FalconWatch

Melba's Back!

Melba, one of the five female falcon chicks born this year and named after Melba Pattillo Beals, (a journalist and member of the Little Rock Nine, a group of African-American students who were the first to integrate Central High in Little Rock, Arkansas), was released today after a couple weeks of rehab.

Seems she hit one of Omaha's downtown buildings located next to the Woodmen Tower, and was knocked unconscious. If you look closely, you can see the scar she has on top of her nose. Raptor Recovery Nebraska's Denise Lewis has been taking care of her and was there to release her from the roof of the Woodmen Tower. "She took right off and circled the building a couple of times," said Lewis. Denise was pleased with her flying and thinks she will be okay now.

Keep checking the camera, maybe you can get a glimpse of Melba sometime soon.

Zeus is in the house

Zeus came for a visit to the nest this morning. Must have cooled off enough to be worth the 28 story flight! It's been hot, hot, hot in Omaha with heat indexes around the 110 degree mark. I'm sure the falcons found some shade to cool off in for the last few days.

Welcome back, Zeus! We missed you!

Looks like the chicks have checked out

We haven't seen any of the gals in quite a few days, so they must be off adventuring! It's sad for us to see them leave the nest, but I suppose that's the goal, isn't it? Stay tuned for any updates and join us again next year for the falcon saga of 2012!

Good luck Mae, Amelia, Rosa, Sally and Melba!

Check out the Falcon Banding Video on Facebook!

Our five gals enjoyed their adventure inside the Woodmen Tower during the banding (and so did we!), but we're glad they are back in their regular home in the nest box! They have grown and changed so much since this video was taken! Click here to login and view the video.

One, two, three, four, five. Now that's a full house!

The fifth one is laying in the box. We wish we could get up there and clean the window, but we can't. It  would be too disrupting for the girls. And we don't want any of them falling off the ledge.

What a difference a week makes!

Nine days separate these two photos, but it would be hard to recognize these gals as the same birds from just a week ago! I think they like looking at themselves in the window reflection, and lucky for us, that makes good bird watching on the cameras!

The chicks probably have a pretty good aerial view of the College World Series this year! As well as all the crazy weather we've been having! Good luck to all the CWS teams! Enjoy your time in Omaha!

 

Who is that good looking chick in the window?

The chicks can be found out wandering the ledge these days. Sometimes they are out of camera range, but don't worry, they are all still growing and looking cute for the birdie in the window!

Our five chicks are now officially Mae, Amelia, Rosa, Sally and Melba!

Congratulations to our 2011 falcon-naming contest winner, Becky Mae! Her suggestion was "Five famous women that made a difference in our world today".

Dr. Mae Jemison, Amelia Earhardt, Rosa Parks, Sally Ride, and Melba Pattilo.

Our five females are looking a little less white and a lot darker in their adolescent feathers! It's amazing how quickly they grow!



Remember to vote for your favorite falcon names!

The top 5 choices have been posted on our Facebook page - voting ends tomorrow at noon! Click here to like our page and participate in the fun!

Check out the live webcam and photos of the Woodmen Tower Falcons while you're here! these falcon chicks are getting anxious to wander out of the nest box! A few have even been brave enough to walk out of camera range on the ledge. And it's always great to see them sitting on the edge of the nest box...just like their mama, Hera.

It's time to vote for your favorite falcon names!

The top 5 choices have been posted on our Facebook page - vote now and help us name our five gals! Click here to like our page and participate in the fun!

Voting begins this afternoon for the Name the Falcon contest entries.

Last week, falcon fans posted their groups of five names on the Woodmen of the World Facebook wall. Based on comments, likes and a general review from an internal WOW committee, the top five groups will be re-posted in the form of a Facebook "Question" on the WOW wall, where fans can then vote for their favorite. The top five will be posted and voting will begin THIS afternoon, Monday, June 13 and last through 12:00 p.m. CDT on Friday, June 17. The winner will be announced on Monday, June 20 via Facebook, Twitter and the FalconWatch blog!

In order to participate, please 'like' the Woodmen of the World Life Insurance Society page.

Please share this information with your falcon fan friends!