The attached photos were taken on Sunday afternoon by Nils Foss. This is the poor little guy that got away.
On Sunday, Bill and I were treated to an amazing display. Shall we say that Love is definitely in the air. We watched the birds for several hours. There was flight after flight of Red-winged Blackbirds making there way North across the canal. Dad was hunting from the top the Hamilton Hydro and made many stoops after the poor Blackbirds.  While we were there, he was successful once, but as he attempted to make it back to one of the picnic tables, he lost it. The Blackbird flew away but I’m sure he was going to need some time to recuperate.  As it is so beautiful today, we will be heading back down this afternoon. We have been unable to read any bands as yet but know that the male had a black band and the female is Black/Green. We are assuming that it is still Cirrus and Mackenzie.
February 8th and 9th brought lots of Spring housekeeping, chirping back and forth and many visits in and out of the nest box.
Bill and I spent some time at the Lift Bridge this afternoon. Mom and Dad were making leisurely attempts at pigeon hunting. How magnificent to see them in flight.  Mom was hunting from the cables close to the Hamilton Tower and Dad was sitting on the face of the Hamilton Tower. We were told that just prior to our arrival a Red-Tailed Hawk had flown into the territory and had been hustled out of there in quick order by both Cirrus and McKenzie.  Unfortunately, we missed the whole thing. When we left around 1:30 pm, Cirrus had moved to the Hamilton Hydro Tower and McKenzie was still tucked in on the face of the Hamilton Tower.
Bill and I spent a couple of hours at the Lift Bridge this afternoon. It was +2 degrees Celsius in the sun. When we arrived around 12:30pm, both Cirrus and McKenzie were sitting in the sun on the cables close to the nest box. We took a walk out the pier to look at the hundreds on Long Tail Ducks who are wintering in and around the canal. When we turned to walk back, I noticed that both bird were gone. I stopped and asked a young man if he had seen where the Peregrines had gone. He said they high tailed out of there towards Burlington. We watched for a while and out of nowhere Cirrus appeared and landed again on the wire. A few minutes later McKenzie arrived, landing on the old nest ledge and was chirping to beat the band. I guess he was wanting Cirrus to serve him lunch. Cirrus made one feeble attempt at hunting while we watched but then she settled down again on the wire in the sun.
Vince Filteau and Sue Adorjan’s great photos of Cirrus and Mackenzie. These were taken earlier in December. The first 2 photos are from Vince. Sue has graciously provided the rest. Thanks again for sending your sighting and wonderful photos to us and allowing them to be used!
Cirrus
Mackenzie
Mac Eyeing Cirrus’ Kill
Cirrus Doesnt Want To Share
A Perplexed Mac
Can Make Our Cirrus’ Black/Green Band
Thanks to Sue Adorjan for her photo of MacKenzie. Back on Dec 11,2011 Sue was able to get several shots of Mac. With Sue’s photo we could make out his band number and colours. Cirrus was seen eating a pigeon. A few more photos will be added soon from this excellent sighting.
It is important whenever possible to confirm the identification of resident pairs. This helps us to identify  if or when a change has taken place and keep our records as current and accurate as possible. Thanks to reports and photos like Sue’s and CPF volunteers for all their help in this.
While poking around the internet,I found this article posted at e! Science News. So all will see it,it is being posted on each of our nestsite pages. This is too important to miss.
The original article can be seen here: http://esciencenews.com/articles/2011/04/18/new.pollutants.detected.peregrine.falcon.eggsÂ
Flame retardants are chemical compounds added to fabrics and plastics to keep them from burning easily, but these can be toxic. Now a team of researchers from Spain and Canada has detected some of these emerging pollutants for the first time in peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus) eggs in both countries. “The presence of ‘dechlorane plus’ and other related, chlorinated compounds used as flame retardants have been detected for the first time in the European biota (flora and fauna of the region)”, explains Ethel Eljarrat, co-author of the study and scientist at the Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Studies (IDAEA-CSIC, Spain).
The researchers have found these substances in peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus) eggs in both Spain and Canada. The flame retardants are often added to textiles, electronic circuits and other products to inhibit or resist the spread of fire, but can be transferred to the environment.
In nature these compounds are “bioaccumulating and bioconcentrating” all along the food chain, as evidenced by the research published in the Environmental Science & Technology journal. The international research team for this study was led by Begoña Jiménez of the Institute of Organic Chemistry (CSIC, Spain), and Environment Canada researchers, Kim Fernie and Mehran Alaee.
Having received the relevant permits, eggs that had failed to hatch from various active falcon nests in Canada and Spain, were collected. The collection involved 13 eggs from Spain (five in Guadalajara – a territory representative of an inland habitat of the Iberian Peninsula - and eight in Bilbao - representing a coastal environment), and 12 eggs from Canada (Great Lakes Region and Eastern provinces).
The levels of some of the measured contaminants have been found to be somewhat higher in Bilbao than in Guadalajara, and the authors believe this may be due partially to the difference in the falcons’ diet: more aquatic in the former and more terrestrial in the latter. In fact, if fish is highly contaminated, peregrines would accumulate more of the harmful substances. While peregrine falcons do not eat fish, they prey upon other birds, some of which may eat fish.
Selecting the peregrine falcon was no accident. This species was endangered in many areas of the northern hemisphere due to the use of organochlorinated pesticides, particularly DDT, though when this was prohibited in the 1970s the populations recovered. Furthermore, falcons are at the top end of the food chain and accumulate substances carried by their prey.
Highest levels in the Canadian samples
The results reveal that the concentrations of ‘dechlorane plus’ and some of the other chlorinated halogens were “significantly higher” in the Canadian falcons’ eggs than in those of Spain. The reason for this could be that the industry that has manufactured these compounds for decades (although they are now also produced in China) is located in New York State close to the area where samples were collected. In addition, the use of these compounds has generally been higher in North America than Europe.
The researcher acknowledges that the effects that these flame retardants may have on the falcons’ eggs or on their development are still unknown, “but their detection is a first step”. These are emerging pollutants, which comprise both those which have appeared more recently and those that have been used for a long time but are just lately the subject of environmental interest.
Other flame retardants, including some brominated flame retardants, have already been confirmed as toxic endocrine disruptors, and their use has been prohibited in some of the commercial mixes in Europe and America. Furthermore, they are candidates for inclusion on a list of Persistent Organic Pollutants to be eliminated, a list compiled by the Stockholm Convention which includes other pollutants such as DDT or dioxins.
This study forms part of the doctoral thesis submitted this month by the researcher Paula Guerra from IDAEA on “The analysis of emerging halogenated flame retardants and their impact on the environment and on humans”. All of the eggs were analyzed by her during her exchange studies at Environment Canada.
A research group at IDAEA led by Damià Barceló has also confirmed the presence of these compounds in sediment and fish in the rivers of the Ebro basin (Spain). Source:FECYT-Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology
I was emailed a report from Rob and Ann Smith,Tuesday that they saw both McKenzie  and Cirrus at the Burlington Liftbridge. It’s great news to get reports all through fall and winter,just to let us know the falcons are on territory. We are thankful to our many out of town volunteers and observers for monitoring their Peregrines in “off seasons”.
The Peel Birding Class reported to me that Nov 6th they enjoyed great views of a Peregrine Falcon sitting in the sun,relaxing on the first tower.
Yesterday, Bill and I spent some time at the Bridge. For the first time in a couple of week, we were able to spot both Cirrus and Mackenzie. Both birds were under the Skyway taking it easy. No sightings of Lady Lamont or Lady Nelson.  I hope they are safely on their way South.