Yesterday evening Hope, the mother peregrine at the Cathedral of Learning, killed and ate one of her chicks as it was hatching (see details at Bad News Again, Hope Kills Chick 3). Those of us who watch her year after year are sad but not surprised.

This is the fourth year Hope has nested on camera. It’s the fourth year we have seen her kill and eat some of her young. It’s the fourth year I have written about her abnormal behavior.

I cannot stress enough that Hope’s behavior is not normal for peregrines or any bird of prey. Here’s what I’ve written about it in prior years. It still applies.

Why does Hope kill and eat her young?

We don’t know.  This is such a rare occurrence that there’s no guidance from other peregrine nests — they just don’t do this.  Meanwhile every idea we come up with is a guess.  I prefer not to wade into the guessing.

Unusual behaviors:

Yes, Hope kills and eats her chicks but there are two unusual habits that accompany it:

• Hope opens the egg.  The hatching rule for all birds is this: Chicks must open the eggs themselves. At other peregrine falconcams, notice that the mother watches but does not touch the shell until the chick has forced open the two halves.  Later the mother eats the shell (which is normal). Raptors beaks are sharp and could damage the chick. Normal mother raptors do not use their beaks on the eggs.
• Hope picks up and carries the chick.  Normal peregrines don’t pick up their hatchlings. When a chick is accidentally outside the scrape (nest bowl) the mother uses the underside of her closed beak to pull the chick back to her.  Hope uses her closed beak to arrange the eggs but she breaks that rule when they hatch.

Why doesn’t Terzo stay at the nest and prevent this from happening?

The rule at peregrine nests is that the mother bird is totally in charge, especially at hatching time.  She calls the shots, including the timing of the first feeding. The father bird defers to her.

The father bird may communicate that he wants something to be different but it’s her decision.  When Hope tells Terzo, “It’s my turn to be on the nest!” he has to leave.

What next?

We don’t know what Hope will do with the last two eggs but we do know that when hatching is over she’s a good mother. At that point it will be safe to watch again. Meanwhile, these cautions apply.

A Caution to Viewers: Don’t watch the eggs hatch at the Cathedral of Learning if it upsets you to see a mother kill her young.

A Caution to Commenters: If commenters become worked up and demand/request action in emails or phone calls to “those in charge” it will end the show.  Literally.  It will shut down the camera.  That’s what happened when commenters went over the top at the Woods Hole Osprey-cam.  So … If you post a comment that could inflame others, I will edit it or delete it.

I’ll keep you posted and let you know when the coast is clear.

Hope, the mother peregrine at the Cathedral of Learning, has done what we prayed she would not do. This evening she opened Egg #3 as it was hatching, then killed and ate the chick inside.

The slideshow above spans more than half an hour. Here’s a summary of what happened.

• 5:22pm  Terzo was on the nest. Hope returned, got close to the eggs and opened egg #3, which was close to hatching. She doesn’t harm the chick at that point. Terzo watches her intently.
• Hope and Terzo stare at each other. Eventually Terzo turns away and leaves.
• Hope broods on the nest for about half an hour
• 5:51pm: Hope looks up, leaves the nest.
• She returns and thinks for a bit.
• Then she goes to the nest, pulls Chick #3 away from nest, kills it and begins to eat it.
• Chick #3 is now food so she carries it to the other chicks and feeds them.

Keep in mind that Hope’s behavior is abnormal. We don’t know why she does this. No one knows why. I won’t even speculate. We do know that she does it every year.

There are two eggs to go, so …

Caution! Don’t watch the eggs hatch at the Cathedral of Learning if it upsets you to see a mother kill her young.

(photos from the National Aviary snapshot camera at Univ of Pittsburgh)

At last we have proof! There are two nestlings at the Pitt peregrine nest. The second one hatched last night, April 22-23.

p.s. This snapshot is from the still camera found at this link.

While we wait to find out if another peregrine chick has hatched overnight at the Cathedral of Learning …

This year’s first chick was fed yesterday afternoon, but his mother’s back blocked the streaming camera so you probably couldn’t see it. Here’s a slideshow from the National Aviary’s snapshot camera.

p.s. The snapshot camera is at this link. It shows the current still photo.

(photos from the National Aviary snapshot camera at Univ of Pittsburgh)

Hooray! The first egg hatched at the Cathedral of Learning this morning, April 22, at about 9:32a. (And his mother, Hope, did not harm him!)

HAPPY UPDATE, later the same day:

The first chick hatched successfully and was not harmed. The slideshow below shows the hatchling and his parents on Monday 22 April 2019 from 9:32 to 9:42 am. Here’s a summary of the action:

• Terzo (father bird) is on the nest at the moment the chick is first visible at 9:32am
• Hope (mother bird) arrives at 9:38:07 to trade places with Terzo.
• Hope carries the chick away from the scrape at 9:38:45. She does not harm it. She carries it back to the nest. (This was the only dangerous moment.)
• Hope prepares to brood the chick at 9:41:56. We can see that the chick is fine.
• Hope settles on the nest at 9:42:35. The coast is clear for this chick.

When Terzo arrives to trade places with Hope at 12:45pm, we can see the chick standing up, white and fluffy, in the slideshow below.

The first chick hatched without incident. We know from three years’ experience that Hope only kills a chick when it first hatches. Once she begins to brood it, the chick is safe.

There are four more eggs to go, so keep in mind …

Caution! Don’t watch the eggs hatch at the Cathedral of Learning if it upsets you to see a mother kill her young.

I’ll keep you posted.

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

Caution!

The peregrine eggs at the Cathedral of Learning nest are due to hatch next week, but here’s a word of caution:  You won’t want to watch.

My calculation says that hatch day for Hope and Terzo’s eggs will be next week, some time between Monday April 22 through Thursday April 25, 2019.

However, it won’t be a happy event. Hope has a habit of opening some of the eggs with her sharp beak, killing and then eating some of her chicks.  Her behavior is abnormal and upsets nearly everyone who sees it. She has done it every year.

In 2016 Hope killed and ate two chicks before they could emerge from their eggs.  In 2017 she killed one. In 2018 she killed two.

We don’t know why she does it but my word to the wise is this:

Caution! Don’t watch the eggs hatch at the Cathedral of Learning if it upsets you to see a mother kill her young.

p.s. After hatching is over Hope is a good mother, caring for her chicks and guarding them against danger. From 2016 through 2018 she fledged six youngsters from the Cathedral of Learning.

(snapshot from 24 April 2017 from the National Aviary falconcam at University of Pittsburgh)

Most of us watch peregrine falcons that nest in cities because that’s where most of us humans spend our time. Inevitably, this leads us to believe that peregrines are city birds that want to be near people, but this isn’t so. What nesting peregrines really want is an inaccessible cliff.

There aren’t many peregrine cliffs in Pennsylvania and none of them are in the western part of the state. All of Pennsylvania’s natural nest sites are steep river cliffs like this one at the Delaware Water Gap.

However, we sometimes create cliffs that are acceptable to peregrines though they look like holes to us. Here’s a rocky cliff that peregrines might use if people weren’t actively digging it. It’s a quartz-porphyry quarry in Germany.

Among the many abandoned quarries in the U.K., this old chalk quarry at Greenhithe, Kent looked good to peregrines and they claimed it as their own.

It also looked good to developers who built Bluewater Shopping Centre below the cliffs.

The peregrines don’t mind the mall and the mall’s amenities make it a great place to watch peregrines, as seen in this BBC video from 2013.

For peregrine falcons, an old quarry is an acceptable cliff.

(peregrine photo by Steve Gosser. Remaining photos from Wikimedia Commons; click on the captions to see the originals)

p.s. In 2018 two of Pennsylvania’s 54 peregrine nests were located in quarries, both in the eastern part of the state.

In 2007 Pitt’s Cathedral of Learning peregrines, Dorothy and Erie, hatched and raised a young female who settled in Rochester NY in 2009 to raise a family. Her name is Beauty and she’s been in Rochester ever since.

This year Beauty laid two eggs as of 2 April 2019 with a third egg due tomorrow, April 4.
Watch her online at rfalconcam.

Beauty’s life is calm nowadays but seven years ago she survived a nesting season so incredible that it resembled a Peyton Place soap opera. In Rochester NY in 2012 …

• A male rival fought Beauty’s mate, Archer, until he was too wounded to survive.
• A rival female peregrine, Unity, beat up Beauty and sent her to rehab for seven weeks. (Beauty didn’t know what we knew: Unity was her niece.)
• The victorious male peregrine, DotCa, tried bonding with Unity. She laid an egg.
• Then Unity died in a car accident!
• Beauty was released from rehab only 50 miles away …
• … and flew home to her nest where she found …

Whose Egg Is This???

Click on this link or the photo to read the whole story.

Peregrines lead dramatic lives.

Peregrine falcons in southwestern Pennsylvania lay eggs from March through early April. By the last week of March some pairs have already begun to incubate while others are still courting and mating.

Here’s the latest news from eleven sites near Pittsburgh where peregrine falcons have been confirmed or could be nesting.  If you live near one of these sites, stop by and let me know what you see — or don’t see. We need news from the sites marked (**).
1. Cathedral of Learning, University of Pittsburgh
2. Downtown Pittsburgh, near Point Park University
3. Westinghouse Bridge, Allegheny County, over Turtle Creek
4. Elizabeth Bridge, Allegheny County, Monongahela River (**)
5. McKees Rocks Bridge, Allegheny County, Ohio River (**)
6. Neville Island I-79 Bridge, Allegheny County, Ohio River
7. Ambridge-Aliquippa Bridge, Beaver County, Ohio River
8. Monaca-East Rochester -or- Monaca-to-Beaver RR Bridge, Beaver County, Ohio River (**)
9. Hulton Bridge / Harmar, Allegheny County, Allegheny River (**)
10. Tarentum Bridge, Allegheny-Westmoreland County, Allegheny River
11. Route 422 Graff Bridge, Kittanning, Armstrong County, Allegheny River (**)

BUILDINGS IN THE CITY

Cathedral of Learning, Univ. of Pittsburgh

Of all the peregrine sites in Pittsburgh, the Cathedral of Learning is the easiest one to watch because the nest is on camera. Hope laid five eggs March 11-21, 2019. Now she and her mate Terzo are incubating. In the March 25 Day In A Minute video above you can see their daily routine. Hope spends the night on the eggs, Terzo brings food (off camera) at dawn, Hope leaves, and Terzo takes over incubation. Then they switch off periodically.

During the day Terzo spends a lot of time on the eggs. Can you tell the difference between Hope and Terzo? Here are some identification clues as you watch them on camera.

Their eggs will hatch during the week of April 21-27, 2019 — but don’t get excited to watch them hatch. Every year Hope kills and eats some of her chicks while hatching. Very unusual and very abnormal!! I always advise folks not to watch. It is upsetting.

Downtown Pittsburgh

This year Dori and Louie are nesting on Third Avenue opposite Point Park University’s Lawrence Hall because the Gulf Tower is unavailable. This means they aren’t on camera.

Lori Maggio confirmed that peregrine eggs were still in progress Downtown on March 21 because she saw the pair mating that day.

BRIDGES ON THE MONONGAHELA RIVER and TRIBUTARIES

Westinghouse Bridge

Dana Nesiti visited the Westinghouse Bridge many times in early March and usually found the pair mating — as shown in his March 17 photo above. On March 24 John English and I visited the bridge and heard a peregrine calling. Soon the male arrived and went back and forth to the (hidden) nest area. Eventually he stayed inside and the female flew out and around the valley. Perhaps this pair is incubating now.

Elizabeth Bridge (defunct)

Last year a pair of peregrines nested in a cubbyhole in the upper arc of the Elizabeth Bridge. Unfortunately, that location is very unsafe for fledglings and all of their offspring landed on the roadway and were hit by cars.

This year while the bridge is still under renovation PennDOT blocked the cubbyholes. No peregrines have been seen for several weeks now, but we need additional confirmation that they aren’t nesting there. If you live nearby or use this bridge please look for peregrines and let me know what you see — or don’t see.

BRIDGES ON THE OHIO RIVER

McKees Rocks Bridge

Peregrines have nested at the McKees Rocks Bridge for many years but are always hard to monitor because the bridge is so large. John Flannigan captured a distant photo of the pair on March 4, 2019. More monitors are needed. Please contact me if you’re interested.

Neville Island I-79 Bridge

Peregrines have nested successfully at the Neville Island I-79 Bridge since at least 2012. This spring Anne Marie Bosnyak saw them mating at dusk on March 19 so we know eggs were in progress a week ago. This pair may be incubating now.

Ambridge-Aliquippa Bridge

NEW LOCATION! In late February and early March Mark Vass reported a peregrine — and then a pair — perched on the Ambridge-Aliquippa Bridge over the Ohio River. This bridge is a logical place halfway between two peregrine sites, Neville Island and Beaver, but its superstructure is “made of air” — open trusses with crossbars — so it’s hard to imagine where a nest could be. Last week Karen Lang began checking the bridge and has seen a peregrine every time she’s looked — March 20 and 25.

Monaca, Rochester, Beaver area

Peregrines have usually nested on a bridge in the Monaca – East Rochester – Beaver area but no one is monitoring them this year. Can any of you help?

BRIDGES ON THE ALLEGHENY RIVER

Hulton Bridge, Harmar

In January Gina Gilmore photographed a banded female peregrine hanging out near the Hulton Bridge on the Harmar side. Since then many observers have visited there because the Harmar bald eagles have laid eggs — but there’s no news of a peregrine. Has anyone seen a peregrine at Harmar lately? Please let me know.

Tarentum Bridge

Further up the Allegheny River there’s a lot of peregrine activity at the Tarentum Bridge. Yesterday morning, March 25, Dave Brooke stopped by to take pictures and saw the pair mating. The Tarentum female is very loud so you can’t miss her even if you can’t see her. Perhaps incubation will begin soon. (p.s. the male is banded and has a clear chest; the female is unbanded and has a spotted breast)

Graff Bridge, Kittanning

Peregrines have nested successfully on the Graff Bridge (Route 422) at Kittanning for at least four years but no one is currently monitoring the site. Please let me know if you’re interested.

(photo credits: Cathedral of Learning: national Aviary falconcam at Univ of Pittsburgh, Downtown Pittsburgh by Lori Maggio, Westinghouse Bridge by Dana Nesiti, Eagles of Hays PA, Elizabeth Bridge by Elizabeth Cain, McKees Rocks Bridge by John Flannigan, Jr, Neville Island I-79 Bridge by John English, Ambridge-Aliquippa Bridge from Wikimedia Commons, Beaver-Monaca RR Bridge by Kate St. John, Hulton Bridge from Gannett Fleming, Tarentum Bridge by Dave Brooke, Graff Bridge from Wikimedia Commons)

21 March 2019

Surprise! This morning at 6:08am Hope, the female peregrine at Pitt, laid a fifth egg.

We didn’t expect it but Hope certainly knew it was coming. This may — or may not — change our hatch date estimate. Only Hope knows the answer to that.

Will she lay six? I doubt it but you never know.

Watch the Pitt peregrines on the National Aviary falconcam at the Cathedral of Learning.

p.s. Thank you, Sara Showers, for alerting me about the 5th egg.

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