Falcon Cam
| The Evanston Public Library FalconCam:
Spring 2008 —Peregrine Falcons Nest at the Library Again The falcons once again returned to nest at the library in 2008. The same pair that nested here in 2007 succesfully raised four chicks, three of which survived fledging. | |
 June 16- Neal ventures away from the nest. |
2008 Saved Images:
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Update — 7/2/2008 A short video of Neal. Also, Brigid was found to have no broken bones. She will have ample opportunity to hone her flying skills at SOAR. | |
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Update — 6/25/2008 Brigid will be taken to the Lincoln Park Zoo hospital for x-rays today, and then over to SOAR (Save Our American Raptors) for rehabilitation. She ended up on the ground twice in the last twenty-four hours, once at Chase Plaza yesterday afternoon and once on Church and Orrington in front of the library in the wee, small hours of this morning. | |
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Update — 6/23/2008 It appears that Neal, Brigid and Rebecca have succesfully fledged. They have been spotted flying and landing on various rooftops and other high perches around downtown Evanston. Sadly, Mistress Hussey died flying into the Chase Bank building on June 16. | |
 June 16- Brigid back in the flower box at the library after an early flight attempt. | |
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Update — 6/3/2008 A short video of the banding. | |
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Update — 5/30/2008 Today the nice folks from the Field Museum and Shedd Aquarium banded the falcon chicks and figured out we have one male and three females [Correction: Mistress Hussey turned out to be male, so there were actually 2 males and 2 females. He was presumed female at the time of banding because there was some doubt as to gender, and Mary Hennen of the Field Museum always errs on the side of female to prevent any chance of a still growing leg becoming constricted by the smaller male band.] The chosen names were:
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Update — 5/21/2008 The chicks will be banded and named on Friday, May 30 at 11:00. | |
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Update — 5/9/2008 All four eggs have hatched. | |
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Update — 5/6-7/2008 It appears that three of the eggs have hatched, possibly starting the evening of May 6. | |
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Update — 4/5/2008 Four eggs. | |
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Update — 4/3/2008 Three eggs. | |
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Update — 4/1/2008 Two eggs. | |
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Update — 3/29/2008 We have an egg! The nesting pair (as yet unidentified, but quite possibly the same pair as last year) have been showing interest in the same nesting site as last year for some while; this evening the first egg appeared. The mother should lay two or three more over the next few days, at which point the pair will start sitting consistently. | |
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Falcons at the Library  Banding, 2004 Peregrine Falcons nested on the Library for the first time in the summer of 2004. That year there were four eggs, but shortly after the eggs hatched the female broke her wing leaving the male to raise the chicks on his own. Only one chick successfully fledged, the other three succumbed to malnourishment and disease. The female with the broken wing received veterinary treatment and now appears in nature education programs.  Chicks in the nest - 2005 In 2005 the same male returned to the Library with a new mate and three chicks fledged successfully. In the fall of 2005 the male broke his wing; despite treatment the wing did not heal and he had to be euthanized. 2005 marked the debut of the FalconCam. The Evanston Review had an article about the falcons: "Falcon family thrills a rapt library crowd" (Evanston Review, June 30, 2005)  Dashiel, Robinson and May on banding day. 2006 was another good year. Four eggs were laid in mid April, three chicks hatched in mid May and all three fledged successfully between June 27 and 29. For a short while they were seen around Evanston, but they soon dispersed, and their current whereabouts are unknown. On Monday June 12, 2006 staff and volunteers from the Field Museum banded and took blood samples from the chicks, and they posed for a photograph. One of the three chicks is female and two are male. They were named:
 In 2007, there were four chicks, three males and one female. The birds were named:
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