Here they are on Saturday, June 29, gathered on the Barnes Museum roof waiting for food.
Let's go back to last week's excitement of the fledging. The first one to fledge was the youngest - #3, also known as Peanut. I am not a fan of naming wild creatures. I make an exception for Mom - an honorific - as befits her matriarchal status. So I will give #3 his due recognition for being the most advanced and bravest, and refer to him as F1 - the first fledger. The second to fledge (somewhat disastrously) was the formel twin - F2, and the third to fledge (somewhat reluctantly) was the tiercel twin - F3.
As you may remember, F1 had a magnificent fledge. His escape from the temporary bird netting hang-up literally a minute or two into his first flight underscored his coordination and strength. John Blakeman's comment: "A strong-flighted bird; an indication of superb nutrition."
F1 rested for while on a window ledge near the nest, and Karen Elinich from the Franklin Institute sent us this insider's view.
F1 spent his first night off the nest in a nearby tree, and dawn found him perched across 21st Street on the old Board of Education building, now converted to apartments.
As the sun strengthened, he started peeking down from his roof ledge at the hawk photographers gathered below.
Puri Garcia-Serrablo lives in this building and was able to give us a hawk's eye view of F1's antics...
... as he tested out his take-off and landing skills on that gorgeous summer day.
He spent the noon hour on the front of the building, looking down onto Winter Street.
That day, June 21, was when F2, the female and larger of the twins, fledged at 9:35am. This was just a second or so before she took off.
Like her younger brother, she flew beautifully straight and strong into one of the trees down on Winter Street.
She peered down curiously at the ground...
... and then started exploring along the branches.
The branches, twigs really, got thinner, and F2 found it harder to keep her balance.
She climbed higher in her tree...
...and then disaster!
... and she tumbled to the ground.
While newly fledged hawks in rural areas rarely come to harm on the ground, for urban hawks it is truly a serious situation. F2 was clearly confused to find herself in this predicament.
She started walking purposefully...
... but she had nowhere to go.
People were gathering, both to try to keep her safe, and to take pictures. Instinctively, she knew she had to get up off the ground, and the danger was that she would fly up onto those railings, below which are the six murderous lanes of the Vine Street expressway.
Fortunately, she went in the other direction, and flew up onto the roof of that vehicle. She was clearly becoming more stressed by the moment.
She flew across Winter Street back to the Franklin Institute, and spent some time on a ground floor window ledge, perhaps finding some comfort in its familiar shape.
Linda Timlin
This young lady checking out the train exhibit had some value added to her visit!
Dinko Mitic
When F2 tried to take off from the ledge, she lost her footing...
Linda White
... and had to regroup on a nearby bike rack.
Linda White
In a series of hops and flaps, she made her way from a pediment...
Pamela Dimeler
... to a granite ledge.
Dinko Mitic
Dinko Mitic
She picked up where she had left off, observing her new environment...
... and trying to make sense of it all.
Meanwhile, back at the nest, the remaining eyass seemed oblivious to all the excitement down below. You can see the bystanders on the sidewalk watching F2's adventures.
He spent the day on the nest, and was clearly in no hurry to leave. We were sure that the next day, Saturday, June 22, would be F3's fledge day.
Early the next morning, F1 sat on a nearby lamp pole as if to encourage his older brother to make that jump.
When that had no effect, F1 headed out...
... and put on quite a show
It was hard to believe that just 50 days before, this magnificent young hawk had only been hatched for a few hours!
But every so often, the fierce raptor is replaced by the vulnerable young hawk that it still is. It's amazing to think that both these pictures were taken on the same day.
The fierce raptor that landed on the window ledge then turned around and was beautifully framed by the orchid filled office window.
Every so often she would stand up...
... and look over to the nest where F3 remained.
Several times, it looked as if he would go...
... and T2 made sure he kept his energy up with food drops which F3 fell upon.
T2 also brought in a rabbit to F1...
... who was waiting expectantly on the roof ledge right above the nest.
As evening fell, T2 checked in with F3 on the nest, and up above...
... F2 flew in to join her brother, and there they roosted with nestbound F3 below.
The next morning, Sunday, June 23, they were still there. F1 screamed for a food drop, and F2 peered down at the nest.
F1 so far is the noisiest of the three, and has learned well how to call his parents in with food.
F1 and F2 hung out on the roof of the Franklin Institute, perhaps anticipating the imminent fledge.
... and headed straight and true to the fledge trees...
... where he made a spot-on landing.
Pamela Dimeler did a great job to capture the fledge in this video. Be sure to have the sound turned up for the reaction of the crowd who had waited so patiently for this reluctant flier!
Once F3 reached his tree, he looked for a safe spot to perch...
... and when he found it...
... settled in to observe his surroundings.
He seemed very relaxed about it all.
So the three 2013 Franklin Institute eyasses are airborne, and flourishing. Congratulations to Mom on now sending 15 young hawks off the nest and into the skies, and congratulations to T2 for raising his first offspring. What an amazing hawk family they are.
As always, I must express such gratitude to the many photographers whose lovely images grace this blog. Stay tuned for the next summer adventures with the hawks as the hawkstalkers get into high gear.
Posts
Thank you, Della, for this fantastic fledging tale of the 2013 eyasses! ...terrific detail and, as always, fabulous photos from the hawkarazzies!
ReplyDeleteCheers! Ann and grandson Evan
So glad you and Evan are enjoying this! You are a fledge veteran of this nest!
DeleteThank you
ReplyDeleteThank you
Thank you
PaloAlto, you've been along for the ride for a while now - so glad you're enjoying the blog.
DeleteIndeed I have - I want you to write a book - and include the photos of course... I know it would be complicated to do, but so so wonderful.
DeleteThank you so much, again.
Beautiful post, beautiful photos, beautiful hawks! Congratulations on a great season of hawkwatching (and a blissfully stress-free one at that). Thanks so much for this blog, without which I'd miss so much.
ReplyDeleteIt was amazing to watch all three. Peanut will always be the fan favorite.
ReplyDeleteGreat job on the blog.
Thanks Della for a wonderful capture of our 2013 fledges! What a wonderful outcome to a year that started with such uncertainty. Thanks also to our wonderful hawkstalkers, photographers, FB posters and chatters that all go into a successful year. I'm grateful to the Franklin Institute for hosting us again. And, kudos to Mom and the Tman!
ReplyDeleteKAT
Della, This blog is so well done, it is so deeply informed and informative. I always learn something, and am heartened by the way this glimpse we have of the lives of wild birds can help people connect more with the natural world, and notice more. (And completely agree about F1's moniker.) Claire (Cambridge) listed as anonymous because of vagaries of computer.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Claire - really appreciate your good thoughts.
DeleteJust curious - did you go to Cambridge?
Meant to type in Cambridge, MA. Originally from Iowa, where we delighted in the rural hawks. When my mother moved to Philadelphia a few yrs ago, and was beginning to have difficulty remembering how to use her computer, I found the FI hawks nest cam & used it as a successful lure for her--she loved birds. And she loved your blog too.
DeleteThank you, Della, for maintaining this wonderful blog, and huge kudos to all the photographers. Amazing, all of it. I was first made aware of the Franklin Institute hawks by a neighbor of mine, now sadly deceased. When I read about the hawks, I not only get to share in their wonderful world, I am also reminded of my dear friend, and a second thank you for that.
ReplyDeleteYear after year, we take such joy in these hawks, and the community of hawkfans is now deep with connections. So glad, Carol, that your friend lives on in your enjoyment of the hawks.
DeleteThanks for the lovely tribute blog, Della - it really is appreciated.
ReplyDelete*themedicatedsheep*