21 Could 2024
This morning two peregrine chicks have been banded on the College of Pittsburgh’s Cathedral of Studying by Patti Barber, Endangered Chicken Biologist from the PA Recreation Fee (PGC).
As quickly as Patti started accumulating the chicks, the mother and father Carla and Ecco strafed the constructing to drive her away. Carla herself is banded however this was her first time experiencing it as a mom. She was fierce in defending her chicks.
Indoors, the chicks got well being checks (they’re very wholesome!), weighed to find out their intercourse, and given two leg bands: a black/inexperienced coloration band that may be learn by way of binoculars and a silver USFW band.
Patti put coloured tape on the silver USFW bands so we are able to establish the birds by coloration on the falconcam. The smaller chick is yellow, the bigger chick is blue.
Curiously the bigger of the 2 children (blue) is clearly feminine, weighing in at over 1000g. The smaller chicken (yellow) weighed 730g, simply above the borderline that designates males as lower than 700g and females as extra.
Yellow was formally listed as “intercourse undetermined” however my guess is that he’s male. The Cathedral of Studying has seen just a few male peregrine chicks weighing 710-720g. (Dorothy’s in 2009, 2010 and Morela’s in 2022). We people received’t know for certain if this chicken is male till we see him nest.
“Blue” calmly waited whereas all of us took pictures.
In lower than half an hour the chicks have been again on the nest and their lives returned to regular.
In the meantime we received a glimpse of the unhatched egg which Patti collected for testing.
The chicks will develop up quickly within the subsequent two weeks and depart the digital camera view by the top of the month.
Keep tuned for the Fledge Watch schedule at Schnenley Plaza on the finish of this month and early June.
p.s. A Large Thank You goes out to everybody who made this present day doable. (Apologies to anybody I’ve missed on this checklist.)
- The College of Pittsburgh for being such an amazing peregrine landlord, for publicizing the peregrines, and for internet hosting the banding.
- The PA Recreation Fee for his or her dedication to banding the peregrine chicks on the Cathedral of Studying. (Peregrine banding in PA is uncommon these days as a result of the birds are now not endangered / threatened.)
- The Nationwide Aviary for broadcasting the Pitt peregrines’ nest from their falconcam and for organizing the banding.
(picture credit are within the captions)
