A tiny white chick pecked its way out of an egg Sunday afternoon (17 May 2009), the first offspring to emerge in a Peregrine Falcon nest in downtown Boise. By Monday morning, two more chicks could be seen in the nest. One egg remains unhatched.

The growing falcon family can be observed via a webcam at
http://www.peregrinefund.org/webcam2009.asp

The first of the four eggs was laid 10 April. The nest box is on the 14th floor of One Capital Center, 10th and Main streets.

The project is a cooperative effort by The Peregrine Fund and the Idaho Department of Fish and Game, with camera and web hosting supplied by Fiberpipe. Monitors were installed in the lobby at One Capital Center, courtesy of Oppenheimer Development Corporation, for passers-by to observe the birds.

On Sunday evening, the adults could be observed feeding the hungry chick. The adults take turns protecting the chicks and keeping them warm. 

Once an endangered species, the Peregrine Falcon was restored through the release of thousands of captive-bred young by The Peregrine Fund. The population had been decimated by DDT, a pesticide that thinned the eggshells of many types of raptors, including the Bald Eagle. The Peregrine Falcon was removed from the Endangered Species List in 1999 when there were 1,650 pairs of falcons known to be nesting in the Lower 48 states. Numbers of Peregrine falcons have increased steadily since then. Current numbers are hard to determine because most states monitor a small sample of their total population.

Between 1974 and 1999, more than 6,769 captive-produced Peregrine Falcons were released to the wild in North America. More than 4,000 were raised and released by The Peregrine Fund. 

For more information, contact:

Erin Katzner

Director of Global Engagement

Main Phone:208-362-3716

Direct Phone:208-362-8277