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	Peregrine Falcons in 2003

New Hampshire's Peregrines Go On-line!

by Chris Martin,  Senior Biologist

New Hampshire's state-listed endangered Peregrine Falcon population turned in a solid reproductive season in 2003, matching record highs for numbers of territorial pairs and for those successfully fledging young. While the number of pairs attempting to breed in the Granite State remained as high as it has been at any point in the last half-century, productivity at nests in 2003 was off a bit. A statewide total of 21 young fledged from 14 active nests this year, the lowest annual total since 16 young fledged from 10 active nests in 1998. This year's statewide average of 1.5 young per active nest was the lowest average productivity recorded in the state since 1994, when only 1.25 young per active nest fledged. Food stress during the chick-raising stage of the nesting season may have played a role in depressing overall productivity this year. Even so, the past five breeding seasons have accounted for 47% (120 of 255 chicks) of all the young peregrines fledged in New Hampshire since recovery efforts began in the mid-1970s. A graph illustrates the Peregrine Falcon Breeding Status in New Hampshire from 1976 to 2003. Manchester's peregrines on the Web Thanks to generous assistance from wireless Internet access provider Spectra Access, the Tower Realty Group Manchester's urban-nesting peregrines made the flight into cyberspace this spring. Starting in early May, visitors to the Audubon web site ( www.nhaudubon.org) were able to watch live images broadcast from two micro-cameras installed within the peregrines' nesting box on the thirteenth floor of the New Hampshire Tower building at 1750 Elm Street. Long-time Audubon volunteer falcon observers, as well as young children who had never before seen a Peregrine Falcon, could get an up-close look at the goings-on inside an otherwise inaccessible falcon nest. In case you missed all the excitement, images from this past spring's breeding season have been archived on Audubon's web site. Again, we thank the good folks at Spectra Access, Inc., for their donation of time, talent, and technology that made Manchester's Falcon Cam a reality. Five chicks in nest in Rumney Another surprise during the 2003 peregrine breeding season was the discovery of a five-chick brood at Rattlesnake Mountain in Rumney. Five peregrine chicks in one nest has been reported occasionally at urban nest sites scattered across the U.S., but this may be the first time that anyone has documented it in New England. During our banding visit in June, two of the five chicks were visibly smaller than their nest mates, but all seemed alert and in good condition, so we placed leg bands on all five. Two weeks later, when Audubon seasonal falcon biologist Robert Vallieres returned to the site to check on the five-week-old birds, only the three largest chicks remained, as proved by reading each of their leg bands. Raptors commonly hatch more young than they fledge, and when food becomes limited for any reason, the most vigorous of the young survive while the smaller, weaker offspring sometimes do not. Rock climbers continue to aid project Recreational rock climbers and professional climbing guides again played a key role in New Hampshire's Peregrine Falcon recovery program in 2003, helping Audubon and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologists reach ten of the state's 14 falcon nest sites. This year we partnered with eight different climbers to access various nest sites, examine and band chicks, and recover eggs and other valuable biological samples. For their contributions to the statewide peregrine recovery effort, Paul Cormier and Michael Pelchat, two long-time project volunteers, were honored as the co-recipients of Audubon's Volunteer of the Year Award in July 2003. Overall in 2003, biologists managed to visit 11 of the state's 14 nests, examine and band all 21 fledglings, and recover five eggs that failed to hatch. In the past two decades, Audubon has facilitated a total of 130 separate climbs and worked with 33 individual climbers to place leg bands on 221 falcon chicks and to retrieve 85 unhatched peregrine eggs for shell-thickness and chemical-content analyses. During the last ten years, we have banded an incredible 98% (185 of 189) of the state's peregrine fledglings. Over 16% (37 of 221) of the young falcons banded at nests in New Hampshire have eventually been seen again, which provides wildlife managers with valuable data on the longevity of individuals and on overall population dispersal patterns. Falcon chicks banded in N.H. and seen again in 2003 Origin Year Sex Recovery location Status Owls Head 1987 m NY City Hospital, NY 16-yr-old bird, 15th year breeding at site Devils Slide 1997 m Sawyer Mtn, Fairlee, VT 6th year breeding at site Devils Slide 1999 m Cathedral Ledge, Bartlett, NH 2nd or 3rd year breeding at site Cathedral Ledge 2000 m NH Tower, Manchester, NH 3rd year breeding at site Rattlesnake 2000 f Charlestown, MA found dead on rooftop Devils Slide 2001 f Lewiston, ME member of pair seen near City Hall 8/2003 NH Tower 2001 m Lawrence, MA member of breeding pair at mill building Painted Walls 2002 m Ellington, CT Lewiston, ME seen alive 2/2003 member of pair seen near City Hall 8/2003 Mt. Willard 2003 m South Burlington, VT found alive with wing injury Falcon chicks banded out of state and seen in N.H. in 2003 Origin Year Sex Recovery location Status Precipice, Acadia NP, ME 1994 f Devils Slide,Stark 7th to 9th year breeding at site Fairlee Cliff, Fairlee, VT 1994 m Holts Ledge,Lyme 9th year breeding at site Throgs Neck Bridge, NYC 1999 f NH Tower, Manchester 3rd year breeding at site Travelers Bldg., Hartford, CT 1997 f Rattlesnake, Rumney 3rd year breeding at site Thanks to our many partners Audubon conducts Peregrine Falcon monitoring and management as part of a comprehensive wildlife monitoring contract with the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department. We also receive important assistance from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service, New Hampshire Division of Parks, and others. Special thanks as well to all our volunteer observers and climbing partners scattered across the state.