Raven and Raptors
20 May 2024
I didn't see any activity in the raven nest today, though there was one raven vocalizing loudly very close to it. (I thought I heard two but only briefly, and I only saw one.)
The more interesting sighting was of a peregrine falcon on one of the usual perches on Riverside Church. That's been a traditional nesting area for falcons for a very long time. Last year, though, it was covered by scaffolding, blocking access to the nest. Last December, I saw two falcons around the area, so I was optimistic, but I never saw any signs of nesting after that. In fact, the last time I saw any peregrines there was in mid-February. Thus, when I saw one adult today, I figured it was just perching there while hunting. But now I wonder.
Looking back at my pictures from today, there's a curious thing. The first picture shows the falcon looking down, as if it's trying to spot some prey. Fair enough—that's consistent with it using a nice, convenient high perch. The last two show that the bird has moved to a ledge of the church where it can see both north and west. But look at the second falcon picture: it's on top of the gargoyle, looking into the recess. In fact, it kept more or less that pose for more than five minutes. What was it looking at? Chicks? Maybe! Three years ago, I got some nice shots of nestlings who were almost but not quite ready to fledge, and that was in mid-June. Maybe there is a nest this year, and I was just unlucky all of the times I checked it between mid-February and today. I'll certainly be checking back!
Common raven
Peregrine falcon
