SOUTH BEND March 1. 2013
Guinevere appears to have found a new mate.
The city's resident female peregrine falcon has been spotted in recent weeks hunting downtown with another bird, Carol Riewe, a local raptor rehabilitator, said today.
"They have been seen hunting pigeons together and swooping and diving," Riewe said, "so it looks like somebody has picked up on the widow here and is going to stay."
"And it's time for that," Riewe said, "because normally, in past years, we had egg-laying beginning in the third week of March, the 23rd or 24th, somewhere in that area."
Riewe said she has spotted the pair herself recently. "I have seen them evenings, after dark," she said, "roosting in the west side windows of the Tower Building."
She said she doesn't know if the other bird is banded because she hasn't been able to get a close enough look at it. She said the camera atop County-City Building that is pointed at Guinevere's nest has been disabled since last year because of a wiring problem.
"The roof has to be clear of ice and snow before anybody gets up there" to fix it, she said.
Peregrine falcons keep the same mate year-to-year, and generally don't accept a replacement unless their partner dies or disappears. Guinevere's former longtime mate, Zephyr, died last June in an accident while he was hunting downtown. The two produced several broods over the years.
The pair's last chick, Zoey, flew the coop over the summer, Riewe said.
"She left in late-August, which is what they do," she said. "They get to a point in their development where they just decide they have to move on."
As for Zephyr, Riewe said he is being readied for display.
"Zephyr is going to be taxidermied, and I have given him to Rum Village Nature Center," she said. "And ... the avian biologist for the state agreed that that's a good thing. This is Zephyr's hometown, this is where he should be."
Staff writer Erin Blasko
SOUTH BEND —
Zephyr, South
Bend's resident male peregrine falcon and a longtime symbol of strength
and grace in the sky above downtown, died Tuesday after apparently
striking a pole while hunting not far from the Chase Tower.
A
woman found the bird standing on the sidewalk late Tuesday morning in
the 100 block of North Lafayette Boulevard, near a metal pole set into
the parking lot behind Colfax Place. He had blood on his beak and
appeared dazed. A dead dove was found nearby.
“The
way I see it, because of the way we found the dead dove next to him, he
came down, grabbed the dove … and then slammed into that pole,” Carol
Riewe, a local naturalist and raptor rehabilitator who responded to the
scene, said.
Riewe, who is
one of just a couple of people who frequently monitor the city’s
falcons, placed the bird in a carrier and drove it to Gilmer Park Animal
Clinic, where he died about 45 minutes later of an apparent head
injury.
“I’m rather
despondent,” Riewe said of her reaction to the bird’s death. “We were
all worried last year when … we realized he only had one foot … but the
fact that he made it through another year, we thought, ‘Well, it isn’t
too bad. He’s adjusting and it shouldn’t be a problem.’”
Zephyr lost his right foot in an apparent trap accident in April of last year.
Despite
the injury, he continued performing his duties ... duties such as
incubating eggs, as seen here in this video of his mate Guinevere taking over for him during one of his egg-sitting shifts...
http://www.youtube.com/embed/fL4tI7lprRA
...
And after those eggs hatched he continued to hunt, providing food for
Guinevere and the couple’s two unnamed chicks at the time.
Riewe
said the missing foot did not play a role in the bird’s death. However,
had Zephyr survived the crash into the pole, he would have been taken
in captivity because of the severity of his injuries.
“He
was injured enough that if he had survived he would have had to live in
captivity,” Riewe said. “He never would have been releasable again, and
for a bird that’s been free for 13 years, that would have been a
horrible thing. He would not ever have been happy with that. He would’ve
been a very miserable bird. So perhaps, if he had to get hurt, the
ending is the way it should go. We’ll just miss him, that’s all.”
Riewe
said she does not know what will happen to Zephyr, but that, if it’s OK
with the state, she’d like to have him stuffed and mounted for
educational purposes.
With
Zephyr gone, Guinevere must now raise the couple’s sole surviving chick
alone. (Three chicks hatched in the couple’s nesting box in May, but
strong winds fatally blew two out of the nest.)
“Basically,
she’ll have to feed herself and the chick, and finish raising the chick
and teach it how to hunt and give it the direction it needs, so it’ll
be a little tougher for her,” Riewe said. “And beyond that, I don’t
really know.”
The feeding
part, at least, should not be a problem, according to Mike Jones, a
bander with the U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife. “The female is
quite capable of feeding only one young,” Jones said, “so there isn’t
any problem there.”
The chick, which is about a month old now, just started flying, Riewe said, but not very well.
As
part of an effort to reintroduce breeding pairs of peregrine falcons to
the wild in Indiana, the state Department of Natural Resources placed
nesting boxes atop a number of tall buildings, including the Tower
Building in downtown South Bend, in the state in 1993.
Zephyr,
born in captivity but released in Muscatine, Iowa, in 1999, and
Guinevere, an unbanded bird of unknown origin, started nesting in the
Tower box in 2003. The “pioneering pair,” as Riewe described them,
became almost instant celebrities.
“People
got used to looking at them and people got used to watching them,” she
said. “I got calls every spring wondering if the eggs had been laid and
if the chicks had been hatched. People just adopted them … they just
became South Bend’s birds.”
Riewe said she is grateful for the following Zephyr and Guinevere acquired from the community over the past 10 years.
“They
had a fan club,” she said, “a whole base of people that watched them
every year, that were interested in the chicks and how many there were
going to be and how are they doing. It’s gratifying to see that people
can be concerned about something close to home like that.”
Once
it becomes clear that Zephyr is gone, Guinevere, who is believed to be
about 11 years old, will probably look for another mate, Jones said.
“It’s
not uncommon for birds of prey to lose a mate, you know it’s pretty
rough out there for birds of prey,” he said. “But she’ll find another
one. Yeah, she’s not going to have a lot of trouble finding another
mate.”
Male peregrine
falcons migrate through the area each spring between northern Canada and
South America, Jones said. Guinevere and Zephyr have even had to run
some of them off in the past.
As to whether Guinevere will stay here and nest again, that’s another question entirely, Jones said.
“My
feeling is she will stay,” Riewe said. “She has been here for 10 years,
she has raised 10 broods of chicks here, so basically this is her home,
and raptors tend to have a strong attachment to their home area.
“But we will learn,” she said. “This is very new for us.”
- See more at:
http://www.wsbt.com/news/wsbt-male-falcon-zephyr-found-injured-this-morning-downtown-20120619,0,4184828.story#sthash.NK6u0e63.dpuf
SOUTH BEND —
Zephyr, South
Bend's resident male peregrine falcon and a longtime symbol of strength
and grace in the sky above downtown, died Tuesday after apparently
striking a pole while hunting not far from the Chase Tower.
A
woman found the bird standing on the sidewalk late Tuesday morning in
the 100 block of North Lafayette Boulevard, near a metal pole set into
the parking lot behind Colfax Place. He had blood on his beak and
appeared dazed. A dead dove was found nearby.
“The
way I see it, because of the way we found the dead dove next to him, he
came down, grabbed the dove … and then slammed into that pole,” Carol
Riewe, a local naturalist and raptor rehabilitator who responded to the
scene, said.
Riewe, who is
one of just a couple of people who frequently monitor the city’s
falcons, placed the bird in a carrier and drove it to Gilmer Park Animal
Clinic, where he died about 45 minutes later of an apparent head
injury.
“I’m rather
despondent,” Riewe said of her reaction to the bird’s death. “We were
all worried last year when … we realized he only had one foot … but the
fact that he made it through another year, we thought, ‘Well, it isn’t
too bad. He’s adjusting and it shouldn’t be a problem.’”
Zephyr lost his right foot in an apparent trap accident in April of last year.
Despite
the injury, he continued performing his duties ... duties such as
incubating eggs, as seen here in this video of his mate Guinevere taking over for him during one of his egg-sitting shifts...
http://www.youtube.com/embed/fL4tI7lprRA
...
And after those eggs hatched he continued to hunt, providing food for
Guinevere and the couple’s two unnamed chicks at the time.
Riewe
said the missing foot did not play a role in the bird’s death. However,
had Zephyr survived the crash into the pole, he would have been taken
in captivity because of the severity of his injuries.
“He
was injured enough that if he had survived he would have had to live in
captivity,” Riewe said. “He never would have been releasable again, and
for a bird that’s been free for 13 years, that would have been a
horrible thing. He would not ever have been happy with that. He would’ve
been a very miserable bird. So perhaps, if he had to get hurt, the
ending is the way it should go. We’ll just miss him, that’s all.”
Riewe
said she does not know what will happen to Zephyr, but that, if it’s OK
with the state, she’d like to have him stuffed and mounted for
educational purposes.
With
Zephyr gone, Guinevere must now raise the couple’s sole surviving chick
alone. (Three chicks hatched in the couple’s nesting box in May, but
strong winds fatally blew two out of the nest.)
“Basically,
she’ll have to feed herself and the chick, and finish raising the chick
and teach it how to hunt and give it the direction it needs, so it’ll
be a little tougher for her,” Riewe said. “And beyond that, I don’t
really know.”
The feeding
part, at least, should not be a problem, according to Mike Jones, a
bander with the U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife. “The female is
quite capable of feeding only one young,” Jones said, “so there isn’t
any problem there.”
The chick, which is about a month old now, just started flying, Riewe said, but not very well.
As
part of an effort to reintroduce breeding pairs of peregrine falcons to
the wild in Indiana, the state Department of Natural Resources placed
nesting boxes atop a number of tall buildings, including the Tower
Building in downtown South Bend, in the state in 1993.
Zephyr,
born in captivity but released in Muscatine, Iowa, in 1999, and
Guinevere, an unbanded bird of unknown origin, started nesting in the
Tower box in 2003. The “pioneering pair,” as Riewe described them,
became almost instant celebrities.
“People
got used to looking at them and people got used to watching them,” she
said. “I got calls every spring wondering if the eggs had been laid and
if the chicks had been hatched. People just adopted them … they just
became South Bend’s birds.”
Riewe said she is grateful for the following Zephyr and Guinevere acquired from the community over the past 10 years.
“They
had a fan club,” she said, “a whole base of people that watched them
every year, that were interested in the chicks and how many there were
going to be and how are they doing. It’s gratifying to see that people
can be concerned about something close to home like that.”
Once
it becomes clear that Zephyr is gone, Guinevere, who is believed to be
about 11 years old, will probably look for another mate, Jones said.
“It’s
not uncommon for birds of prey to lose a mate, you know it’s pretty
rough out there for birds of prey,” he said. “But she’ll find another
one. Yeah, she’s not going to have a lot of trouble finding another
mate.”
Male peregrine
falcons migrate through the area each spring between northern Canada and
South America, Jones said. Guinevere and Zephyr have even had to run
some of them off in the past.
As to whether Guinevere will stay here and nest again, that’s another question entirely, Jones said.
“My
feeling is she will stay,” Riewe said. “She has been here for 10 years,
she has raised 10 broods of chicks here, so basically this is her home,
and raptors tend to have a strong attachment to their home area.
“But we will learn,” she said. “This is very new for us.”
- See more at:
http://www.wsbt.com/news/wsbt-male-falcon-zephyr-found-injured-this-morning-downtown-20120619,0,4184828.story#sthash.NK6u0e63.dpuf
Guinevere adjusts to life without mate
Female falcon prepares chick for life in the wild.
July 14, 2012|ERIN BLASKO | South Bend Tribune
SOUTH BEND -- Guinevere, the city's resident female peregrine falcon, appears to be doing well after the unexpected death of her mate, Zephyr, in a hunting accident last month, her days dedicated now to a single, all-consuming task: preparing the pair's sole surviving chick for the wild.
"She (Guinevere) has the chick out of town almost all the time," local raptor rehabilitator Carol Riewe, one of about four dedicated falcon watchers in the city, said
Friday. "This is where the chick gets lots of flying practice over wide-open spaces, and it also gives Guinevere the chance to instruct the youngster on hunting procedures."
Riewe and her fellow falcon watchers have named the chick Zoe, the Z an intentional reference to Zephyr.
"We don't usually name the chicks," Riewe said. "But we got to thinking about it a little bit as a group, and we thought that Zephyr's last chick needed to have a name.
"We thought it should be a Z name, so we named it Zoe."
Under the watchful eye of her mother, Zoe, who hatched atop the County-City Building in May, took flight about four weeks ago, Riewe said, and she's doing well.
She said she expects the chick to hang around a few more weeks and then take off.
"The word 'peregrine' means wanderer," she said, "and that's what she'll do. She'll wander around until about the age of 2 and then look for a mate."
Whether Guinevere sticks around remains to be seen.
"Of course, as you know, we hope she will stay and thereby be an attraction for a new male," Riewe said. "But anything can happen -- this is a year of learning."
As part of an effort to reintroduce breeding pairs of peregrine falcons into the wild in Indiana, the state Department of Natural Resources placed nesting boxes atop a number of tall buildings, including the Tower Building in South Bend, in 1993.
Zephyr, born in captivity but released into the wild in Muscatine, Iowa, in 1999, and Guinevere, an unbanded bird of unknown origin, started nesting in the Tower box in 2003. The box was later moved to the top of the County-City Building.
The pair raised 10 broods over the years, becoming beloved members of the community in the process.
"On the one hand, I feel like I lost a very close family friend, possibly even a member, because I've been involved with these birds since they started nesting here 10 years ago," Riewe said of Zephyr's death, which occurred June 19 when he apparently struck a pole while hunting downtown.
"But I also realize that, any time any bird of prey goes out to forage, it faces (possible death). ... So when you stop and look at it in that light, he (Zephyr) did amazingly well. He was 13 years old. There's good genetic stock there."
SOUTH BEND — June 19, 2012
June 19, 2012
June 19, 2012
Zephyr, South Bend's resident male peregrine falcon and a longtime symbol of strength and grace in the sky above downtown, died Tuesday after apparently striking a pole while hunting not far from the Chase Tower.
A woman found the bird standing on the sidewalk late Tuesday morning in the 100 block of North Lafayette Boulevard, near a metal pole set into the parking lot behind Colfax Place. He had blood on his beak and appeared dazed. A dead dove was found nearby.
“The way I see it, because of the way we found the dead dove next to him, he came down, grabbed the dove … and then slammed into that pole,” Carol Riewe, a local naturalist and raptor rehabilitator who responded to the scene, said.
Riewe, who is one of just a couple of people who frequently monitor the city’s falcons, placed the bird in a carrier and drove it to Gilmer Park Animal Clinic, where he died about 45 minutes later of an apparent head injury.
“I’m rather despondent,” Riewe said of her reaction to the bird’s death. “We were all worried last year when … we realized he only had one foot … but the fact that he made it through another year, we thought, ‘Well, it isn’t too bad. He’s adjusting and it shouldn’t be a problem.’”
Zephyr lost his right foot in an apparent trap accident in April of last year.
Despite the injury, he continued performing his duties ... duties such as incubating eggs, as seen here in this video of his mate Guinevere taking over for him during one of his egg-sitting shifts...
http://www.youtube.com/embed/fL4tI7lprRA
... And after those eggs hatched he continued to hunt, providing food for Guinevere and the couple’s two unnamed chicks at the time.
Riewe said the missing foot did not play a role in the bird’s death. However, had Zephyr survived the crash into the pole, he would have been taken in captivity because of the severity of his injuries.
“He was injured enough that if he had survived he would have had to live in captivity,” Riewe said. “He never would have been releasable again, and for a bird that’s been free for 13 years, that would have been a horrible thing. He would not ever have been happy with that. He would’ve been a very miserable bird. So perhaps, if he had to get hurt, the ending is the way it should go. We’ll just miss him, that’s all.”
Riewe said she does not know what will happen to Zephyr, but that, if it’s OK with the state, she’d like to have him stuffed and mounted for educational purposes.
With Zephyr gone, Guinevere must now raise the couple’s sole surviving chick alone. (Three chicks hatched in the couple’s nesting box in May, but strong winds fatally blew two out of the nest.)
“Basically, she’ll have to feed herself and the chick, and finish raising the chick and teach it how to hunt and give it the direction it needs, so it’ll be a little tougher for her,” Riewe said. “And beyond that, I don’t really know.”
The feeding part, at least, should not be a problem, according to Mike Jones, a bander with the U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife. “The female is quite capable of feeding only one young,” Jones said, “so there isn’t any problem there.”
The chick, which is about a month old now, just started flying, Riewe said, but not very well.
As part of an effort to reintroduce breeding pairs of peregrine falcons to the wild in Indiana, the state Department of Natural Resources placed nesting boxes atop a number of tall buildings, including the Tower Building in downtown South Bend, in the state in 1993.
Zephyr, born in captivity but released in Muscatine, Iowa, in 1999, and Guinevere, an unbanded bird of unknown origin, started nesting in the Tower box in 2003. The “pioneering pair,” as Riewe described them, became almost instant celebrities.
“People got used to looking at them and people got used to watching them,” she said. “I got calls every spring wondering if the eggs had been laid and if the chicks had been hatched. People just adopted them … they just became South Bend’s birds.”
Riewe said she is grateful for the following Zephyr and Guinevere acquired from the community over the past 10 years.
“They had a fan club,” she said, “a whole base of people that watched them every year, that were interested in the chicks and how many there were going to be and how are they doing. It’s gratifying to see that people can be concerned about something close to home like that.”
Once it becomes clear that Zephyr is gone, Guinevere, who is believed to be about 11 years old, will probably look for another mate, Jones said.
“It’s not uncommon for birds of prey to lose a mate, you know it’s pretty rough out there for birds of prey,” he said. “But she’ll find another one. Yeah, she’s not going to have a lot of trouble finding another mate.”
Male peregrine falcons migrate through the area each spring between northern Canada and South America, Jones said. Guinevere and Zephyr have even had to run some of them off in the past.
As to whether Guinevere will stay here and nest again, that’s another question entirely, Jones said.
“My feeling is she will stay,” Riewe said. “She has been here for 10 years, she has raised 10 broods of chicks here, so basically this is her home, and raptors tend to have a strong attachment to their home area.
“But we will learn,” she said. “This is very new for us.”
About the Peregrine:
The Peregrine Falcon is a medium-sized bird about the size of a crow. Adult birds are 15 to 20 inches tall- females being one-third larger than males- and have a wing span of 36 to 44 inches. Their long pointed wings, tail, and strong 'rowing' wing beats are distinctive in flight. Once almost wiped out due to DDT, Peregrines have made a strong comeback through captive breeding and reintroduction programs.
In 1993, South Bend was the site of a Department of Natural Resources reintroduction, releasing and monitoring 15 young captive-bred birds as they became familiar with a life in the wild.
Historic sites were along cliff and river bluffs and, although they still use these locations, they have made good use of tall city buildings which mimic those high altitudes environments. Cities also provide an abundant food supply of birds- pigeons, sparrows, starlings, and other species as well. A Peregrine diving on prey can attain speeds of 200 mph, making it the world's fastest living animal. View a National Geographic story highlighting the flying capabilities of the PeregrineExternal Link.
Guinever and Zephyr, the Peregrines-in-residence in South Bend, have been here since 2003. They have raised a brood each year and remain here through the winter. Incubation of the 3 or 4 eggs takes approximately 32 days, with Guinevere performing most of the incubation, while Zephyr provides food and relieves her for short periods of time. The chicks are banded at about 21 to 25 days of age and fledge the nest around 40 days. As fledgling approaches, the young birds can be seen out on the front of the nest box and on the perch that extends outward. They are usually flying pretty well in a week's time, following and interacting with the parents, and will leave the area in another six weeks.
'Our' Falcon Family Facts:
Guinevere arrived unbanded (we subsequently banded her) so her origins are unknown.
Zephyr was released at a cliff on the Mississippi in Muscatine, Iowa, 1999. He lost his right foot in the spring of 2011 in an apparent trap injury, so his hunting ability is diminished.
Zephyr dies of head injury, 6-19-2012.
A female chick from our 2007 nest was part of a nesting pair in Racine, Wisconsin.
The word peregrine means 'wanderer,' and the young birds will do just that until they are two years of age and ready to find a mate and raise their own offspring.
Guinever and Zephyr, the Peregrine's and chicks via the web cam in South Bend, IN
OUTH BEND -- Guinevere appears to have found a new mate.
The city's resident female peregrine
falcon has been spotted in recent weeks hunting downtown with another
bird, Carol Riewe, a local raptor rehabilitator, said today.
"They have been seen hunting pigeons
together and swooping and diving," Riewe said, "so it looks like
somebody has picked up on the widow here and is going to stay."
"And
it's time for that," Riewe said, "because normally, in past years, we
had egg-laying beginning in the third week of March, the 23rd or 24th,
somewhere in that area."
Riewe said she has spotted the pair
herself recently. "I have seen them evenings, after dark," she said,
"roosting in the west side windows of the Tower Building."
She said she doesn't know if the
other bird is banded because she hasn't been able to get a close enough
look at it. She said the camera atop County-City Building that is
pointed at Guinevere's nest has been disabled since last year because of
a wiring problem.
"The roof has to be clear of ice and snow before anybody gets up there" to fix it, she said.
Peregrine falcons
keep the same mate year-to-year, and generally don't accept a
replacement unless their partner dies or disappears. Guinevere's former
longtime mate, Zephyr, died last June in an accident while he was
hunting downtown. The two produced several broods over the years.
The pair's last chick, Zoey, flew the coop over the summer, Riewe said.
"She left in late-August, which is
what they do," she said. "They get to a point in their development where
they just decide they have to move on."
OUTH BEND -- Guinevere appears to have found a new mate.
The city's resident female peregrine
falcon has been spotted in recent weeks hunting downtown with another
bird, Carol Riewe, a local raptor rehabilitator, said today.
"They have been seen hunting pigeons
together and swooping and diving," Riewe said, "so it looks like
somebody has picked up on the widow here and is going to stay."
"And
it's time for that," Riewe said, "because normally, in past years, we
had egg-laying beginning in the third week of March, the 23rd or 24th,
somewhere in that area."
Riewe said she has spotted the pair
herself recently. "I have seen them evenings, after dark," she said,
"roosting in the west side windows of the Tower Building."
She said she doesn't know if the
other bird is banded because she hasn't been able to get a close enough
look at it. She said the camera atop County-City Building that is
pointed at Guinevere's nest has been disabled since last year because of
a wiring problem.
"The roof has to be clear of ice and snow before anybody gets up there" to fix it, she said.
Peregrine falcons
keep the same mate year-to-year, and generally don't accept a
replacement unless their partner dies or disappears. Guinevere's former
longtime mate, Zephyr, died last June in an accident while he was
hunting downtown. The two produced several broods over the years.
The pair's last chick, Zoey, flew the coop over the summer, Riewe said.
"She left in late-August, which is
what they do," she said. "They get to a point in their development where
they just decide they have to move on."
As for Zephyr, Riewe said he is being readied for display.
"Zephyr is going to be taxidermied,
and I have given him to Rum Village Nature Center," she said. "And ...
the avian biologist for the state agreed that that's a good thing. This
is Zephyr's hometown, this is where he should be."Staff writer Erin Blasko:
- See more at:
http://www.southbendtribune.com/news/sbt-guinevere-spotted-with-new-mate-20130228,0,3296364.story#sthash.sKelIo5a.dpuf
OUTH BEND -- Guinevere appears to have found a new mate.
The city's resident female peregrine
falcon has been spotted in recent weeks hunting downtown with another
bird, Carol Riewe, a local raptor rehabilitator, said today.
"They have been seen hunting pigeons
together and swooping and diving," Riewe said, "so it looks like
somebody has picked up on the widow here and is going to stay."
"And
it's time for that," Riewe said, "because normally, in past years, we
had egg-laying beginning in the third week of March, the 23rd or 24th,
somewhere in that area."
Riewe said she has spotted the pair
herself recently. "I have seen them evenings, after dark," she said,
"roosting in the west side windows of the Tower Building."
She said she doesn't know if the
other bird is banded because she hasn't been able to get a close enough
look at it. She said the camera atop County-City Building that is
pointed at Guinevere's nest has been disabled since last year because of
a wiring problem.
"The roof has to be clear of ice and snow before anybody gets up there" to fix it, she said.
Peregrine falcons
keep the same mate year-to-year, and generally don't accept a
replacement unless their partner dies or disappears. Guinevere's former
longtime mate, Zephyr, died last June in an accident while he was
hunting downtown. The two produced several broods over the years.
The pair's last chick, Zoey, flew the coop over the summer, Riewe said.
"She left in late-August, which is
what they do," she said. "They get to a point in their development where
they just decide they have to move on."
As for Zephyr, Riewe said he is being readied for display.
"Zephyr is going to be taxidermied,
and I have given him to Rum Village Nature Center," she said. "And ...
the avian biologist for the state agreed that that's a good thing. This
is Zephyr's hometown, this is where he should be."
Staff writer Erin Blasko:
- See more at:
http://www.southbendtribune.com/news/sbt-guinevere-spotted-with-new-mate-20130228,0,3296364.story#sthash.sKelIo5a.dpufSOUTH BEND -- Guinevere appears to have found a new mate.
The city's resident female peregrine falcon has been spotted in recent weeks hunting downtown with another bird, Carol Riewe, a local raptor rehabilitator, said today.
"They have been seen hunting pigeons together and swooping and diving," Riewe said, "so it looks like somebody has picked up on the widow here and is going to stay."
"And it's time for that," Riewe said, "because normally, in past years, we had egg-laying beginning in the third week of March, the 23rd or 24th, somewhere in that area."
Riewe said she has spotted the pair herself recently. "I have seen them evenings, after dark," she said, "roosting in the west side windows of the Tower Building."
She said she doesn't know if the other bird is banded because she hasn't been able to get a close enough look at it. She said the camera atop County-City Building that is pointed at Guinevere's nest has been disabled since last year because of a wiring problem.
"The roof has to be clear of ice and snow before anybody gets up there" to fix it, she said.
Peregrine falcons keep the same mate year-to-year, and generally don't accept a replacement unless their partner dies or disappears. Guinevere's former longtime mate, Zephyr, died last June in an accident while he was hunting downtown. The two produced several broods over the years.
The pair's last chick, Zoey, flew the coop over the summer, Riewe said.
"She left in late-August, which is what they do," she said. "They get to a point in their development where they just decide they have to move on."
As for Zephyr, Riewe said he is being readied for display.
"Zephyr is going to be taxidermied, and I have given him to Rum Village Nature Center," she said. "And ... the avian biologist for the state agreed that that's a good thing. This is Zephyr's hometown, this is where he should be."
Staff writer Erin Blasko
As for Zephyr, Riewe said he is being readied for display.
"Zephyr is going to be taxidermied,
and I have given him to Rum Village Nature Center," she said. "And ...
the avian biologist for the state agreed that that's a good thing. This
is Zephyr's hometown, this is where he should be."Staff writer Erin Blasko:
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http://www.southbendtribune.com/news/sbt-guinevere-spotted-with-new-mate-20130228,0,3296364.story#sthash.sKelIo5a.dpuf
