Thursday, March 30, 2006

Great capture of eggs nestled under KathyQ

Anita sent me this one yesterday. Very cool!



I still had some iamges I saved last year. Here's one to whet everyone's appetite, after the first two had hatched. I would say that's Kinney feeding, and KathyQ perched on the ledge (you can just see her feet).

Notice the HUGE difference in picture quality. The IndyStar and D.N.R. did a great job of upgrading the cameras since last year.

Tuesday, March 28, 2006

Posing for pictures

Once inside the building, the banding process began with an 'introduction' of sorts. Here, one of the young peregrines poses (noisily) for photographs. The squawking is nonstop and quite loud the entire time.

Sunday, March 26, 2006

First public appearance

Once they have been removed from the nest, the young birds are brought inside. A room is setup where they are given a medical check, some blood is drawn, and their identification bands are attached. It is also at this time they are given names. In this photo, you can see two of the three that hatched last year in Indy.

Friday, March 24, 2006

Removing chicks from the nest

Imaging being 300 feet up and all the while being 'buzzed' by two very protective falcons. Here you can see both Kinney and KathyQ (I'd say he's on the left, she's on the right)zooming down on one of the people retrieving the three chicks. He has his head inside the box while kneeling right at the edge of the building, as if that wasn't already enough to worry about.

Wednesday, March 22, 2006

Reaching the nest box

This is the next step in the banding process: Getting to the nest.

Getting there is somewhat tricky (to say the least). The nest is 31 floors up and only reachable by walking along a narrow ledge. Midway there it's necessary to climb over one of the decorative pillars that forms the distinctive roof of Market Tower.

Yesterday, people were asking whether someone could clear the snow from the box. As you can imagine, this is would have been dangerous to humans as well as potentially detrimental to the well-being of Kinney, KathyQ and the eggs.

Today's photo shows the DNR team reaching the nest box.

One of the adults is visible as he/she streaks by, very close and very fast, trying to ward off the intruders. This one also gives you a good idea of the size of the box and of an adult peregine.

It's worth noting that, even with a very fast shutter speed on my camera, it was difficult to catch them diving and trying to chase the humans away. Their speed is so great that they still come out a bit blurry.

Tuesday, March 21, 2006

EXTRA! EXTRA! Snow in the nest box

Today's heavy snow has really been blowing into the nest box. It looks miserable. But the eggs are staying warm.


The 2005 Banding

While we wait for the eggs to hatch, I will be posting a few of my photos from last year. Three eggs hatched and I managed to get downtown to view the banding process. This took place May 13, 2005. I set up the camera and tripod on Monument Circle, where I had a good view of the nest box. This shot was taken just ashe team went out on the ledge to retrieve the chicks. There is a door that opens up to the ledge, just below the 'key' sign. Kinney and KathyQ immediately went airborne, started screeching, and diving on the intruders. It's quite an amazing aerial display. You get a pretty good idea of the speed and agility of these amazing creatures. You'll see more of this the upcoming photos I will be posting here in the next few days.

Monday, March 20, 2006

Other large birds in Indy

We have a captive Bald Eagle at the Indianapolis Zoo. Her name is "Lady". She had a broken wing due to being shot, was captured and rehabilitated, and now lives at the zoo. The nature of her injury left her unable to fly or hunt, so she was sent to the zoo to be cared for and protected. We have other eagles living in the wild in the Indy area. One was seen several times last year, visiting the eagle exhibit at the zoo.

Here's a picture of Lady that I took a couple years ago.



In the wild, we also have Turkey Vultures and hawks, to name but two of the more common species. I happened to see a Cooper's Hawk swoop down into my backyard one afternoon and take a Grackle - all in (literally) the blink of an eye. It's worth noting that a Cooper looks very similar to a Peregrine, although they have much different markings on their head their body coloration is pretty close. It's easy to mix up the two (as I originally had done). Peregrines almost always take their prey in flight, which the Cooper will attack prey on the ground.

Here's a Turkey Vulture, gliding on thermals.


The photo below is most likely a Red-tailed Hawk, and was seen near Seymour, Indiana.



The Great Blue Heron is also found frequently, always along water ways such as the White River, where this one (below) was photographed.



Easily one of the most spectacular sights is the spring and fall migration of thousands of Sandhill Cranes. While they mainly gather at the Jasper-Pulaski wildlife preserve in northern Indiana, I have seen large flocks of them circling over downtown Indianapolis.

Sunday, March 19, 2006

Will we see five?

Evidently 5 is uncommon, so perhaps not. So, as we await the answer to this question, here is a look at the four eggs. As of 6:30am this morning, the count is still at 4.

Saturday, March 18, 2006

Four Eggs!

Just a few minutes ago, KathyQ stood up and there were 3 eggs. Just a minute later, she stood up again and there are now 4.



This one was at 9:02 am


This was one was at 9:03am


This one was at 9:04am

Friday, March 17, 2006

Where's the Nest?

These two photos will give you the answer to that question. Not everyone knows where the 'Key' building is, so the aerial views from Virtual Earth should clear that up.

Look for the white arrows. They point to the nest box, which appears as a small white dot high on the ledge of the 'Key' building. You can also see the key upon which Kinney often perches.



View #1:


View #2:

You can view these images directly from their source, which will let you 'fly' around and view the area from different angles by clicking here

Thursday, March 16, 2006

Here are a couple from today. Still 3 eggs.


Tuesday, March 14, 2006

Two Eggs!

Here are some more shots, from today. The second egg was laid around 5pm yesterday.


Sunday, March 12, 2006

The First Egg

Arrived around 8am yesterday.

Saturday, March 11, 2006

The 2006 Season is Here


Egg Number One arrive March 11th:

The Indystar.com and Indiana DNR put in new cameras this year and they are awesome. Even night viewing is possible. They deserve a hearty 'well done'.