Sorry to top post my own message, but... Now there are two different peregrine falcons that visit the backyard regularly. One is banded but I haven't gotten close enough to get the number off the band. The other is not banded ... now that it is Spring, could this be a mate? In any case, I reported the information on the banded bird as above, and will be watching to see if I have any other substantial information to send to the banding studies. The unbanded bird seems to have great hunting skills. It hangs out in a little hiding hole on the fence during the last 2 hours of daylight, very patiently and still, then systematically dives into nearby evergreen shrubs to try and catch a meal. It was successful tonight. I love it.

Thanks for another nest cam to watch. I love that the falcons didn't even have to build a nest - the Iowa Department of Natural Resources built one for them. Claire

There is a wonderful webcam site for peregrine falcons at the link below. My husband actually saw one of these birds with a pigeon in the city one time. I haven't been that lucky, but I do enjoy following them on the webcam! The falcons currently have 4 eggs. Make sure to refresh the screen when you first puul up the site to get the most current image. Here is a link that might be useful: NYS DEC Falcon Cam

Last fall I was at Stanley Park in Westfield, Massachusetts shooting some scenic photos of the park and I kept hearing a whistling sound off in the distance. Finally out of curiosity I went to see what it was. To my complete surprise I found it was a guy in his backyard, which adjoins the park, and he was training a Red Tailed hawk in the art of "Falconry" (Hunting by means of a raptor). I quickly hung a long telephoto lens and began shooting pictures. In a few minutes the guy noticed me and invited me to come in a bit closer. I moved in to about 20ft where he and I could talk yet my presence would still not excite the hawk. In our discusssion he told me that he is one of only 7 ppl in the entire state who are currently licensed to practice the art of Falconry. According to him it takes 6 years in an apprenticeship to get a license and they must have the license before they can posses a bird. During that 6yr period they must work with a raptor rehab facility to learn how to care & feed the birds as well as handling characteristics. He also stated that they cannot buy a bird. To get a bird they have to live trap one in the wild, but they are limited to only trapping birds that are presenting some form of nuisance. In his case, his bird had taken up residence in a residential neighborhood and had been hunting bird near ppls bird feeders or small cats, most of which were to large for the bird to carry off so it just killed a cat, then consumed what it could on the spot and leaving the remains to the total dismay of the cat owners. . . . . . Here is a photo of me doing my imation of a handler.....LOL