Peregrin Falcon nest webcam

[Clover]

If you've had enough Africam, you might want to take a look at the webcam on a peregrine falcon nest at the PG&E building in downtown San Francisco. The falcons, George and Gracie, initially nested this year on a girder under the Bay Bridge. Fledglings usually don't survive their first flights from the bridge, so the eggs have been removed and will be hatched, raised, and released in Santa Cruz. The eggs were removed two weeks ago, and G&G have chosen this PG&E bldg nest that was already prepared for them to lay a second clutch. At this moment there's just an empty gravel box on camera, but both falcons were there a few minutes ago, engaging in courtship behavior and hollowing out depressions in the gravel. Gracie should start laying any time now. (Female raptors are larger than males, so Gracie is the big one.) The site has nest diaries from previous years and a photo gallery. I particulary recommend the Banding Day 2005 gallery. The four eyases (chicks) are so cute in their ugly way. This year's webcam just went into operation today. They recommend you use Safari on a Mac, and Internet Explorer on a PC. Here's the link: http://www2.ucsc.edu/scpbrg/falconcamera.htm

[sneezles]

Shame I can't view it on Mozilla Firefox though I have enjoyed reading about the falcons.

[Clover]

Apparently it doesn't work on Firefox, according to the site's forum.

[Clover]

I'm bumping this up because the same site has a webcam on a peregrine falcon nest on the San Jose City Hall (http://www2.ucsc.edu/scpbrg/falconcameraSJ.htm). The eggs of that pair (Clara and Jose) hatched last night and this morning, and they have three fluffy little chicks. There should be a lot going on there over the next several weeks. If you can't see the chicks, they're underneath the brooding parent, but they are often in sight.

At the San Francisco nest, Gracie laid one egg, but didn't lay any more, and they seem to have abandoned it. The bird research group has now removed that egg for incubation, and placed four dummy eggs in the nest. If the falcons return to incubate what looks like a full clutch, the bird group will replace the eggs with their chick from their original nest on the Bay Bridge. If they don't, that chick will be put in a wild peregrine nest with young the same age.

Anyway, check out the San Jose nest. Those fluffy little things don't stay little for long.

[badunnin]

Oooh, mom/dad killed something and it's feeding time!