Bird Cams Around the World

(Well, I don't know if this will help or hurt)...

I put together a slideshow of some pics we got back in 2008 after the James River Bridge, VA juvies were hacked to the New River Gorge site. We are very fortunate to have a CCB biologist as a member here who visits the VA hacked birds there (Libby's her name)...anyway, the really, really good pics you see are by Gary Huntley, a New River Gorge park ranger...the "not so good pics" were taken by us because there was actually a cam focused on the hack box back then...

I can remember how upset we all were when we learned the babies would be hacked...Thanks to Libby, who helped to answer our questions and to provide updates on how the "kids" were doing...as sad as it was to lose them, it looked like they were having a blast!!! We also felt better seeing where they were and knowing how well cared for they were...

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Somebody that Sue and I talked to yesterday mentioned something about the New River Gorge, but that was before we knew about "the girls" going there. I've done some birding in that area, and it is absolutely a beautiful place. On the back side of a West Virginia quarter is the New River Gorge Bridge.

Sorry, I tried to post this earlier. There were two other falcons in the hack box that we took from a VA bridge a week ago Monday. They are the same age as these girls. Another group was sent up this past Monday, and they are a week younger. I think they are going to hold the box closed until the younger group is ready, so the Wilmington girls should be very strong fliers at that point.

I'm hoping to get pics of the hack box and the falcons very soon.

The fledge watch team here has done an awesome job! At least it will be easier on you and these young parents with only two to keep track of.

Thanks for going back to all the old photos sgb!

Thanks for the information, Barb.

Thanks, Barb! I am glad the girls will have some time to hone their flying skills. The pictures look like New River Gorge is a beautiful place for falcons to live. I have heard about hacking, but don't really know quite what it entails. I hope I can guess the right answer to this question, but have to ask anyway: Will they be taught how to catch prey before they are turned loose to fend for themselves? If they stayed home, they would have their parents to teach them for the next 6-8 weeks.

Reenie, You are not the only one feeling unhappy about this. I am ticked off about it. They are our Wilm. birds. I believe that birds should go back to a familiar location. That is the standard belief at TriState Bird for most of the birds that they release. These pefa gals have heard and seen the city for their entire lives. This is where they belong.

At first I wasn't against the hacking idea because it would get them away from all the buildings, glass, cars and idiot people, but after reading more about it, now I'm not so sure. It sounds like it's for younger birds, not birds that have already flown. I'm not really sure what the thinking is behind sending them there. Unfortunately there isn't anything we can do about it.


Yes, New River Gorge is where they'll be going:
http://www.nps.gov/neri/naturescience/peregrine.htm

Barb, do you have any idea if the birds from Tri-State arrived today? Or is it Friday?

Good question! One I was wondering myself earlier. Maybe we can see the information from Libby that someone mentioned?

I don't know a whole lot about hacking myself. I do know that the birds are fed with a hand puppet that looks like an adult so as not to imprint them on humans. Can remember reading about those hack sites at the New River Gorge. There's some sort of chute where the birds get their food, and they don't see humans. I do NOT know how they learn to hunt, as that's what the adults teach them. Gee, Red Girl and CJ worked SO hard to raise their family. I guess it's good that all five weren't taken as was done at the James River Bridge a few years ago.

There was the big fight last year but I wouldn't say that Delaware is overrun with falcons.

Sorry MA, it was you who mentioned Libby! Are the questions/answers you mentioned still available online? Maybe you could provide a link if so?

I f you wish I could e-mail Gord and ask about hacking. they will be hacking some later on on a river cliff.

Gord and the ones involved were at the grass roots when they wre hacking falocns to bring them back from the brink. they used to hack them here in Edmonton.


the birds being hacked were taken as eggs from a site so they will know no better.

I do not understand the reasoning here. The adults would help these girls