I certainly don’t know.

Watch the National Aviary falconcam at the Univ of Pittsburgh to see what happens next.

UPDATE, 13 April 2020: Still no eggs but Morela looks healthy (good feather quality) and she is quite active. She must be feeling fine.

(photos and video from the National Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh)