Changing of the guard in Port Colborne
April 21, 2009 - Port Colborne - ADM Mill
Doug Garbutt Reports:
Very early in March this year as I walked towards the mill from the parking lot I heard falcon sounds I’d never heard before. I believe the falcon making the sounds was in distress. It was still dark out & I could not see any activity but I knew the sounds were coming from the grain elevator next to ours. When it got slightly lighter outside, one worker caught glimpses of 2 falcons diving at eachother at extremely high rates of speed. I didn’t know at the time but I am assuming that this was infact a terretorial dispute as our resident tiercel (Freedom) has been displaced by a younger falcon (unnamed). We were able to ID this bird thaks to Carol Phillips from Rochester & The N.Y. State D.E.C. They confirmed that the bird was produced & banded at the Statler bldg. in Buffalo 2007. The resident female here is still “Millie” from the St. Lawrence Plant in Mississauga (also a 2007 bird). Millie has produced 4 eggs between Mar. 30 & Apr. 7 this year when full incubation commenced. Unlike Freedom who spent much of his time hunting on the west side of our facility where we could observe & photograph him, the new bird has chosen to stay on the east side of the building, making it difficult to track his actions. He has though taken part on tending to the eggs but not nearly as much as Freedom would.