I’ve seen a fair number of Peregrine and Prairie Falcons on Antelope Island this winter but this is the only one that hasn’t proven elusive.
1/4000, f/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
I found this juvenile Peregrine Falcon along the causeway two months ago. Juveniles tend to be more approachable than adults and this one kindly allowed me within range. Most of the rocks along the causeway are bright white so they don’t make ideal perches for photography but I appreciate a wild peregrine on any perch, any time.
My friend Mike Shaw said of this bird – “Its eye ring, cere and feet are yellowing up quickly for such a young bird”. Mike really knows his raptors so when he says something about one of them I pay attention.
I’ve mentioned this before on my blog but whenever I get a good look at the nostril cone of a falcon I point it out. Falcons are known for their high-speed flight and peregrines are the fastest birds of all and that fact presents a problem. At those incredible speeds air rushing into the nostrils would make efficient breathing difficult or impossible (some say it might even burst the lungs but this is difficult to verify). So falcons have a cone (baffle) just inside each nostril that disrupts the air flow and reduces the pressure of the air entering the respiratory system. That cone can be seen pretty well in this extreme crop of the previous image.
Early jet engines had the same problem. As those aircraft became faster and faster the engines started choking out because at those speeds the air largely bypassed the air-breathing engine. Engineers found the solution by looking at the nostril cones of Peregrine Falcons. Modern jet engines have a metallic cone in front of the engine to disrupt the airflow and allow the engine to “breathe” more efficiently.
We can thank Peregrine Falcons for that, which is exactly what I did as I looked out the window at one of the engines on my recent flight to Florida. At 35,000 feet and 600 mph I was incredibly grateful that those engines weren’t stalling out…
Ron
Hi! great photo’s so clear and a beautiful bird! Have a special day shooting!
What a lovely bird. Stellar!
Beautiful shots Ron, as usual and I especially like the lesson of the how he can breath at speeds over 200 mph ( as seen on the TV series North America) Would have never known…you really should consider writing a book…including many photos of course! Thanks, Jer
Jerry, If I ever wrote a book at least half of it would need to be devoted to credits to my knowledgeable blog followers who are so generous with their information. 🙂
At 200 mph I’m amazed they don’t get their feathers blown off and end up “naked as a jay bird!”….
Education and delight. Again.
Thank you Ron, and a big thank you to your knowledgeable commentators too.
“a big thank you to your knowledgeable commentators too”
Boy, that’s for sure! Lots of folks would have to pay for an education like this. Thanks, EC.
Hi Ed MacKerrow and all. As a moderator on the Cornell Redtail Hawk Cam Chat, let me share some information about the nasal cones with peregrines and other raptors from another moderator who’s a falconer and a veterinarian. You’re right on target that human aircraft engineers borrowed this idea for jet engines!
Cones in nares: Falcons have a fully ossified (bony) stem in the middle of their nasal opening (nares) to divert airflow so they can breathe in a fast dive, seen here: http://tinyurl.com/ojwhpts However, it’s not adjustable…the cone in their nares is rigid.
Hawks and eagles have a similar set-up but it’s not fully ossified as they don’t dive at such extreme speeds: http://tinyurl.com/qbb4lu7
Ospreys actually have a fleshy nose opening that they can close like a dolphin when they dive underwater for fish http://tinyurl.com/pw9je47 The “stem” acts like dimples on a golf ball and disrupts airflow so they can breathe when flying fast.
I’m not sure why those links aren’t clickable, but you can copy and paste.
As for why some (most?) migrate and some don’t, I think the first determining factor is food availability. If they’ve got an abundant food source, which basically defines a really good territory for breeding, too, they’re less likely to move.
Thanks Laura for the info. This agrees with the response from the falcon expert I know — “that the falcons may not migrate if there is plenty of food”, and interestingly he has observed the adults to have more of a calendar schedule — migrating at particular times of the year, versus juveniles that stick around until the weather and/or food become an issue.
Thanks also for the info on the cones being stationary. That makes sense.
Fascinating info on the cones, Laura – thank you! And I think you’re right that food is often the “determining factor” when it comes to peregrine migration.
Raptors/birds are just far too fascinating–the more you learn, the more you know you don’t know. And sometimes you just gotta say WOW!!
Just another thought…if the adults migrate, that has the POTENTIAL to open up breeding territories? Just a thought–I’m far more conversant with redtails and Harris’ hawks than falcons, despite that a female Kestrel is taking my intelligence to the cleaners now. I’ve also wondered if the juveniles staying later isn’t a lot like human teenagers not wanting to leave home until they absolutely have to leave? Overall, I’ve found that our species are far more alike than different, and kids being kids universally…
I know Jack the Harris’ hawk is loathe to let me get too far away from him. He KNOWS I’ve got the mother lode of food in the vest pocket. He got far too cheeky the other day after a particularly frustrating hunt and grabbed onto my pocket as if to say, “Here, let me help you with that! It’s right here in this pocket!” I have this feeling that I COULD lose him, but I’d have to drive really, really fast to make that happen.
As usual, fantastic photos and information!! The peregrine falcon is not one familiar to me. They are probably around, but I just don’t recognize them. Speaking of migration. A couple of days ago as I was driving north from Dillon, a Sandhill crane flew right across in front of me! As low as it was, I think it has just taken flight. Driving, I could not stop, but did not see another crane. Maybe this one could not make the flight south? Your post is the first thing I read after turning on my computer!!
Jane, It isn’t uncommon for me to see peregrines in the Centennial Valley, which as you know is quite close to Dillon. I most often see them at the dam of Lower Red Rock Lake. Glad to hear that we always have an early morning “date”… 🙂
The only peregrine I’ve ever seen (knowingly) has been that of a falconer friend. You are so very, very lucky to see “a fair number”. I am always interested in details like eye ring, age-related eye, cere and talon color. When I paint one of these birds, I want to get all the details right! My friend Katie Lee firmly implanted that in me. She also guided me to find out what vegetation is in their particular habitat, what they eat (seasonally), what their personality is… as much about my subject as possible….it aint always easy!!!
I always consider myself lucky to see one of the large falcon species, Patty. Photographing one is a huge bonus.
Sure is! For ALL of us…
Super photos Ron. The peregrine looks very relaxed and you captured its image wonderfully. I had read about their nostril cones and how human engineers used this concept in designing the metallic cone. If I remember correctly, the peregrine can adjust its nostril cone to vary the amount of airflow ( I will look for that reference). What intrigues me the most about your images and sighting relates to migration of the peregrines. As you know, they are long distance migrants. The ones that breed further north, migrate further distances to the south — as compared with the ones that breed at southerly latitudes. (the migration routes “leapfrog” each other). I wonder if these Salt Lake individuals are there year round? This would surprise me though. I am part of the peregrine monitoring program in New Mexico and “our” falcons in Northern NM are gone from Oct – Apr. Since you are further north I would expect your local falcons to migrate even further south. ( I wish I could draw a picture of the migration arcs here, hopefully this makes sense). Here is a really neat website on peregrine migration. After studying their migration patterns I look at them with even more respect now — they are amazing birds. http://www.frg.org/track_pefa12.htm (Ok, now you spurred my interest more 😉 ) Thanks!
Thanks for the link, Ed. I read about the falcons listed on the site and noticed only one of them is still transmitting. What an interesting blog concerning her journey this year and how concerning all the logging is in her stop off refugia. I also noticed only a few birds had more than one year of tracking data. Does the transmitter usually stop that quickly or is it more likely that the toll of migration was too great for the individual?
Pam, this link http://www.frg.org/SC_PEFA.htm#tracking_table shows some explanations for the likely reason a particular individual is no longer being tracked. Some reasons are mortality, “did not complete water crossing”, and some look like transmitter failure (i.e. technical). One individual named “Island Girl” has a very impressive migration history as can be seen here http://www.frg.org/track_pefa12_all_combined.htm
I read more on the Cornell Birds of North America site (http://bna.birds.cornell.edu/bna/species/660/articles/migration) to better understand the winter Salt Lake City peregrines that Ron is seeing and am still perplexed by this. I asked the peregrine expert I work for and will report back in what I learn. I am very curious — perhaps because they are juveniles, or they have enough winter food in the SLC area. Very interesting.
Perhaps this not that rare, that is finding Peregrines in the winter in the SLC area… Here is some info from http://falconcam.travelers.com/falcon-faqs.html
“Do peregrine falcons migrate?
Yes and no. Some falcons do migrate and some do not. Peregrines in the more northern climates (Alaska and Greenland) are more likely to migrate during the winter to places that have a milder climate, such as the southern United States, Central and South America. There are some falcons in the Midwest that do not migrate because the winters are not too severe and the food source or prey base remains adequate. Peregrine actually means wanderer in Latin.”
Ed, I suspect that at least part of the reason that we have peregrines during winter is because the Great Salt Lake is saline enough that it’s relatively slow to freeze. That means lots of waterfowl and that means peregrine food. Why leave the larder and expend energy during migration when it isn’t necessary?…
Thanks Ron, this was very good and I learned something new.
For Dick Harlow – the cere and feet turning yellow probably isn’t good or bad – it’s just that the yellowing of these areas is a sign of maturity in some species, particularly falcons. Red-tails for instance keep pale feet and cere unless they eat a diet rich in carotene. These areas also respond to diet, and raptors in captivity who are fed day-old chicks with yolks attached develop deep yellow there over time.
There are diagrams of bird so-called circular breathing you can probably find on line. You might be interested in taking a look, since their respiration is so different from ours. The process takes more than one in and out breath, which is how our system works. My understanding is that the bird’s system is never without moving air, keeping those light bodies oxygenated and buoyant.
Thanks for the info, Sallie. I believe the air sacs in the bones and elsewhere play a significant role in the respiratory process of birds that you describe.
Thanks Sallie for the information. I take it that if a young raptor/falcon feeds on prey high in carotene, their body.or body parts will mature faster? If that is so can we consider a raptor successful or a better than average hunter when their parts are changing color so markedly?
Again thank you.
Echoing what Sallie Reynolds said, and my understanding is the cere/feet coloration is determined largely by their overall diet (rich in carotene or an abundance of small birds) in addition to maturity. I’ve also heard there’s an element involved regarding the regional chemical/mineral composition of the soil (seeds) and water where their prey is eating/surviving, but I don’t have a reference for that. Actually, I’m not sure that part has been studied scientifically, only considered (speculated).
Raptors (and birds in general) are just so darn interesting–everything about them is simply fascinating!
Fantastic shots and very interesting info Ron!
Charlotte
Thank you, Charlotte.
Very good professor – goes to show that one is never too old to learn. Probably should have known this fact about Peregrines, but never did! I know they are fast, seen them on the stoop, but never crossed my mind why they could go that fast. Appreciate the info.
Now, why is it important that the cere, eye ring and feet are turning yellow faster than usual? Is that good or bad?
Dick, As far as I know it’s neither good or bad. That color change is just one of the things that occurs as this species matures from juvenile to adult so “raptorphiles” pay great attention to it.
Beautiful bird and, as always, thx for the education on falcons and planes. 🙂
Thanks, Judy. I’ve presented some of that info before but it’s been a while so I decided to go with it again.
“Breathtaking” Ron!
I love smiling this early in the morning, Nancy. It’s a rare occurrence but your comment made it happen.