An Accipiter in Falcon-land

Reports of the new Peregrine in town are bringing out the watchers in greater numbers. No fewer than seven fans of the Kodak falcons were on hand today, including regulars Barb, Carol P, Dana, Larry O'heron, Lisa McKeown & Shaky. It didn't hurt that the weather was much more hospitable than the past two days, with calm winds, blue skies and plenty of sun that kept the temperatures in the mid 50's F (low 10's C). The unseasonable weather didn't bring us any luck with sighting either Sabrina or the adult female newcomer. Neither was to be found for the entire lunch hour.

A not unwelcome consolation prize was an immature Cooper's Hawk (Accipiter cooperii). It perched atop some railing on the Genesee Brewing Co. building on the east bank of the river gorge. After a sneaky and unsuccessful attack on a Rock Dove, it settled higher up and did some preening:
          

With all the pigeons on the Brewery wise to its presence the Coop took wing, alternately flapping and gliding. To our delight and good fortune, it passed overhead, allowing for some great views:
          

     

Now, Cooper's Hawks are fairly common, but since they're so often seen in woodland settings it can be difficult to photograph them in flight, so this was an unexpected treat for me. It headed downtown, panicking the flocks of pigeons into dark roiling clouds all along its route. On a return trip a few minutes later I took a few shots that show its white underside and the rounded tail that's often used to cinch the ID:
          

There was not much else to see, and plenty of work waiting for me so I left at 1:00. The weather and welcome photographic subject made for a pleasant lunch hour indeed. We've had only about 1/6^th the snowfall we'd normally expect in the Rochester area and the El Niño-inspired temperatures are 20 degrees F above normal. With such conditions it seems there will be plenty more opportunities for birding and photography in the coming weeks.

Sabrina Sat and Preened...

... and did little else for the hour I spent outside at noon today. It was windy, gray and cold-- hardly the halcyon mild weather that had been forecast. Perhaps for that reason Sabrina kept to the ledge on the northeast corner of the 19^th floor. Here are a few shots:
          

The adult female we saw yesterday was a no-show, though it's easy to imagine that Sabrina's frequent looks to the east were in expectation of it's arrival. It's more likely that Sabrina was just engaging in the Peregrine's typical wariness.

Despite the inhospitable weather I'd have stayed out longer to see if the other falcon decided to make a visit, but a meeting at 1:00 forced me indoors. With Sabrina and our mystery falcon engaging in what could be construed as courting behavior and the continued absence of Mariah and Kaver I'm keen to see what might develop. Perhaps 2007 will be a year of change for the Kodak falcons. For now I'm reserving judgement and hoping for more opportunities to observe both Sabrina and the newcomer interacting. We'll see what Thursday brings.

New Year, New Falcon?

Having heard the reports of Sabrina flying with a newly arrived adult Peregrine of undetermined identity, I brought my camera to work with me today in the hope of seeing the two of them in the air together. There was no sign of Sabrina, but the adult did show up. Carol P, Lisa McKeown and I were out on the Pont de Rennes bridge, scanning the sky when I spotted it late into the lunch hour. The falcon was flying just south of the Kodak tower, making a good show of harrassing a gull. I'm in my sixth year of watching the Kodak falcons and in all that time I've never seen Mariah or Kaver even pay much attention to a gull, much less harrass one, so it would seem that we have a new arrival. The bird was pretty far away even as it chased the gull out over the river. When it turned back toward the tower I started shooting:
     

     

Despite my attempts to sharpen and otherwise enhance my images, I couldn't make out the presence of a band, though it appears that the falcon has something white on one of its feet (possibly white feathers?). It landed on the south side of the cupola atop the Kodak Tower and we followed for a closer look:
     

The sharp cold wind made steady shooting a challenge, so the pictures are less clear than I would have liked. The bird's wing shape doesn't look like Mariah's. There was no sign of her typical split primary flying style. To me the body also looks different. Reports of Sabrina's flying with a new, possibly banded adult falcon make me suspect that today's visitor is that same bird, especially since it flew right back to the cupola as did the adult falcon yesterday. This one was about the same size as the gull it chased, leading me to believe it is a female. If so, and if the pair flying yesterday was a courtship display (as I'm beginning to suspect), then we may have yet another indication (beyond her small size in relation to other known females) that Sabrina is actually a tiercel . It will be interesting to see if Sabrina joins this adult for more flights in the coming days. Tomorrow promises warmer weather, so I'll be on the lookout.