Brief visits at three urban eyries

June 5, 2007.

I had some brief time slots in between appointments today, all near peregrine eyries in Seattle, so I decided to use my breaks wisely.

At the Eastside nest I spotted the adult male sitting on a pillar. No sign of the female. However, four minutes later she flew out of the nest site. She landed near the male and feaked (wiped her bill, indicative of recently having eating). It is difficult to see into this nest, and young are not visible until they are a couple of weeks old. So we have to go by adult behavior until the young can be seen.

The past few weeks the adults' behavior switched from incubating to feeding young. Last week both adults stayed off the nest for prolonged periods, indicating they either failed or the young were about two weeks old. At that age they can regulate their own body temparature and don't need constant brooding from the adults.

The adult female coming out of the nest site and feaking strongly indicates she had been feeding young. I looked up at the nest site with my scope and lucked out. One down-covered young stretched both its wings above its back (only the wings were visible). The edges of the wings showed about one inch of growing flight feathers, indicating about 3 weeks of age. At the same time another young backed up to the edge of the nest (there is a ridge that screens the young from view) and defecated. This leads to the conclusion that there are at least two three-week-old young up there.










This image was taken last year when the Eastside adult female was eating on the ground.


My second break was near the Duwamish site. Here the adult female was perched in a light stand. Searching around the nest ledge revealed two young mostly feathered young with extensive tyfts of down on body and wings. About 4 1/2 to 5 weeks old. One was 'pancaked' and sound asleep. The other busy preening on the ouside edge of the nest ledge.
Just as I left the adult male showed up and perched in anearby light stand as well.

In 2006 I banded both adults at the Duwamish site, after the nesting season was over. The female is on the left, the male on the right. Both birds have returned to nest at this site this year.

My final break was near the Ballard nest site. Initially I did not see the youngster on the ledge and I feared it might have fallen in the water. But while I changed to a different vantage point and back again the youngster received food from the adults and was busily tearing away at what once was a pigeon. This youngster is about five weeks old. One more week and hopefully it will fledge successfully.

Seattle Peregrines March Update

March 2007 Update

A record six pairs of peregrines nested in the Greater Seattle area in 2006. All pairs fledged young, but we had very few sightings of juveniles after the initial fledging period. Unfortunately, window strikes and apparent vehicle collisions took a toll of some of the young birds, and those that survived apparently dispersed. With young birds, no news may be the best news.
The birds that breed here are residents; they do not leave in the winter. Six pairs of residents make it easier to monitor peregrines year round. But, since residents exclude intruders from their territories, it is now more difficult to locate birds that are wintering here or are moving through the area. Experienced observers identified several “strangers” outside of established territories this winter. Birds of unknown origin were seen on Lake Washington, at Ballard, Beacon Hill, Rainier Beach and the Central Area. One was a juvenile; the others were adults. It is now rare to see a juvenile in Seattle in the winter, in contrast to earlier years of peregrine monitoring. The dominant adults are probably chasing them off, as juveniles are reported outside the food-rich city.
A hatch year 2003 male from Tacoma was a non-breeder on territory throughout the 2006 breeding season and into the fall. We thought he might try to breed here this spring, but he has vanished. The unbanded juvenile female that kept him company is gone, too.
As we move into the 2007 breeding season, it appears that all the breeding adults are still on their territories, except at the Ballard site, where there is a new male. Courtship is going on now, and peregrine watchers are looking forward to courtship flights, eggs, fuzzy chicks and the chicks’ metamorphosis into beautiful fledglings, ready to challenge their brave new world.

WAMU

The young female from the Washington Mutual nest – the only survivor of the two young – was last reported in downtown Seattle in August. Some juveniles continue to “visit” their parents on into the fall, probably in hopes of getting an easy meal from the adults. However, it can be very difficult to locate one juvenile in the forest of downtown buildings, so the absence of sightings after August may not be significant.
As far as observers can tell, the unbanded adults at this skyscraper site are still the same pair that first nested there last year. They have been seen regularly on the nest ledge and other parts of their home “cliff” throughout the fall and winter. Activity around the nest ledge has increased steadily over the last month.

Ballard

The sole fledgling at the Ballard site made it through her first few weeks on the wing, but has not been reported since.
An unbanded adult male has replaced the banded adult male that bred at the Ballard site last year. We don’t know when or how this happened. The original male was the hatch year 2004 offspring of the pair at I-5, and we hope that he will resurface at some other location in the future.

West Seattle

The last confirmed report of a youngster still hanging around its natal territory was a juvenile seen in early September, dozing on the West Seattle nest ledge with a full crop. One of the other young birds died from an apparent vehicle collision earlier in the summer. The adults have been observed regularly at this site throughout the winter.

South Duwamish

Both adults at the south Duwamish site were trapped and banded after the breeding season. We don’t know the origin of either, but the VID (Visual Identification) bands will allow us to keep track of them while they are in the area. Both are currently on their home territory. Their sole fledgling, a female, was found dead on an adjacent road only a couple of weeks after her first flight.

I-5

Two of the young from this site died from window collisions, one at the University of Washington and one in a residential area. Based on partial band readings, it appears that the adults at this site are the residents that have been there since 2002.

Eastside

The adults at our one eastside site were very early nesters last year; we don’t know why they are earlier than other resident pairs. Based on recent observations, it appears that they are on an early schedule again this year.

May

Washington Mutual has hatched! The last time we had fluffy eyasses to watch downtown was in 2004, which seems eons ago, rather than only two years. While it is disappointing that two of the eggs did not hatch, we look forward to watching the two eyasses mature and to observing the adults taking care of them.

This is a new pair. Since neither is banded, we know very little about them, other than that they have been here since last summer. The female may be the same bird that attempted to nest on a ledge on the IBM Building last spring.

The peregrine population in the greater Seattle area continues to expand. We now have pairs at seven sites, and six of these pairs have laid eggs. All except the Washington Mutual Tower are on bridges. One site from last year – the Grain Terminal – is not active this year.

Four young at the I-5 Ship Canal hatched the last week in April. This is the fifth nesting season for the pair at this site; the previous two years have been successful. The male is from the Washington Mutual nest (hatch year 2001) and the female (hatch year 2000) from an Oregon site on the Columbia River.

The West Seattle pair fledged four young last year, for the first successful nesting season ever at this site. The pair did not use the nest box this year and laid eggs in a nearby expansion gap on the bridge. Observations of prey deliveries by the adults confirmed that eggs had hatched by May 1.

The pair of two-year-olds (hatch year 2004) at the Ballard Bridge had at least one young hatch by 5/2 or 5/3. The Ballard male is from the I-5 Ship Canal Bridge site, and his mate from a nest on a crane in Olympia.

After showing interest in a nest box provided for them, the pair of unbanded adults at our south Duwamish site chose instead to lay and incubate eggs on a small ledge that is out of view. This is a new site and a new pair.

The first youngster fledged from our one eastside site May 14th. This is a very early fledge date for the Seattle area. This is the 4^th season at this site for the hatch year 2001 female from Portland. Her current mate is an unbanded adult male; probably the same bird who shared unsuccessful incubation duties last spring after the disappearance of her original mate (hatch year 2002, Washington Mutual).

An adult male from the 11^th Street Bridge in Tacoma (hatch year 2003) is on territory on I-90 and has attracted a mate; the birds have not laid eggs.

The Grain Terminal is not active this year, and there have no recent sightings of birds at this site.

We had an anniversary to celebrate on May 2, 2006. On May 2, 1995, three peregrine eggs hatched on the WaMu tower. It was Bell’s first breeding season and the second for Stewart. Only one of the young, a male, survived past fledging. Because he stayed in Seattle his first two years of life, many of our volunteers were able to watch his adventures as a juvenile and young adult. When this little brown peregrine was only a few weeks post fledging, he challenged an adult female for her territory at the Grain Terminal, and the following spring he courted another adult female in Ballard. In his second winter, he courted a much older female that wintered at the I-5 Ship Canal Bridge for years. Our last confirmed sighting of him in Seattle was in 1997. Based on a partial reading of his VID (visual identification) band several years ago, we suspected that he was still alive. Last month, we were delighted at confirmation (via VID band reading) that the eleven year old male we called “Junior” is still alive and nesting in the Bremerton area.

2005 post-season summary

Downtown Seattle - Washington Mutual Tower

After the unidentified pair abandoned the nesting attempt at the IBM building, summer observations were scarce, until July. We believed that Bell probably died either in the winter or early in the breeding season, but on July 27, we confirmed (by her VID band) that a dead peregrine on the roof of a condo in downtown Seattle Avenue was Bell. The roof had been checked about a week earlier, and she was not there then. She died two blocks from her home cliff on the Washington Mutual Tower, where she fledged a total of 26 young from 1995 to 2004.

Her cause of death is unknown. We don't know if the pair of adults that appeared on the WaMu Tower around the same time was responsible for her death or if the timing was a coincidence. The new female is not banded; the male's band status has not been confirmed yet. They have been observed on the nest ledge every week since July, and we expect that they will breed this spring.

(Read more about Bell here)

West Seattle - finally!

After years of waiting since the first attempt in 1999, four young--a male and three females--fledged from the West Seattle site in late June. The current female finally had a "full time" mate who did what male peregrines are "supposed" to do. It was a joy to watch the young grow up.

When she was still fluff and feathers and not ready to fly, one female eyas fell off the nest platform and apparently helicoptered to the pavement below. Someone grabbed her, put her in a box, and took her to Pioneer Square that evening. He was showing off "his" bird, when the police intervened and rescued her. We have seen a lot of fledgling "drama" over the years, but we never imagined this scenario! She stayed at a rehab center until she was ready to fly; she was then released and joined her siblings and parents. A second female also spent a few days at a rehab center, after she was found wandering on a busy road near the nest; she was released at the same time as her sibling. The third female and the male fledged uneventfully.

Ship Canal Bridge

Three young fledged from the bridge in early June - two females and a male. One of the young females promptly got into trouble with the local crows and ended up in a bush in a restaurant parking lot. When she was rescued, it was noticed that she had a slightly deformed mandible. Because of concerns about the beak deformities that have been observed in Washington State, she stayed at a wildlife care center for a short time for further observation, but was then released at her home territory. We don't know the whereabouts of the young birds at this time.

Grain Terminal

After this pair fledged four young in 2003 and three last year, it was disappointing that they only fledged one - a male. Several weeks post fledging, he was found dead on a seldom-visited part of the structure, wrapped in fishing line. The grain terminal is at the edge of Elliott Bay, just south of a public fishing pier. It is all too easy to imagine him getting tangled in discarded line, flying up onto the structure wrapped in it and trapping himself fatally in his attempts to get free. This was a very sad and graphic demonstration of the harm that discarded fishing line can cause.

Eastside

When the breeding season began, our same eastside adults from the previous two years were together at their nest site and appeared to be incubating. We don't know when an unbanded adult male replaced the original male (Washington Mutual 2002). The new male and the female incubated, but the nest failed. We didn't know what happened to the original male until the end of November, when Department of Transportation crews found him dead in a crevice in a bridge on I-90.We don't know when he died.

Since the Breeding Season

We have seen our resident west side pairs regularly on their breeding territories, except at the Grain Terminal, where sightings have been scarce. However, this pair was also hard to locate last winter.

We may have a new breeding pair this spring - at the Ballard Bridge. This would be a first - the nest box there has only hosted Canada Geese and Glaucous-winged Gulls in the past. Since both birds are banded, we know that they are hatch year 2004. The male is the offspring of the birds at the I-5 Ship Canal Bridge. His father is from the WaMu nest, so he is Bell and Stewart's grandson, in human terms. The female fledged from a nest box atop a crane at the Port of Olympia. They were first reported together at the Ballard Bridge in September. A lot can happen between now and the breeding season, but it certainly looks like this pair will breed.

We have had sightings of single birds and pairs at several other locations in the last few weeks. As usual at this time of year, it is difficult to determine what might be a wintering pair and what might be a pair that will stay and try to nest. Spring will be here soon, and then we will find out. We hope for successful seasons for all our pairs.

May

Downtown Seattle – Washington Mutual Tower

The unidentified adult female made a late, unsuccessful late nesting attempt on a small ledge on the 21 story IBM building and then abandoned the nest. Since then, we have seen an adult female on various perches downtown. As in past months, she sometimes perches on the nest ledge, but has never been seen at the nest box. We have had no reports of the male for several weeks. We were not able to confirm the identity of these adults, though we do know that at least one is not banded.

Ship Canal Bridge

The eggs at the Ship Canal had hatched by April 27, and three young (one male, two females) were banded on 5/18/2005. There was also a broken egg in the nest box. This was the fourth attempt for this pair and was the second time they have hatched young. They fledged four last year.

The male is hatch year 2001 from the Washington Mutual nest, and his mate (hatch year 2000) is from the Oregon side of the Columbia River. One of their young from last year, a male, was hanging out at the Ballard Bridge a few weeks ago.

West Seattle

Will this be the year that young finally fledge from this site? The site has a history of failed attempts going back to 1999, when the nest was predated (we think a Great Horned Owl was responsible). We believe that attempts since then failed because the male was attending another nest; we were not been able to confirm this because the male was not banded. The current female is the 3^rd at the site since 1999.

Right now, there are four healthy young in the nest, with both parents attending to their every need. It looks good. Keep your fingers crossed for them.

Grain Terminal

The Grain Terminal birds are still incubating, as of 5/23/2005. Neither adult is banded, but we believe that the female is the same bird as last year. It is more difficult to determine whether the male is the same, since many adult males are so similar in plumage.

Eastside

This site has been successful for the past two years. The adult female is a Portland bird (hatch year 2001) that has been around since at least spring of 2002. The adult male, a hatch year 2002 bird from the Washington Mutual nest, was confirmed at this site earlier in the spring, and it appeared that the birds might be incubating (the ledge is not visible). However, he has now been replaced by an unbanded adult. The birds were confirmed incubating on 5/8/05. No one is predicting the outcome on this one.

2004 season summary

2004 was the best year ever for breeding peregrines in the greater Seattle area. There were pairs at six sites. Of those six sites, four fledged young, one failed, and one pair did not lay eggs. The successful sites were Washington Mutual (4 young), Ship Canal Bridge (4), Grain Terminal (3) and eastside (3). It was the first successful year for the Ship Canal pair (4 young) and the second for the eastside site (3 young).

The adult males at the both the Ship Canal Bridge (hatch year 2001) and our one eastside site (hatch year 2002) were the offspring of Bell and Stewart. These two males did not go far from their natal territories when they established their own territories. Both these males are mated to females from Oregon, and it is typical that females disperse further from their natal areas than males when they establish breeding territories. An adult female (hatch year 2000) found dead at her nest in the San Juan Islands in July 2004 (young taken, killed by a mammalian predator) is the only female from the Washington Mutual nest that we know reached adulthood and became a breeding bird.