Falcon chicks ready for test flights

Officials are warning people to be on the lookout for crash landings now that two peregrine falcons nesting on top of a building at the University of Calgary have hatched three chicks.

Between July 12 and 16 the young birds are expected to take their first flights off the ledge of Craigie Hall practice runs that often result in injury, according to wildlife experts.

University officials are asking any passers-by who find an injured fledgling falcon to contact one the following agencies:

• Alberta Fish and Wildlife at 403-297-6423.
• Inglewood Bird Sanctuary. Call the City of Calgary at 311.
• And if a falcon has to be picked up after hours: Campus Security 403-220-5333.

The female began laying eggs in late April, and by May 10 Pat Young, a biologist with Alberta Fish and Wildlife, had counted four eggs, the university reported on its peregrine falcon home page.

One of the eggs turned out to be infertile, but the three remaining chicks are in good shape and are being fed and cared for regularly by mom and dad, the website said.

Alberta Fish and Wildlife officers banded the chicks for tracking purposeson June 22.

The univeristy's falconwatchers haveset up a live link for people to observe the birds on the internet, however the feed is sporadic because of some ongoing technical problems, they said.

"I have had the distinct feeling that they are not so keen on being filmed, as one or more often peck at the camera or the microphone," Elli Jilek said on the website, adding that they sometimes hide behind the camera.

Peregrine falcons are listed as a threatened species. The birds have nested at the university for several years.