Cacophony of cacking…

Do "Fly" not the "Watusi."   Photo by Cleve Nash

Do “The Fly” not the “Watusi.”
Photo by Cleve Nash

Got an early start today. No more banker’s hours. Cleve says, “No wind and more action in the early hours.” It’s before 7AM and I’m here with coffee for both of us and Cleve is AWOL. Too bad he missed a great day and the first aerial food exchange between parent and juvenile. You guessed it “Flyboy!” Who else could fly that well.

When the parent arrives with prey, the cacophony of cacking* begins and soon all the young are airborne. If one or more does not fly, the parent will fly over them with prey to encourage them to come up and take it from them. Today, two of the young gave chase, “Flyboy” and his very large sister. It was no contest for him until he had to carry it to a perch. That is when she overtook him. Closing in fast on his yellow tail feathers, he dove into a bush squealing all the way, trying to mantle the prey even before he got stopped. The young female broke off the chase at the bush and later finished what he could not.

Happy trails, Bob

Item:
“Flyboy” can be identified by two blonde streaks on the back of his head.

*cacking –  excited vocalizing

About Pacific Coast Peregrine Watch

The Pacific Coast Peregrine Watch is here to inform birders, students and all people who are eager to know about these handsome peregrines. We want you to enjoy and be able to use our on-site powerful spotting scopes. We are available to answer your questions about the pair of falcons that have been observed for many years.
This entry was posted in chicks, falcon, juvenile and tagged , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

3 Responses to Cacophony of cacking…

  1. Sue says:

    I look forward to every installment! What about the south pair?

    • Pacific Coast Peregrine Watch says:

      Sue, try this. The north side hatched April 18, the south side should have been about the same. Subtract 33 days from April 18, add 16 days we know she incubated before she abandoned the eyrie. Add two weeks to breed and lay a new clutch of eggs,then add 33 days to that. If you come up with something around the first week in June, tell me why we have fresh new droppings at the eyrie entrance that were not there last week. ~Bob

  2. Steve says:

    Hey Bob,

    Just wanted to drop you a note to say thanks for being a great guide during my time out at the rock. Had a ton of fun.

    Also thought you might enjoy this picture: http://blog.voidmain.com/post/51813944904/bird-breakfast

    Going back to the city soon, but will be return.

    Thanks again,
    Steve

    P.S.
    The other Steve says “Hi”.

What did you think of this post? Like it? Let us know.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.