Falcons make big Ohio comeback

PORT CLINTON – It wasn't that long ago that seeing a peregrine falcon was a rarity in Ohio.

Like bald eagles and other raptors, the falcons had lost habitat, and pesticides thinned their numbers. They were an endangered species in Ohio and across the country.

Then the Ohio Department of Natural Resources started taking falcon chicks born in captivity and placing them in nests across Ohio, where falcon pairs raised them as their own.

The falcon population skyrocketed, and today, they are found across Ohio, including the Ottawa County Courthouse in Port Clinton and St. Joseph Catholic Church and the Miles Newton Bridge in Fremont. There are more than 40 territorial pairs in Ohio.

"This is a great success story for the species," said Jennifer Norris, a biologist with the ODNR's Division of Wildlife. "The population is doing fantastic."

Peregrine falcons have recovered so well that they will be removed from the state's threatened species list in July. They were removed from the state endangered list in 2001 and the federal list in 1999, Norris said.

On Thursday, ODNR workers banded the three falcon chicks that hatched this spring in a nest box at the Ottawa County Courthouse clock tower.

They were the only falcon chicks banded in Northwest Ohio this year, and the state will not band any in Ohio next year, Norris said.

"It's not necessary anymore," said Bill Roshak, another Division of Wildlife biologist. "The population in Ohio is probably doing the best of any Midwest state. They don't need the data anymore."

The ODNR will continue to monitor the falcons and repair existing nest boxes, he said.

This the second year the Ottawa County Courthouse falcons had chicks, and both broods were banded. The two tags put on their legs — on federal and one for Ohio — will help track their travel and mortality.

Two of the chicks were female, and one was male. The females are larger than the males and have wider legs, Norris said. The oldest chick was estimated to be 21 days old, she said.

The chicks squawked while ODNR officials fitted them with their bands but were quiet as they were placed in a box and later taken back up to the nest.

Meanwhile, their parents squawked loudly and flew around the clock tower, clearly agitated. When Roshak, wearing a hard hat for protection, pulled the chicks from the nest, one of the adults buzzed about 5 feet over his head.

The ODNR has not received any information on what happened to the four courthouse chicks born last year, Roshak said. Their mother, Tricity, is likely the mother of both groups, but biologists believe a different male is the father of the latest brood.

Tricity's mate from last year, Judge, suffered a broken wing and was sent to Medina for rehabilitation. While he was gone, another male moved in.

A pair of falcons also has been hanging around St. Joseph Catholic Church during the past couple years. That pair has been identified as Gwenis, a female hatched on the Canadian site of the Ambassador Bridge between Detroit and Ontario, and Magic, a male who hatched at an Ohio steel mill.

Roshak recently checked out a report of a falcon hanging around the Miles Newton Bridge over the Sandusky River in downtown Fremont. He isn't sure whether that falcon is Gwenis, Magic or a different bird.

Although the falcons are no longer unusual in Ohio, they still are crowd pleasers and have a following in Port Clinton and Fremont.

"It's great to have these birds here," said Ottawa County Commissioner Jim Sass, a former ODNR worker who assisted in banding one of the chicks Thursday.

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Peregrine falcon facts

•They are raptors, like bald eagles and ospreys.

•They mostly eat other birds, which they catch mid-flight.

•They can fly and dive at 200 mph in pursuit of prey.

•They prefer rocky cliffs and high areas and are often found on tall buildings.

•They are about the size and weight of a crow. Females, which are bigger than males, usually weight about 2 pounds.

•They are territorial and will push other birds out that they perceive as threatening their area.

•There are more than 40 territorial pairs in Ohio.

•They were on the federal endangered species list until 1999.

•They were on the Ohio endangered species list until 2001 and are considered threatened. The threatened designation will be dropped in July.

Source: Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife officials