March 18, 2008

Welcome to the 2008 RaptorCam Blog. This blog will feature periodic updates about the raptorcam red-tails as they progress through their nesting cycle.

This year the hawks are nesting one floor down from where they nested during 2007. They began building the new nest in January and began laying eggs around March 8th.

This year they are incubating three eggs, one more than in 2007.

Red-tails typically lay from 1-4 eggs and the eggs are laid approximately 48 hours apart. The birds can begin incubating the eggs as soon as the first egg is laid or they can wait until all the eggs in the clutch have been laid. If they begin incubating on the first egg, then the eggs will hatch 48 hours apart (known as an asynchronous hatch). If they wait until the final egg has been laid, then all the eggs will hatch simultaneously.

There is lots of food around this nest site (pigeons and rats) and the parents are experienced so there is a good chance that they will be able to provide for three hungry mouths to feed.

Photos: Daily slideshow of nest

Both of the parents take turns incubating the eggs. Switch-offs can occur at anytime but rarely will one bird be on the nest continuously for longer than 4 hours at a time. The incubating parent will also stand up every few hours and turn the eggs. This is critical for proper development.

Incubation will last between 31-35 days. We expect the eggs to begin hatching around April 10th. It will take another 41-45 days for the young to attempt their first flights. During this short six week period the nestlings will grow to be as big as their parents!

In recent weeks the parents have demonstrated some territorial behaviors. Red-tails pick their nest locations in part to protect their young from ground predators. While human activity on the ground is unlikely to bother the birds, they are sensitive to activity in the airspace surround their nest, particularly activity in places where they are not used to seeing humans.

In order to minimize disturbance we encourage people to observe these birds from the ground or on RaptorCam. Leaning our of windows (and into the hawks airspace) from the buildings surrounding the nest site is discouraged as it might provoke a territorial response. It is an amazingly cool thing that we have these beautiful birds nesting in the middle of our city. Please enjoy them and also respect their wildness!

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