07-04-2018 The latest antics

7/4/2018

I received a call yesterday and the caller related that one of the young falcons had dropped her lunch and was dive bombing into East Michigan Avenue to try and retrieve it.  So far, traffic had stopped for her, but the caller was concerned about her safety and wondered what could be done to discourage her from diving into traffic.  For those readers who are not Kalamazooan, East Michigan is the major  four-lane east bound street through downtown!  Traffic fatalities are a major cause of death for birds, especially young birds, and I had wondered in the past how birds could get hit by cars so often.  So, now we know.  Removing the lunch would remove any reason to fly into the street.  But, I was not close by and knowing that time was critical, and it would take me too long to get downtown to stop a potential fatality,  I asked the caller if she would be willing to retrieve the dropped “lunch” from the street.  The caller works in a professional office and dresses appropriately for her job, including high heels.  The “lunch” of course, would be a dead pigeon, or other bird.  Thankfully she was concerned about the falcon and did what had to be done.  She reported that the “lunch” had been flattened by several vehicles and the falcon lost interest and stopped diving into the street.  I still can’t believe I asked a business professional to stop traffic and run into a busy street to pick up a dead bird!

Trying to steward these birds for several years has provided numerous reasons to let go of a lot of things – Things like self-consciousness, expectations of a normal schedule or keeping an appointment, squeamishness, and hesitation to ask for help when needed.  The stewardship from the whole community to keep these birds safe and, when needed, alert someone to a problem is heartwarming.  I am always amazed and grateful to all the falcon fans who care enough to take action.  All three juveniles were spotted later in the day and confirmed that all were safe. 

 

Tags: Kalamazoo Peregrine falcons. Peregrine falcon fledgings