July 24, 2014 - Kitchener - Sun Life Centre
CPF Postmaster Reports:
July 24th - 2014
Voyager update:
Some sad news.
Marion reports this afternoon:
I was in contact with the Owl foundation today to get an update on Voyager and was told that she was examined on July 22nd. She had serious injuries to her “wrist/hand” or metacarpal bone,, it was completely destroyed in addition to the server bruising on her radial ulna. They contacted the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and got the approval to put her down. She was put down yesterday - (July 23rd - 2014).
As an adult wild bird with such serious injuries they felt she would not have done well in captivity and would not be able to fly up to perches. Sadly, we agree the only humane thing to do was to euthanize her. They said she was 762 grams at intake and was very thin.
Posted on July 24, 2014 2:47 pm
July 22, 2014 - International, National and Local News
CPF Postmaster Reports:
July 22rd - 2014
Well, tisssss the time of year when we have to deal with all of the goofy fledglings as they get into other kinds of other new trouble. At this stage of their development, they have now survived collisions with the windows and buildings, managed to hold their altitude and no longer need to be rescued from the ground. So, you think that their all going to be ok now, right,,, WRONG!!
A typical example of the “kids” getting into other trouble. Remembering, that the only life skills they have, is what their parents have been able to teach them so far, this in addition to the things that they themselves have experienced so far, (the things that haven’t already killed or injured them so far)! Going down ventilation shafts after food was obviously not part of the lessons. But juveniles will be juveniles, and that’s exactly what happened to little BJ.
So, the little fledgling that was named “BJ” by the Rogers centre staff after BJ the Blue Jays Birdie mascot,, - (banded by the OMNR several weeks ago after being rescued by CPF when she came to the ground below the Rogers centre nest),,,,,, - chased a pigeon across the Toronto Renaissance Hotel rooftop, (the same hotel that is attached to the Roger centre itself), and like many careless inexperienced children, slipped and fell down into a ventilation shaft, falling down several floors within the building and ended up inside the mechanical and boiler room within the hotel.
This situation is one that is not a isolated incident, as it brings up a not so distant memory of yet another juvenile fledgling peregrine falcon from the Toronto Sheraton Hotel nest site several years ago that ended up trapped in the mechanical room at the Zurich building, just south west of the Toronto Sheraton hotel. (That rescue took two entire days to capture her up and involved five CPF staff members)!
Thank goodness for the quick and caring actions of Alex, one of the hotels engineers who spotted the young peregrine high up on one of the pipes and was quick to call the CPF. Arrangements were make to accommodate the CPF, and both Mark and Marion from the CPF drove down to the Renaissance Hotel in an effort to rescue her.
Upon their arrival and being escorted to the upper mechanical room, the young juvenile peregrine was finally located (only after about 20 minutes of searching the upper pipes with a flashlight, up some 15 plus feet high up within the large mechanical area). With Alex’s assistance along with several members of engineering staff ,, and some very tall ladders, the young peregrine juvenile - “BJ”, was eventually netted and recovered safely.
After a quick examination, BJ was deemed quite healthy, un-injured and cleared for immediate release. So, over to the Rogers Centre after a quick call to Dave McCormick, the Manager of Engineering at the Rogers Centre. He made arrangements to receive Mark and Marion, and was met by Lee who took them up to the Rogers Centre roof on the walkway above the nest ledge so that BJ could be released back to her parents care. A familiar location that Mark has been earlier where BJ was released after her first rescue.
It is worth noting, that upon their arrival to the upper roof area, they were delighted to see two of the other fledglings chasing one of their adult parents for food, so we know that at least two of the other three fledglings have survived. There were four hatchlings produced at the Rogers centre nest site this season.
BJ flew strong right out of the carrier without missing a wing beat and out of their view behind one of the roof retaining walls.
Sadly, we were unable to verify an exact hatch date in time (and get the age of the hatchlings in time to arrange a banding). We were able to band little “BJ” as she was named when she ended up needing to be rescued several weeks ago.
A huge thank you to the Alex and all of his team at the Renaissance Hotel, and to the great folks at the Rogers centre who have been more than accommodating to both the nesting peregrines and the CPF in our efforts to deal with this peregrine nest site.
Another big thank you to Edna, one of the residences of the condos to the west of the Rogers Centre that overlooks the nest ledge, who supplied the photos of the nest ledge and the four hatchlings that were produced at the Rogers centre nest this season.
Posted on July 23, 2014 12:23 am
July 21, 2014 - International, National and Local News
Mark Nash Reports:
July 21st - 2014
Territorial dispute ends up with some injuries! A 2013 Rochester female named Voyager has some injuries!
We do have some sad news to report. Yesterday, I was contacted by the Kitchener Waterloo humane society with reports of a downed peregrine that we assumed might be one of the young fledglings that was produced at the Sun Life nest site this season, and with only one surviving fledgling, we expected the worst. There is good news and bad news to share.
The good news, I asked for a photo of the birds leg bands to confirm the peregrines identity, and it turns out to be a sub-adult female, banded with Yellow and Red tape over its Silver USFW band and a Black 95 over Green BA. Its not one of the resident KW peregrines!!
The bad news, is that the peregrine has some serious injuries to the wing & wrist along with other obvious evidence of punctures very consistent to wounds sustained in battles with another raptor. The sub-adult peregrine female turns out to be a peregrine produced in Rochester New York in 2013, one named Voyager, dawning a Black 95 over Green BA coloured leg band.
Rudy Kruppa from the CPF was kind enough to pick up Voyager from the KW Humane society and drove her to team members of the Owl Foundation that met him half way in between the long drive between Kitchener and Vineland. We are waiting for updated news on her status.
We have our fingers crossed for her.
A huge thank you to the KW humane society for calling us so quickly and to Rudy for picking her up and driving her to medial assistance so quickly!!
Again, another fantastic team effort of caring people!!!!
We are waiting on reports from the KW group as to the status of the resident adults at the KW nest site to see if there were any life sustaining injuries with them.
Fingers crossed that there was no serious injuries sustained on their end.
Posted on July 22, 2014 11:46 pm
July 13, 2014 - International, National and Local News
CPF Postmaster Reports:
Sunday July 13th - 2014
A big thank you to Lucie and Richard Kirchknoph who ventured down to Beachville Ontario this weekend to investigate a report of nesting peregrines.
Their efforts paid off as they were able to identify the resident adult male via his leg band number and identify that the resident adult female is also banded with a solid Black leg band, telling us that they are both Canadian produced peregrines. Reports of the peregrines having produced offspring this year have been coming in this past week and we have some some good news to report thanks to Lucie and Richard.
Hi Guys
Good investigation guys!!
The Pefa that you reported having a solid black band number turns up in our banding data base as:
A peregrine named “Joe” that was produced at the Hamilton Sheraton Hotel in 2010
He was a very small underweight male – weighing in at only 492 grams at banding, banded at 23 days old on May 31st – 2010
His mother is Madame X as she has been called and his father was named Surge.
Surge was produced at the Etobicoke nest site (Bloor & Islington) in 2002
Madame X was produced at a nest site in Wilkes-Barre in the USA in 1999 and was nick-named – “Runaround Sue”
Posted on July 14, 2014 2:45 pm
July 12, 2014 - Toronto - Canada Square Building - Yonge and Eglinton
Marion Nash Reports:
July 12th - 2014
Tracy was able to confirm via photographs that she was able to take at the nest ledge during the extraction of the young hatchling that her two parents are in fact Simcoe who was produced at the Canada Square nest site at Yonge & Eglinton in 2012 and Alfrieda from Buffalo NY in 2012, confirmed via their leg band numbers.
What a great day and a successful banding! A huge thank you to all of the Lakeridge Hospital staff and their administration for hosting the banding event and making the day such a great success! A big thank you goes out to Mark Heaton from the Aurora District of the Ministry of Natural Resources who gave up yet another one of his days off to come out and band Oshawa Lakeridge Hospital’s newest resident, a young female peregrine hatchling that was produced by Oshawa’s first resident pair of peregrine falcons!
A huge thank you to the CPF team, Marion Nash, Tracy Simpson and Kathy Smith who also gave up yet another weekend of their time to pull this event together from our end to ensure that the young hatchling was extracted and returned back to her parents on the upper roof top.
Shortly after 10am, a huge crowd assembled down in the main lobby of the Lakeridge hospital, and by 10:20am, the star attraction had finally arrived from the roof. The entire outside rooftop nest ledge was viewed live from a colour GoPro camera worn by Tracy and Kathy that was displayed live-real-time on a large flat screen colour monitor that the hospital set up in the lobby beside the banding table to allow live viewing of the rooftop happenings.
Tracy and Kathy from the CPF were responsible this go-round to both safely extract the young peregrine hatchling from the upper roof elevation and to then remain on the upper oputside nest ledge elevation to distract both of the resident adult peregrine parents so that they wouldn’t realize that their young hatchling was missing during its absence for the banding. Marion from the CPF manned the banding table this banding to assist Mark Heaton from the MNR to do the banding.
Mark Nash from the CPF manned the mic and public address system to walk the audience through the banding procedure and to answer any questions throughout the banding event, and to take some of the photos to document the event.
A big thank you to Walter Raemisch who sent us some great photos of little SALVEO during her banding! Thank you Walter!
The particulars: The young hatchling was weighed, checked for its health, and successfully banded and named without incident and safely returned back it parents.
The little female hatchling, - now 28 days old,, (now identified clearly as a female, weighed 910 grams and was named “Salveo” by the hospital staff after a name the chick contest was completed). The name Salveo means “To be well, To be in good health”),, and that couldn’t have been any further from the truth, as she was a very healthy baby peregrine hatchling indeed!
She was banded with a Solid Black Canadian Recovery leg band number - Y over 90 and in typical fashion, a small piece of coloured Red tape was applied to her Silver USFW band so she can be easily identified at distance during her fledge period.
Tracy was able to confirm via photographs that she was able to take at the nest ledge level after the extraction that her two parents are in fact Simcoe and Alfrieda, confirmed via their leg band numbers.
Ernest (Earnie) Schouwerwou was on hand (the hospital staffer that first discovered the peregrines on the hospital less than a week ago) to help with the banding and was able to hold little Salveo during the banding process.
A great day indeed, with an incredible team of people that really scrambled in very short notice to make this all happen!!
The hospital has agreed to work with CPF and plans are now underway to have CPF manufacture and install a proper nest box on the hospital for their resident peregrines thus ensuring that they have more accommodating nesting conditions down the road.
As we have long since learned, with that of many of the urban nest sites, that a properly constructed nest box with the appropriate nesting sub-straight and drainage can make the difference from a total failure (or partial hatch) to a much better situation for the nesting adults, and increased production and success rate for the adults. There was also talk of a nest camera which would be a very welcomed addition to the nest, as it provides a great management tool to help with the logistics and management of the nest, in addition to being an incredible educational opportunity for all!
Stay tuned……………….
Posted on July 13, 2014 2:03 pm
July 12, 2014 - International, National and Local News
CPF Postmaster Reports:
July 11th - 2014
We have been able to pull together the banding event for Saturday July 12th at 10am in the main lobby of the Lakeridge Hospital!
You are all invited to attend!
Please come out and support your peregrines.
Stay tuned for banding photos and details…………..
Posted on July 12, 2014 2:52 am
July 11, 2014 - International, National and Local News
Mark Nash Reports:
July 11th - 2014
To the rescue - again. Manpower, resources time and allot of tender loving care by all! If these birds only realized what we have all been through to help them,, (they’d likely think that we were all a lot crazzzzy). Perhaps they maybe right,,,, but we’re all in good company, and I’m certainly not alone!!
The next call came from Mark Heaton from the OMNR, with an injured fledgling in hand that was retrieved and rescued from the ground in the west end of Toronto near the Toronto airport. The young female fledgling was likely produced from our elusive pair of peregrines that have been nesting and producing offspring out at the airport hotel strip,, (a pair that we have yet to locate their actual nesting site). This would be the second year in a row that a young fledgling has been retrieved and rescued in distress from the ground in this same neighbourhood.
The plan was for Mark to keep the bird overnight, band it, and get it to Tracy Simpson from the CPF to transfer to the CPF raptor centre where Mark Nash from the CPF would pick it up from there and get it to the avian vet. Because the birds injuries were not at all life threatening and no medical emergency existed, we would be able to schedule an appointment with the vet as opposed to declare this situation a medical emergency and disrupt other existing patients scheduled appointments at the veterinary hospital.
The fledgling spent the first night with Mark Heaton, where he was able to band it. Mark’s daughter - Kethra helped Mark with the banding, fed it, and named it “Aveda”
So, as planned, and like a tag-team, Tracy hooked up with Mark Heaton the nest morning to pick up the fledgling, drove it to the CPF Raptor centre. where Mark Nash was her connecting flight from the CPF Raptor centre to Dr. Markus Lackwaldt, CPF’s avian vet, for a medical examination and treatment.
Its lucky that the birds injuries were not life threatening, as it would have surely died with all of the traffic congestion as a result of the construction on every major east and west roadway across the top and bottom of the city!! Almost 5 hours stuck in bumper to bumper traffic and an entire tank of gas for this round trip!!!
In any event, the net results were well worth it! After more than an hour of examination and treatment, the young female fledgling - “Aveda” was cleared to be released back to its parents after a short 24 hour hold over to observe its behaviour and function. The young female fledgling was surprisingly in very good condition, a good weight - (850 grams), and no superficial injuries or broken or fractured bones. Bruised and shaken as a result of its grounding, with the usual lack of confidence that easily defeats the young fledglings, it was starting to exhibit the feisty peregrine attitude by the end of the examination.
The bird was rehydrated in addition to receiving a liquid vitamin and mineral supplement, and with a full belly of some of the best food supplement that it will ever likely get, was released back to our care under Dr. Luckwaldt’s supervision for a 24 hour hold-over period for observations. If everything goes as we suspect it will, the young “Aveda” should be back to its parents (who ever they are) by tomorrow.
Stay tuned………
Posted on July 11, 2014 11:31 pm
July 10, 2014 - International, National and Local News
Mark Nash Reports:
July 7th - 2014
Some really great news to report! During my spot check of the young Scarborough fledglings on Monday, I received a telephone call from Ann who reported reading a report of peregrine activity in Oshawa by the president and CEO at the Lakeridge Hospital.
By the time I got home that evening, I opened e-mail communication from the President and CEO of Lakeridge Health Oshawa with a report and suspicions of territorial peregrine activity at the hospital. After reviewing his photos that he attached to his e-mail, it was easy to re-confirm that his feathered visitors were indeed peregrines, (peregrines that are known to us), and his report of the harassment by two adult peregrines that his maintenance staff had received earlier while conducting roof inspections suggested that something else was going on other than just territorial behaviour.
A site visit was scheduled for the afternoon of July 10th.
Thursday July 10th - 2014
I met with Kevin and several senior members of the hospital staff and we proceeded to one of the north upper roof elevations to investigate further. Moments after our arrival to the roof , we were immediately met by two very vocal and rather annoyed adult peregrines that were already airborne, stooping and diving at our presence. I was directed to a lower elevation and quickly scanned the rooftop with nothing unusual to report. Despite not seeing anything after clearly seeing 98% of this very small roof elevation, the adult peregrines were far tooo upset with me to just be protecting a territory or food caches, so I asked if the latter could be moved to take a look at the other end of the roof.
The latter was repositioned that allowed me a view of the last few feet of this particular roof elevation where my original view had been partially obstructed by a chimney that exited from the top of the roof. It didn’t take but a second once the latter was repositioned to see the tiny secret that the chimney was hiding. A single small young peregrine hatchling was observed, looking quite healthy and very alert indeed!
The resident adults were photographed by all and hopefully we will be able to confirm their identity via the leg band identification as both adults are in fact banded. The larger female dawns a Black over Green leg band and the adult dawns a Solid Black leg band, with Yellow tape overtop of his silver leg band.
We suspect that this pair is the very same pair that attempted to nest on the Oshawa City hall back in April of this year that we were monitoring, where three eggs were produced. Sadly, the pair abandoned the nest ledge and their three eggs the following week after our site visit as a result of a heavy rain and wind storm moved in that drenched the ledge with water and high winds. Typical of most commercial urban rooftops, with the lack of suitable nesting sub- straight, and water accumulation are among some of the many reasons the peregrine nests fail in these environments. Unfortunately, we were unable to secure the necessary funding support we needed that would have allowed us to manufacture a suitable nest box and get it installed in time to prevent this inevitable outcome.
The nesting Oshawa city hall peregrines were both identified via their leg bands by the photos that I was able to take during my site visit. Both of these peregrines are know to us as the same pair that Rob photographed in Whitby back in January of this year.
We have confirmed that the resident nesting adult female at the hospital is in fact the same female that attempted to nest at the Oshawa City hall back in April of this year. The adult female peregrine was hatched in 2012 in New York State in the USA. She dawns a Black over Green leg band – 73 over AW and she was named “Alfrieda”,,,, named after one of the architects of the Central Terminal in Buffalo NY USA where she was produced.
Her solid Black banded male mate - band # 63 over X with Yellow tape overtop of his silver USFW band on the other leg is one that we banded on May 24 2012, produced at the Canada Square nest site. ** We have not confirmed that this is the resident male at the hospital as yet.
If it is in fact the same male, he was named “Simcoe”, (and was produced at the Canada Square nest site at the Yonge & Eglinton nest here in up-town Toronto). You can see the history of the Canada Square nest site on the CPF web site at - http://www.peregrine-foundation.ca/w/c/sightings/toronto-uptown-yonge-and-eglinton
Given the age of young Hospital hatchling, there remains a very short window of opportunity to get it safely banded. Thank goodness for Kevin and the hospital team for all of their incredible support and cooperation, and the dedication and amazing support of Mark Heaton from the Ministry of Natural resources, as I was able to coordinate in part a banding time for this Saturday!! Scramble, you bet,, but by Saturday morning, the little peregrine hatchling will be named, examined for it health, banded and returned safely back to its parents.
Stay tuned for additional news, as its going to come fast and furious given the rather short time this has all taken place!
Posted on July 10, 2014 11:51 pm
July 01, 2014 - International, National and Local News
Marion Nash Reports:
Yesterday, June 29, while surveying for odes, I had a female Peregrine Falcon buzz low over my head in a stoop. She pulled out of her dive just above water level, hoping to kick something up from the wetland. She was unsuccessful. This is only the 2nd time I’ve seen a “summer” Peregrine in almost 30 years of living in Haliburton County.
Lochlin is a tiny hamlet located SW of Haliburton, along Gelert Rd (Cty Rd 1). The large wetland complex is located on Ritchie Falls Road, about 1.5 km from Gelert Rd.
Cheers,
Ed Poropat
Haliburton, ON
Posted on July 1, 2014 8:54 am
June 13, 2014 - Burlington - Lift Bridge
Sue McCreadie Reports:
Ghent is doing well. Flying high and landing pretty good. While I wasn’t able to go the Lift Bridge today, Bill was there a couple of times to check on Ghent. We have already witnessed some talon touching with Cirrus. Today, Mackenzie brought in lunch. Bill witnessed a food exchange with the first live prey that we have observed. Ghent was accurate with his catch and flew well with it. He took it to a cross beam on the Burlington Bridge tower to prepare and eat. Great Job Ghent.
Posted on June 13, 2014 10:41 am
