The Providence Peregrine Cam

2020 Updates from the Nest Box

March 17, 2020
A great cure for cabin fever and better than Netflix: the Providence Peregrine Falcons are back!

Over the past week, courtship behavior between the two birds - such as bowing towards each other and flying together - has been seen. Yesterday, they were spotted mating, so eggs are on the way!

The birds look to be the same unbanded pair from last year. As the female gets closer to her egg-laying date, you will see her in the nestbox more frequently. For now, you can see them on camera when they return to stake their territory.

As we find ourselves socially distancing ourselves in order to maintain the health of our community, we hope you'll find joy and wonder once again in watching the Providence Peregrine Falcons live-stream.

Please share widely and if you see something interesting happen on-screen, we'd love to hear about it!

March 20, 2020
The female Peregrine Falcon laid the first egg sometime today, March 20th! While viewing the camera, look for a rust-colored spot. She will lay a total 3-4 eggs over a 2-3 day period. Round-the-clock incubation does not begin until the last or penultimate egg is laid. This allows the the entire clutch to hatch around the same time, roughly 30 days later. Both male and female Providence Peregrines will take turns incubating the eggs. Keep tuning in over the next few days to see her lay the others!

March 22, 2020
There are now two eggs in the nest!

March 24, 2020
Three eggs in the nest as of 6 PM!

March 29, 2020
A fourth egg was laid around 11:30 am!

March 30, 2020
Incubation has fully begun! The Peregrine Falcons will take turns incubating the eggs and hunting for food to support each other. Eggs can be expected to hatch anytime in the last week of April/first week of May!

April 30, 2020
Overnight or sometime in the early morning, the first Peregrine Falcon egg hatched! Stay tuned throughout the day as the others follow.
Watch the highlight: https://youtu.be/OCb5PMpWcaQ

May 1, 2020
The second egg has hatched sometime overnight.
Watch the highlight: https://youtu.be/RLVpSXch1fA

May 2, 2020
A third Peregrine Falcon has hatched.
Watch the highlight: https://youtu.be/azKL_5Z1GJY

May 3, 2020
All four eggs have hatched!
Watch the highlight: https://youtu.be/uG57xKoqdPo

May 18, 2020
What can you expect to see as a viewer on banding day? First, bander Joe Zbyrowski will approach the nestbox from the back on a ladder. He will place a board in the front of the nestbox so the chicks don't run out and over the ledge when retrieving them. He will then open the back door, take the eyases out, and place them in a basket. The eyases will be lowered to the landing about 10 feet below. During the whole process, the parent falcons will be exhibiting territorial behavior. You will see orange brooms waving in the background - these are by no means intended to hit the parents. Rather, they deter the parents from attempting to dive-bomb the humans. Once the eyases have been banded and their sex determined, they will be promptly returned to the nest box.

Watch our Party for the Peregrines+ Night 3 replay to learn more about Peregrine Falcon banding from Master bander Joe Zbyrowski: https://youtu.be/vTX-EIcxUs8 (begins at the 20:10 timestamp).

May 21, 2020
FAQ: Where are the parent Peregrine Falcons?!

At this stage, it is completely normal for the parents of the eyases (chicks) to be absent from the nestbox. They are now spending most of their time hunting to feed their growing family, or resting, and they will only return to feed their young.

The eyases are brooded almost continuously for only around the first 10 days of life. After this point, they are able to regulate their body temperature themselves. Plus, it becomes pretty uncomfortable for the parent(s) to remain in the nest box at all times due to the increasing size of the eyases!

Contrary to what is commonly portrayed in cartoons, nests strictly provide a place for laying eggs and raising young until they fledge during breeding season. Fledglings, juveniles and adult birds do no sleep in nests and many birds do not necessarily have a particular spot they return to each time they need to rest, and the Peregrines are no different. They will perch and rest anywhere they please within their territory.

Keep watching and hopefully you will be tuned-in at just the right time to see the adults return to feed their young!

May 22, 2020
BANDING DAY - Watch the recap on YouTube: https://youtu.be/tZA1WHBMcGc!

Today, we successfully banded and determined the sex of the four eyases: two females and two males! When the chicks are around three weeks old, their legs have stopped growing. This is the perfect time to band the birds because it ensures they will not grow out of their bands, and they are still very docile and easy to handle. Leg size is also the determining factor of the sex of the bird. Females are substantially larger than males - the bigger the leg, the bigger the bird.

Lisa Gould and Loree Kallienen were able to experience the falcon banding this year after winning the experience through the Party for the Peregrines+ online fundraiser Golden Ticket Raffle last week. Thank you to everyone who bought a raffle ticket and participated in the online auction, Joe Zbyrowski for banding this year's brood and Peter Green of Providence Raptors for taking photos and video!

Watch our Party for the Peregrines+ Night 3 replay to learn more about Peregrine Falcon banding from Master bander Joe Zbyrowski: https://youtu.be/vTX-EIcxUs8 (begins at the 20:10 timestamp).

How many and what kinds of leg bands do peregrines get and what do the codes mean?
Peregrine falcons banded in North America typically receive 2 leg bands-one on each leg. The first band is a U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS) band which contains a number unique to that individual falcon (similar to a Social Security number). The numbers are small and hard to read unless you have the bird in hand. A second band is placed on the leg opposite of the USFWS band. This band is usually one or two colors and may have a few numbers and/or letters. This is done to increase the number of possible combinations of letters and numbers on these special color bands. These are made to be read from a distance, usually using a camera or spotting scope.

Bird banding allows scientists to track the life history, migration and reproductive behavior of bird individuals and overall populations. The data that bird banding provides is increasing valuable as we aim to better understand the climate and biodiversity crises.

Do the leg bands hurt the falcons or affect the way they hunt?
The bands placed on peregrine falcons are a very lightweight aluminum material and are specially sized to fit a falcon's leg. They do not hurt the bird in any way and are comparable to a human wearing a bracelet. The leg bands do not interfere with flight or grasping of prey.

May 27, 2020
At almost a month old, these chicks are right where they need to be developmentally. Their body contours and back feathers are beginning to take shape. Although they still rest on their tarsi (lower leg) quite often, they have begun walking on their feet!

June 8, 2020
The first Providence Peregrine Falcon fledgling left the nest box at 5:37 AM and has begun exploring the ledge and roof of the surrounding area! A fledgling is a bird with wing feathers developed enough for flight. The other fledglings, one by one, will follow closely behind. They'll begin taking flight within a couple days of leaving the nest box, after they have a chance to really stretch and strengthen their wing muscles.

WATCH: The first fledgling explores the area outside the nest box: https://youtu.be/GAq-ZezGQbY

What happens next? Once the fledglings take their first flights, you may be able to spot them on the live webcam stream for a couple weeks; they don't venture too far, and they may still associate the nest box area with food. The fledglings will be dependent on their parents for food for another 4-6 weeks. During this time, they will first get more comfortable flying and then they will attempt to hunt, mostly unsuccessfully at first.

June 8, 2020
At 8:45 pm, within 24 hours of leaving the nest box, the first Providence Peregrine Falcon fledgling took his first flight! While the actual flight itself wasn't captured on video due to the camera angle, viewers are able to see the falcon hop onto a lower ledge and then ultimately leave the building.

WATCH the highlight: https://youtu.be/ixooAdIGO0w

The first flights are never graceful, and are sometimes unsuccessful. Luckily, he was spotted on a nearby building the next morning by Peter Green of Providence Raptors. Here is a link to the photos confirming the fledgling's successful first flight.

June 10, 2020
The second Providence Peregrine Falcon fledgling left the nest box at 6:22 AM and has begun exploring the ledge and roof of the surrounding area!

WATCH the highlight: https://youtu.be/qN69M_CCLnE

June 10, 2020
The third Providence Peregrine Falcon fledgling left the nest box at 4:13 PM and has begun exploring the ledge and roof of the surrounding area!

WATCH the highlight: https://youtu.be/PRaQNAhBGtQ

June 11, 2020
The fourth and final Providence Peregrine Falcon fledgling has left the nest box at 7:09 AM and has begun exploring the ledge and roof of the surrounding area!

WATCH the highlight: https://youtu.be/BhU7YrOD-F0

June 11, 2020
Two out of four fledglings have taken their "first flights": the second Peregrine Falcon fledgling glided off of 111 Westminster and safely landed on a rooftop by the Arcade.

June 14, 2020
The final two Falcons took flight sometime over the weekend. Good luck to the newest Providence Peregrine Falcons as they learn to fly and hunt! Thank you for tuning in to the 2020 nesting season!

2019 Updates from the Nest Box

March 19, 2019
A new, high quality camera and better streaming capabilities are on their way to the Superman Building, thanks to our generous donors and DaneTech, Inc. We hope to be back online this week!

Today’s journey to the nest box revealed an unbanded pair ready to mate. It looks like the same female as last year; the indicator is a few missing feathers on her left wing! She may have sustained permanent (but minor) damage in the mating battle which took place last season, prohibiting a couple feathers to regrow. It does not effect her flight.

April 2, 2019
Heading up! Today we are replacing the Providence Peregrine Webcam and getting a new streaming service online. We apologize for the delay.
Thank you Danetech, Inc. for your time and support through this process! Visit their website: http://www.danetechinc.com

April 3, 2019
Thanks to our generous donors, we were able to install a new webcam yesterday. We are still working to get the video stream online. Thank you for your patience!

April 17, 2019
The webcam is streaming live as of this morning! We are aware that some viewers are experiencing problems viewing the feed and we are investigating the issue.

As you may be able to see, there are four eggs, the final of which was laid around April 2nd! Incubation lasts around 32 days from the date of the first egg laid (unknown). This puts the hatch date at around May 3rd or sooner. It appears to be the same unbanded adult pair as last year. The female is permanently missing a few feathers on her left wing, and the male is currently missing the tip of his beak (it will grow back slowly).

May 5, 2019
Happy Hatch Day! The Providence Peregrine clutch has begun to hatch! Tune in and watch as the eyases emerge. If you are having trouble viewing you can try our live stream on Youtube

The first chick started hatching up to three days ago! Egg hatching is a strenuous activity that consists mostly of resting time. It is also the first survival test of each bird's life, thus the chicks do not receive any assistance from their parents.

May 7, 2019
Scenes from the first day of life, 30 floors above the city of Providence! Although only two eggs have hatched so far, the parents are already working around the clock to provide enough food for the eyases. They will double in weight in the first week alone!

Screenshots captured by Jo-Ann Therien. Share yours by tagging us on Facebook (@AudubonRI) or Twitter and Instagram (@RIAudubon)!

May 22, 2019
BANDING DAY
Today, we successfully banded and determined the sex of both eyases: both are male. At this point, when the chicks are around two weeks old, their legs have stopped growing. This is the perfect time to band the birds because it ensures they will not grow out of their bands, and they are still very docile and easy to handle. Leg size is also the determining factor of the sex of the bird. Females are substantially larger than males - the bigger the leg, the bigger the bird.

Kathy and Gurdon Wattles, George Kortyna and his son Ian were able to experience the falcon banding this year after placing winning bids on the experience at our Party for the Peregrine fundraiser on May 10th. Thank you, Joe Zybrowski for banding this year's brood and Peter Green of Providence Raptors for taking photos!

How many and what kinds of leg bands do peregrines get and what do the codes mean?
Peregrine falcons banded in North America typically receive 2 leg bands-one on each leg. The first band is a U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS) band which contains a number unique to that individual falcon (similar to a Social Security number). The numbers are small and hard to read unless you have the bird in hand. A second band is placed on the leg opposite of the USFWS band. This band is usually one or two colors and may have a few numbers and/or letters. This is done to increase the number of possible combinations of letters and numbers on these special color bands. These are made to be read from a distance, usually using a camera or spotting scope.

Bird banding allows scientists to track the life history, migration and reproductive behavior of bird individuals and overall populations. The data that bird banding provides is increasing valuable as we aim to better understand the climate and biodiversity crises.

Do the leg bands hurt the falcons or affect the way they hunt?
The bands placed on peregrine falcons are a very lightweight aluminum material and are specially sized to fit a falcon's leg. They do not hurt the bird in any way and are comparable to a human wearing a bracelet. The leg bands do not interfere with flight or grasping of prey.

May 30, 2019
At 25 days old, these chicks are right where they need to be developmentally. Their body contours and back feathers are beginning to take shape. Although they still rest on their tarsi (lower leg) quite often, they have begun walking on their feet!

June 16, 2019
The first nestling has fledged early this morning! The second will be close behind, mostly likely fledging today or tomorrow.

June 17, 2019
Both Peregrine Falcon chicks have fledged as of this morning. Although they will not return to the nest box at all once they have fledged, you may be able to spot them on the live webcam stream for a couple days since they don't venture far. The fledglings will be dependent on their parents for food for another 4-6 weeks. During this time, they will first get more comfortable flying and then they will attempt to hunt, mostly unsuccessfully! Good luck to the newest Providence Peregrines!