FalconWatch

Introducing…

Magnus, name submitted by Lora Daum of Omaha, NE

Inina, name submitted by Barbara Denham of Robertsdale, AL

Willow name submitted by Karen Andreasen of Blair, NE

Isis, name submitted by Tena Boucher of Blair, NE

Congratulations to our Name the Falcons winners. Each winner received a framed photo of the chick they named and got the opportunity to see Zeus and Hera up close at the nesting boxes.

Empty Nesters?

For the past few days I've only noticed Zeus and Hera hanging around the nesting boxes. I have not seen any of the young ones. Are they still here, but just out of camera view? Or have they gone off to find a home of their own? Either way I'm grateful that Hera was able to recover from her injuries and return to her mate Zeus. And hopefully these four young birds will have learned their lessons well from their parents and will become parents themselves.

Woodmen Falcons on the cover of Omaha World Herald

One of our young falcons made headlines this morning click here  to read the article and see a photo of one of the fledged falcons. 

We've achieved lift-off

This morning, we received the following message from our friends at Tower Management:
"Only one chick remains. Three of the chicks have made their inaugural flight. This morning, one was found perched behind the eagle statue at the Kutak Rock Building. Zeus and Hera will continue to bring them food from wherever they call from. In the next few days, they will be experienced enough to return to the top of the building. Once that happens, they will start their flight and food catching training from mom and dad."

A photo of the lone hold-out.

If you're downtown this weekend, peek around the rooftops.  You may catch a glimpse of the new falcons taking their very first tour of Omaha. 

The box is getting pretty full.

I went up to check on the chicks the other day to make sure all four were still on the ledge. And they were. They just like to wander in and out of our camera range. This photo was taken 6/16/09.

They also seem to be the most active in the mornings. They like to flex their wings and take long hops up and down along the ledge. I've noticed that their wing span is too wide for the ledge so they have to start out on that part of the ledge that juts out and leap towards the window with their wings spread. This photo was sent in by one of our viewers. Great shot. Thanks.

The young birds are becoming very sure-footed and quite the divas. They constantly check out their reflections. They didn't seem to be too alarmed when they saw me, but rather curious and watchful. Zeus and Hera were no where to be found which makes me think that they are staying away from the nest box to try to coax the young ones into leaving the ledge. When they finally take that leap of faith, it will be more like a glide down to another roof top. In the past, the young birds have ended up on the busy streets and someone from the Raptor Recovery Nebraska was contacted to retrieve the bird and put it back up on our roof.

Have you seen them sleep lying down? It sort of looks like they are dead or have been stepped on. It may look weird, but this is how the young ones like to occasionally sleep. 

I spy with my little eye all four chicks!

And they are maturing fast! We went up to the box last Friday and took some shots of the chicks to be used as the prize giveaways for the naming contest. Remember, today is the last day to enter. All four looked healthy and were giving us a good look over. The three girls are even bigger than Zeus at this point. Their down is almost completely gone and they have been testing their wings up and down the ledge. Looks like they are enjoying their increased mobility. Camera 2 seems to be the best one to watch this.

Free Falcon Wallpaper Is Here!

To celebrate the 2009 FalconWatch season, we have created a computer wallpaper featuring Hera and her young eyas. The wallpaper is compatible with Windows and Mac computers and is available in four screen sizes.

Get your free wallpaper now!

All four chicks are doing fine.

Many viewers have written in concerned that the chicks are no longer on the ledge. This shot shows all four at once. I've noticed that one of the chicks will look at his reflection in the window and flap his wings.

Zeus and Hera have always had good parenting skills.

Notice all the debris on ledge? That's good to see because we know the chicks are getting fed. And when the chicks do start to fly, they will hopefully land on a nearby building roof where Hera and Zeus can bring them food.

They're growing up so fast!

This weekend our babies got just a little bit bigger and more adventurous. I saw three chicks on ledge and one still in the box. This morning there were two chicks near the box on the ledge and one chick in the box. The chicks on the ledge were walking and bouncing very steadily and not wobbly. I have not seen all four chicks together yet but as of 2:00 p.m. Tower management has seen all four.