LATEST NEWS

The overnight was chilly with temperatures around the freezing mark. Clouds gave way to partly sunny skies in the morning and the temperature rose to 50 degrees by noon. Astrid spent most of the night on the eggs. However, at 1:46 AM she jumped up onto the crossperch and from there flew into the dark canyon. She was back on the eggs again six minutes later. At 2:25 AM Ares screeched to the crossperch with a Woodcock. Surprisingly, Astrid wanted it and scrambled over the crossperch to take it. She brought it over to the hotel. It was so dark that we could just barely see her on the ledge. It seemed like she was gone after a few minutes, but we couldn’t tell for sure. While she was gone Ares stayed on the long perch and never went in to sit on the eggs. He left but then returned at 2:40 and did get onto the eggs. At 3:48 he became very excited and screeched off into the canyon. She then came into the box and resumed incubating. At 5:32 Ares arrived at the nest with a small prey item. She took it from him on the crossperch and from there flew to the hotel. He then took a turn on the eggs. At 5:56 Astrid flew to the State Building. Twenty minutes later Ares came off the eggs and got on the lip of the box. He gave a few long calls to his mate on the other side of the canyon. Astrid flew over to the crossperch and then to the east veranda. She was asking to mate. Ares responded by hopping back into the box and getting onto the eggs. The pair mated at 6:19. Astrid then had a turn on the eggs. At 6:36 they switched, and Ares took over. At 6:42 Astrid went to the east veranda. They mated their a few minutes later. Afterwards Astrid hopped into the box and resumed incubation.

At 7:42 AM Ares screeched over to a west ledge with prey. He then proceeded to pluck it for the next twelve minutes. Meanwhile Astrid was waiting for him to bring it to her. At 7:56 he brought it to the long perch. She scrambled over the crossperch to take it and then flew to the hotel. He hopped into the nest and spent a few minutes trying to get all the eggs situated properly beneath him. On the hotel ledge she took a few bites of her meal and then presumably stored it. She flew to a steeple perch after that. She had a crop which meant she had eaten adequately that morning. At 8:07 Ares landed on the crossperch. He didn’t seem interested in going into the box and sitting on the eggs. She landed on the west veranda and the pair mated there. Following that Astrid got onto the eggs. At 9:18 the falcons switched and Ares took over incubating. Astrid came to the east veranda at 10:37. Ares got off the eggs and they mated five minutes later. She took a turn on the eggs after that. At around 11:00 one of them gave a cackle alarm call – likely in reaction to Turkey Vultures flying through the canyon. Astrid was still incubating at 11:15 and Ares went to his favorite pillar perch. Later on he was seen preening, stretching his wings, and also trying to bring up a pellet. He came to the nest a little before noon and he made her leave the eggs. She went to the steeple, and he stayed incubating for a little while. Both falcons were up at 12:36 – she then went back to the eggs, but at 12:45 PM she quietly got off the nest and was gone. Both falcons were out of view until Ares returned to the crossperch at 1:13. He was giving long calls. He knew where his mate was even though we couldn’t find her with our cams. At least not until 1:22 when she showed up on the State Building. Ares finally got onto the eggs at 1:44 PM. The eggs had been alone and uncovered for 60 minutes. The temperature was 53 degrees, and the sun was hitting the box. Were the eggs in trouble? Probably not this early on in their incubation.

At 2:04 PM Ares came off the eggs and Astrid landed on the crossperch. She was calling loudly. They mated a couple of minutes later, but it was a little short of the standard length. At 2:05 Astrid was up and out of view once more and the eggs were left uncovered again. Ares returned at 2:16 and this time he got right onto the eggs. At 2:36 Ares was up again, and Astrid was on the crossperch calling. She soon resumed incubation. At 3:40 Astrid was calling again – this time it was warning calls. She tore off into the canyon and was gone for about five minutes. When she returned she got on the eggs immediately. At 4:49 Ares came to the box and insisted on having another turn on the eggs. After a little convincing, she relented and flew over to the State Building. She came to the crossperch at 6:00 PM and from there moved onto the east veranda. Ten minutes later the pair mated. At 6:14 Astrid hopped back into the box and resumed incubating. We were reasonably sure that they were done for the night. Goodnight all.

The overnight period was chilly with temperatures staying in the low thirties. Skies were partly cloudy in the morning and the temperature made its way into the low forties by noon. Astrid was in the box all night. We predicted that she would lay her third egg by midnight, but she went well north of that line. Her contractions started at 1:52 AM and she ultimately laid the egg at 1:56. Of course, it was dark inside the nest at that time, and we didn’t get to actually see the egg until the falcons switched at 6:44 AM. As for the interval between the last two eggs, certainly 64 hours is a long gap even for Astrid. Ares had been on the State Building very early on but he didn’t come to the nest until the switch. He had only been on the eggs for a few minutes when he got up and stood on the lip of the box and started calling. Astrid was on the State Building, which meant she was in view, and it was OK for him to go back to incubating. At 7:10 Astrid came to the crossperch and was giving her pterodactyl-like begging calls. She then hopped over to the west veranda. Was she telling him she was hungry?  She was telling him that it was time to mate and that’s what they did a few minutes later. At 7:14 Astrid was getting on the eggs. There was food transfer at just before 8:00 AM. Ares took over on the eggs just as Astrid flew over to the hotel with her meal. While she was feeding two Pigeons hazed her – likely they were nesting beneath the broken part of the ledge.

At 9:34 AM Astrid was giving loud high-pitched warning chirps and chur-ups which usually indicate a falcon intruder. However, we didn’t see anything. She moved over to the west veranda and then we heard Ares’ distant screeching calls. She darted into the canyon just as he came into the box and got onto the eggs. At 9:42 Astrid stopped at the crossperch and issued some very emphatic vocalizations. She dashed off after that. We think she was trying to convey to him that she was hungry. He was up and out after five minutes, and she was back to the eggs just before 10:00 AM. At 10:10 we heard a gull calling in the canyon, but the falcons were not bothered by it and there was no police action required. At 10:41 Ares was up on the roof of the State Building on the northeast lookout. Most probably he was hunting. Astrid moved to the lip of the box and then flew. He took off as well. She went to the steeple perch, and him to the nest. At 11:00 Ares was on the eggs and incubating and Astrid moved to the State Building. At 11:34 Ares started giving a cackle alarm call, but he soon calmed down. Probably, he was reacting to another Turkey Vulture flying through. At 12:42 PM Astrid took over on the eggs. They switched again at 1:20. Astrid went to the steeple and Ares resumed incubating. At 2:53 Astrid came to the crossperch. She was ready to take over on the eggs, but Ares complained and didn’t want to leave. She flew off instead. She came to the east veranda a minute later and was asking to mate. He left the nest but didn’t boomerang back to mate. She flew again and the eggs were left alone for about ten minutes. Ares then came in and got back on the nest. She was on the State Building. Ares left the nest at 3:56 but then was back only moments later. Perhaps there was a mating attempt.

At 4:33 the falcons did a quick switch at the nest and Astrid took over incubating. Fifteen minutes later, Ares screeched to the box with prey. She accepted it on the crossperch and then took it over to the hotel. The eggs were then left alone for about fourteen minutes before Ares came back in and resumed incubation. Astrid was done with her meal by that time and had flown to the steeple. At 5:09 Ares was giving warning “chur-up” calls and he left the nest. It was likely he was dealing with an intruder. At 5:15 Astrid came to the nest and got onto the eggs. By this point she seemed to be in for the night and Ares was perhaps off to his night perch. The fourth and probably the last egg of the season should be laid around late afternoon on Wednesday.  Goodnight all.

The overnight was chilly with rain threatening. Snow showers began after daybreak and continued through the morning, The temperature hovered around the freezing mark for most of the day. More rain and snow came in the afternoon and into the evening and the wind picked up. Astrid spent the night on the nest, but it was anything but a placid time. At 12:80 AM, Ares left a perch on the west face of the State Building. By 12:44 he was apparently hazing something perched near the northwest corner of the west face – in a place we couldn’t see with our cameras. He began giving cackle alarm calls and continued issuing them for several hours. Meanwhile, Astrid stayed guarding the nest and eggs. She was highly alert but didn’t make any sounds. Ares came to his pillar perch above the box and continued cackling from there. He cackled and cackled. At 1:17 he was up again and dove at the mysterious intruder a few more times before returning to his pillar. Astrid was still in the box but sitting more upright and she had ceased incubating her eggs. Ares left the pillar at 4:08 AM and we heard him give a few more volleys of cackle calls at 5:00. But then, suddenly, the red alert seemed to be over. We can only speculate as to what he was reacting to. We’ve rarely seen such a dramatic reaction from him and almost never at night. Perhaps a Great Horned Owl was the culprit – one that may have landed on a window ledge of the State Building; perhaps one of the pantry ledges where Ares stores his prey. Of course, Great Horned Owls are active at night, and they are known to attack raptor nest (including falcon nests) at night. Still, it’s only a guess. Only Ares (and possibly Astrid) know what precisely occurred. At 6:30 Astrid moved to the crossperch. Ares arrived and they did a lightning-fast switch. As she darted off, he came onto the eggs, but he wasn’t incubating either, only perching over them. At 6:36 he moved to the lip of the box and gave some long calls. He was likely anxious because she was out of his sight. He screeched off into the canyon, screeched while flying, and then screeched back to the box. To paraphrase Jerry Lee Lewis, “There was a whole lotta screechin’ going on!”

At 6:47 AM Astrid came to the west veranda. They mated there a few minutes later. She then moved into the box and got onto the eggs. Evidently, she was hungry and was issuing some pterodactyl-type begging calls. Ares responded quickly by bringing a Woodcock to the east veranda. This was not what she had ordered, and she made no move to take it. He brought it to a west ledge, but that was also ignored. He stored the meal and came back to the box at 7:08 and the pair switched. Ares got onto the eggs for a few seconds and then moved onto the crossperch. They mated at 7:38 but we are not sure where it took place. She came to the crossperch afterwards and from there climbed onto the eggs. At 7:50 she called out a few times as if she was placing another food order with Ares. She flew a couple minutes later and then both converged at the box. He brought her a bat – probably the only thing in the world she likes less than Woodcocks. She got a look at what he had in his talons and immediately flew out. He then flew off to store it. He boomeranged back and stood on the crossperch for a little while. At 8:27 he got onto the eggs, but only briefly. It was around this time that we heard the call of a Ring-billed Gull as it traversed the canyon. The falcons didn’t bother with it and let it pass. At 8:32 the falcons mated on the west veranda. We then noticed that Astrid had a crop. Seems like she found something other than the Woodcock and the Bat on one of Ares’ pantry ledges. Although its also possible that she caught something herself. A few minutes later she came to the nest. At 9:04 Ares was back to take another turn on the eggs – incubating or guarding. They mated at 9:24 and then Astrid then relieved him two minutes later. He flew up to his pillar perch above the nest. The next mating took place at 9:27 after which Ares returned to his pillar. It was snowing and hazy in the canyon and Ares did some light snoozing on his perch. I guess he was up most of the night, so his fatigue is understandable. At 11:35 Ares barreled back into the nest and the pair executed a very quick and smooth changeover. He settled ono the eggs initially but then did some perching over them. At 12:25 Astrid was located on top of a west pillar.

At 1:47 PM Astrid came to the east veranda perch. Despite the snow, she seemed keen to mate and they did just that a few minutes later. Astrid then hopped into the box and got onto the eggs. Ares came to the box at 3:02 and Astrid went out onto the east veranda. They mated at around 3:10. She was on the eggs and back to incubating ten minutes later. At 4:15 we heard Ares giving long calls from somewhere in the canyon. He was at the box moments later and the pair did a quick switch. At 4:37 Astrid was on the steeple giving chirping calls like there was a falcon intruder in the canyon. Ares got off the eggs and started chirping in response. As it happened there was no intruder – she was only calling him over to mate. They mated and then a few minutes later she came over to resume incubation. The next changing of the guard took place at 5:31. Ares took over on the eggs and Astrid went over to the State Building. He gave light squeak calls for a while as he perceived her on her perch across the canyon. At 6:03 she landed on the west veranda perch. Twenty minutes later she moved to the lip of the box pointing in. She was ready to come back onto the nest. However, Ares wasn’t ready to leave. She gave him several minutes and then she came up behind him and stepped lightly on his tail and wing tips. He left with light protest, and she took over incubating. Apparently continuous incubation did begin this afternoon and will likely be the rule from now on. We expect Astrid to lay her third egg tonight sometime after ten but perhaps as late as midnight. We shall see. Goodnight falcons.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TvcZcNbEmhM

The overnight was chilly and windy with temperature staying close to the freezing point. Mostly sunny skies in the morning aided a very modest warmup. The temperature stayed under forty until noon. Astrid was on the eggs until Ares relieved her at 3:20 AM. He left abruptly at 3:44 and Astrid returned two minutes later. At 5:17 Ares was back to the nest and the pair did another quick switch. He is not diligent about incubation yet and was off the eggs only moments after getting on. He stood on the lip of the box until 5:24, when he settled back onto the eggs. At 5:31 they did another changing of the guard – this time Astrid came onto the nest. At 6:28 he was up on his lookout post – probably hunting. Astrid was getting hungry and was giving her trademark pterodactyl screech call to let Ares know. She left the box a couple of minutes later and flew to a windowsill on the State Building. Perhaps there was food there at some point. Ares then took flight and went over by the hotel, landing high up on the radio tower on the hotel roof. She returned to the box and got onto the eggs but was still calling to her partner. Only a minute later Ares landed on a light pole on the bank roof. He had a freshly caught starling in his talons. He landed on a west ledge and Astrid screeched over to meet him. She took the food over to the hotel and made breakfast out of it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imgoVaaOySk

At 6:40 AM Ares had taken over on the eggs, but like before, he wasn’t serious about incubating. He was soon sitting over the eggs and not on them. He just can’t be comfortable when Astrid is out of view at least during this part of the breeding cycle. At 6:47 both falcons were flying again. Ares again returned to the nest but wasn’t settling on the eggs. He was gone again a few minutes later. Astrid came to the box at 7:02 and she was mostly on the eggs for the next hour. She left at 8:02 and he came in a minute later, but he didn’t incubate. Astrid took another turn at 8:28 and remained there for nearly ninety minutes. Ares took over at a few minutes before 10:00 but was mostly standing over the eggs. Of course, this inconsistent incubation is not a problem at this juncture. We expect continuous incubation to be the rule in a day or two since it typically begins between the laying of the second and third eggs. The falcons mated on the State Building at 10:31 and after that both falcons were out of view. He returned to the box at 10:48 and he did some vocalizing. His calls were in reaction to seeing her land back on the State Building. He got onto the eggs, but stayed on them for only about 12 minutes. She was out of view and so he had to go and find where she went. At 11:15 Astrid returned to the nest and after a few minutes she climbed back onto the eggs. She called out when she saw him land on the State Building at 11:34, but she did not leave her clutch.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QidKPc6Lvv4

At 12:51 PM Ares came to the box for the changing of the guard. They are doing fast changes now and not the quasi ledge displays they had been doing almost every time. She left and Ares took over – kind of. He didn’t settle on the eggs but opted to stand on the lip of the box. He was out again five minutes later. He returned to the nest at 1:07. He was giving squeaking calls and, once again, not getting onto the eggs. A few minutes later he landed on the State Building where he could see her, and that made him happy. However, at 1:20 PM he became highly agitated and started giving chirping-type alarm calls, which means a falcon intruder was in the canyon. He darted over to the State Building and perched near Astrid for a moment before flying off and presumably chasing after the interloper. The eggs were left alone in the box. Astrid flew off at 1:35 and didn’t return for fifteen minutes. She then flew to the nest and got right on the eggs. At 2:06 she was looking very alert on the nest. Something was going on. She went to the crossperch and started calling. Ares made a dramatic fly through and landed on the State Building. He had returned from his encounter with the intruder. Astrid started giving her hungry pterodactyl calls. Then again, maybe she wasn’t so hungry. She stood on the crossperch and preened for a few minutes land then went back onto the eggs. At 2:46 Ares came to the box and the pair switched. He stood on the lip of the box for a while and then was off, leaving the eggs alone. Astrid was on the steeple at this point. It’s possible they mated, but we didn’t hear Ares’ chatter call. At 3:02 PM Ares was back at the nest and giving chirp-type alarm calls. Suddenly both falcons were out of view. Were they chasing an intruder? Fifteen minutes later he was back to the box and this time he was giving squeaking calls – most likely for Astrid’s benefit. The pair was heard mating at 3:23. At 3:46 he was up on the lip of the box casting shade on the eggs. We weren’t sure if this was intentional or inadvertent shading. It was sunny out but pretty cold (45 degrees). At 4:26 he was giving long calls. He may have been responding to some loud emergency sirens blaring in the canyon. He flew ten minutes later, again, leaving the eggs alone. He was back to the box at 4:44 and back on the eggs ten minutes later. At that point he became serious about incubation and remained tight on the eggs until Astrid came to the nest at 5:45. The pair had a conversation over the eggs which was almost like a ledge display, but not quite. Ares left two minutes later, and Astrid got onto the eggs. He returned to the box with prey at 6:01 PM. Astrid took it from him on the crossperch and then she flew over to the hotel. Ares left to check and see where she went. When he was satisfied that she run off to Cancun, he flew back to the nest and resumed incubation. She finished her meal at 6:11 and flew to the State Building. At 6:30 he was off of the eggs and onto the crossperch. He got back on the eggs, chewed on something in the stone, made two scrapes, pivoted around the eggs in a circle – he was being very hyperactive. At 6:42 he flew out. Moments later we heard his mating chatter. At 6:45 Astrid was back in the nest and on the eggs. She was probably there for the night. Goodnight all

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zp6dlR0tvQ0

Astrid with her two eggs

The overnight was chilly with intermittent rain showers and wind. The temperatures hovered around the high thirties and low forties. Not much changed after daybreak, but conditions deteriorated later in the day as it became colder, windier, and wetter. Ares came to the nest at 3:02 AM to relieve Astrid. She seemed disappointed as if she was expecting a food delivery. However, it is possible that he gave her something small. It was too dark in the box for us to tell for sure. She flew to the hotel, but once again, it was too dark to discern what she was doing over there. At one point it looked like she was picking at something. She was gone a few minutes later and Ares was gone from the nest as well. One of them was perched on the State Building at 3:18, but the egg was alone in the box. At one point we saw a something whitish fly across the State Building – it looked like a meteor minus a fiery tail. It was the second falcon, its white front feathers had caught some ambient light. Astrid returned to the box quietly at 4:52 and got back on the egg. Fifteen minutes later Ares brought a Woodcock to the box. He then hopped over to the east veranda with it. She followed him onto the platform but showed no interest in taking the gift. A minute later she flew and headed to the hotel. She landed on a ledge and perhaps wanted to get a sip of water from one of the puddles, but it was still to dark for us to see what she was up to. She flew right back and landed on the long perch and from there she got back onto the nest.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxVf1v75K3U

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ACtHM7EiJcc

At 6:21 AM in looked like Astrid was ready to lay her second egg. She seemed to be in the right position, and it looked like she had a contraction, but no egg was forthcoming, and she settled back down on egg number one. Five minutes later Ares arrived, and they did a quick switch. After she left, he flew too, but then came right back. He got onto the egg but moments later he moved out onto the crossperch. Ten minutes after that both falcons were up again, but then he returned to the nest. She landed on the steeple at 6:54. They mated there a few minutes later. At 7:27 they were doing a ledge display at the box. He soon left and she got onto the egg. At 8:00 she became very agitated and started calling loudly. She moved out onto the west veranda and was peering at something in the canyon. Obviously, there was an intruder and perhaps Ares was already engaging it. A few minutes later both falcons were out of view. Ares returned at 8:21 and Astrid blasted into the box right after him. They performed a rapid ledge display and then she was out again. Both were then out of view for a few minutes. At 8:37 they were dancing in the box again. At this point it had been 61 hours since Astrid had laid the first egg, egg number two had to be imminent. At 9:50 she finally seemed to be getting down to business. Three minutes later at 9:53 AM she had laid egg number two! Ares was in her face while she was laying it. He beaked with her and squeaked at her the whole time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0Ou2RAXnEs

At 10:17 AM Ares seemed to be dealing with an intruder. A few minutes later the eggs were left alone. Ares was back at 10:41. At 10:56 he was giving cackle-type alarm calls which meant that a non-falcon raptor was passing through the canyon. They didn’t give chase, so it wasn’t a big deal. The pair converged at the box for a ledge display at just before 11:00 AM. Following that she was on the eggs, and he was on the State Building. It was raining by then and the wind was picking up. They switched at 12:20 PM And then Ares took a turn on the eggs. He seemed conscientious about staying on the eggs now and not getting up every few minutes to check on Astrid’s location. As it happened, she was close by – on a relatively low perch on the north face of the State Building. An hour later Ares came off the eggs and was calling across the canyon to his mate. They mated on the State Building and then he boomeranged back to the nest. At 1:39 The pair was performing a ledge display. A minute later, he left, and she got onto the eggs. At 2:04 Ares brought a Woodcock to the long perch. It was probably the same one he brought earlier and had stored. Astrid scrambled over the crossperch and took it from him. It was an awkward transfer, but successful. She took it over to the hotel and actually ate some of it. Meanwhile, Ares was incubating in the nest. By 2:32 Astrid was on the State Building and she would remain there into the early evening. Wind, rain, and snow continued off and on, and the temperature dipped into the mid-thirties. At 3:28 Ares came off the eggs and started giving long calls. The pair mated on the State Building only moments later. He was then back and forth to the nest a couple of times and didn’t resume incubating until 4:10 PM. There was another interruption at 4:40 when he came off the eggs again, but then he was back on them five minutes later. At 6:20 he left the box, did some fancy flying through the canyon and around the steeple and then mated with Astrid on the State Building. Two minutes later Astrid returned to the nest and got right onto the eggs. Likely she was in for the night, but we never know for sure. The next egg should come sometimes late Sunday night.  Goodnight falcons and congratulations.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thQRjw_N4zI