This morning when I got downtown about 8:30, two young falcons were sitting forward enough to see in the box, and one adult was calling from the roof of the adult bookstore across the street and down a bit from the nest. I went out to watch for almost an hour at 1:15. Again there were two birds visible in the box--the forward one has a green band on the left leg and a pinkish or light purple one on the right. Suddenly, about 10 minutes after I got there, the adult male flew in, squawking and squawking. That's when the third baby sat up--there apparently are three young birds remaining, though I'll continue to watch for the fourth just in case.
Anyway, a few minutes later the mother flew in, too. She mainly sat on a taller roof, watching, as the male flew over and over the nest box. When he was forward of the box so the two babies inside could also see, all three tracked him, their faces going back and forth like viewers of a tennis match. He called and flew over just about continuously for over 45 minutes--occasionally landing briefly on the Superior Street corner of the building where the forward baby could see him. I wish I could have kept watching to see if he managed to entice one of the babies to fly with him, but I had an appointment I couldn't miss. More photos added to my Peregrine Gallery at <http://www.birderblog.com/bird/Species/Hawks/PeregrineFalcon/PEFADuluthNestGallery.html> Not the best lighting today for digiscoping. If anyone can tell me the color banding system for these nestlings, I'd appreciate it. Also, people downtown are fascinated by these birds. It would be great if a representative from Hawk Ridge or MOU or Duluth Audubon could spend a few hours there each day with a scope to show people. At least 50 different people--maybe even 100--have looked at them through my scope. I do it as an ambassador for birds, but someone more closely tied to one of the birding organizations could drum up a lot of support for their organization right now. But this is obviously a very narrow window of opportunity. Laura Erickson Duluth, MN Staff Ornithologist Binoculars.com www.birderblog.com There is symbolic as well as actual beauty in the migration of birds. There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature--the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after the winter. --Rachel Carson
