Author: Matt Perry

Though the first egg has yet to appear, Ares and Vera have been anything but idle. The pair remains highly active, engaging in frequent ledge displays, repeated matings, and regular food exchanges—clear signs of gearing up for breeding.

One particularly striking moment occurred on Wednesday when Ares began feeding bits of prey directly to Vera, as though she were a nestling. It’s unusual behavior for a mated pair, and may have been prompted by Vera’s lingering juvenile plumage, which perhaps could confuse even an experienced tiercel like Ares. Then again, maybe not. Long-time followers may recall that Ares also displayed this behavior with Astrid on rare occasions, particularly when she declined to accept food gifts in the usual fashion.

Vera continues to gain confidence and competence. She’s now noticeably more adept at mating and has just made her first solid attempt at a proper scrape in the nestbox. Until today, she’d only made a series of half-hearted pseudo-scrapes, barely shifting the gravel beneath her. This time, she really dug in—literally. Her growing investment in the nest site is unmistakable; she’s spending long hours nearby, undeterred by cold or wind, reinforcing her bond with the site. It is probably only a matter of time before the season’s first egg makes its debut. Until then, we’ll be watching closely as this pair continues to find their rhythm.

While there’s no way to know yet whether this season will lead to a successful nesting attempt, Ares and Vera are showing promising signs. Their pair bond continues to grow stronger—evident in their frequent flights together, mutual perching, and an uptick in ledge displays at the nestbox. Significantly, they’ve been observed mating successfully—a milestone not always reached with yearling Peregrine females. In the past two days, we’ve also documented several food exchanges, another positive indicator of their developing bond.

One of the most encouraging signs is Vera’s growing attachment to the nest site—far greater than that shown by Ares’s three most recent short-term partners. She arrives at the box early in the morning, just as Ares has always done, and he seems to appreciate that tendency. At this point, we can’t say if Vera is close to laying eggs—or whether she will lay any this season—it’s not guaranteed with first-year females. As it happens, we are now in the middle of what would have been Astrid’s typical egg-laying window. Of course, we’ve yet to establish any such patterns with Vera.

The young female Peregrine—now officially named Vera—continues to show strong interest in the nest site, the territory, and in Ares himself. The pair appear to be getting along quite well. Ares has been offering food gifts, performing aerial displays, joining her in ledge displays, and carrying out matings—some of which appears to have been successful.

Vera has been spending considerable time around the nestbox. She’s often seen perching on the verandas, inside the box, or even atop it, and she seems more comfortable and invested than any of the last three females who nearly made a go of it with Ares. Whether this new connection endures remains to be seen, but for now, Ares seems quite content with her level of interest and enthusiasm.

We are not sure if Ares will successfully breed this year, but he does seem to have opened a reasonably successful catering service, and dance studio for traveling females.

For a time this morning, it looked like things might be stabilizing at the Utica nest. Serena was present, sharing a ledge display with Ares and even accepting a food gift—signs that the pair might be back on track. But after that moment of apparent harmony, Serena disappeared once again. Ares returned to his lookout post on the roof of the State Office Building, seemingly awaiting her return. Then, in midafternoon, a new twist: an un-banded yearling female arrived—one we hadn’t seen before. Over the next couple of hours, she and Ares engaged in three separate ledge displays at the nestbox. Ares even brought her a food gift, which she accepted and calmly consumed on the edge of the box. She seemed quite at ease at the nest area, and notably, Ares showed no hesitation in welcoming her.

We don’t know if this new female encountered Serena—though we suspect not, as Serena was likely nowhere in the area during her visit. Whether either of them returns tomorrow remains to be seen. At this point, the only thing we can count on is that something unexpected is just as likely to occur with each new day.

We remain uncertain about Serena’s commitment to the Utica nest site—and to Ares as a mate. After what appeared to be a strong recommitment on Monday, she pulled back noticeably on Tuesday and was a complete no-show on Wednesday.

Despite a day marked by sleet, snow, cold rain, and biting winds, Ares made a valiant effort to draw her in. He showed up at the box with food gifts, waited patiently at the nest, and kept vigil from his lookout perch on the roof of the State Building. He dashed around the canyon in high-speed flights—likely trying to pique her interest—but Serena never appeared. Is she bouncing between territories? Is there another male vying for her attention in some adjacent territory? Or maybe she’s simply not fond of the bad weather. We’ll be watching closely to see if a shift in the forecast brings a shift in her behavior—milder conditions are expected on Thursday.