As of this afternoon, we have one addled egg, one dead chick and two live and healthy chicks at Washington Mutual.
Ruth Taylor reports that we lost the youngest and smallest chick last night. For those of you watching this site for the first time, this might seem a terrible loss and you would be right, it is.
NOTE: Correction from Tom Montgomery
"I note that the blog says that the chick died “last night.” If you record these things in hours rather than days, I am confident that the chick was dead several hours before I wrote you at 5:25 last night (below) – I just wasn’t sure enough to report it to you until 5:25. So, if you have a log in hours rather than days, it sadly was gone at least by 2:30 p.m. yesterday, if not sooner. " Thanks for the clarification Tom.
However, as one gains more experience in looking at the nesting cycle of this remarkable species, one learns that many unfortunate events befall the chicks, often right after hatching.
In the early years at WAMU, we often lost eggs or young during the normal course of events. In fact, Bell even kicked her very first egg off the ledge by accident. It fell several stories and was smashed. But she was a "new mom" and had never even seen a peregrine egg before. She just did not know exactly how to behave.
This is certainly one of the most vulnerable times in the life of a peregrine. They are completely dependent on their parents for food and warmth, just like many other vertebrates. And warm they must remain.
Since this has been one of the wettest months ever for May, we had worried about the third chick staying warm enough and getting his full share of food.
But he was such a tiny guy (likely a smaller male) that he was just not able to keep up and thus simply perished on the ledge.
Among peregrines, this is not unusual, particularly in a cold and wet year.
