GAME COMMISSION BUREAU OF WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT RESEARCH DIVISION PROJECT ANNUAL JOB REPORT

PROJECT CODE NO.: 06715

TITLE: Peregrine Falcon Research/Management

JOB CODE NO.: 71501

TITLE: Peregrine Falcon Investigations

PERIOD COVERED: 1 July 2003 to 30 June 2004

COOPERATING AGENCIES: Academy of Natural Sciences in ; Appalachian Audubon Society chapter; Canadian Peregrine Foundation (CPF); Dauphin County Wildlife Rescue; Delaware River Port Authority; Pennsylvania Department of Transportation; New Jersey Division of Fish, Game, and Wildlife; Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP); Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission; Conservancy (WPC); Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area.

WORK LOCATION(S): Statewide

PREPARED BY: F. Arthur McMorris and Daniel W. Brauning

DATE: 7 February 2005

Abstract: The long-term management goal of this project is to reestablish a self- sustaining peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus) population in Pennsylvania. Temporary employee Matt Sharp and several volunteers monitored peregrine nests across the state. Peregrines successfully nested at 11 sites, in Pennsylvania, and a pair was observed through the season at a twelfth site. Successful nesting at a cliff site was observed for the first time in over 40 years, at a site in Montgomery, Lycoming County. A sub-adult pair was observed at a second cliff site, in Northampton County. Nesting success and statewide productivity were remarkably high in 2003, continuing last year’s upward trend. Eight band recoveries were obtained during the past year involving birds banded in Pennsylvania. All 4 birds fitted for satellite telemetry in 2002 continued to survive and transmitters were functioning as of 30 June. One additional nestling was fitted with a satellite transmitter in 2003 but that bird was found dead in December 2003. The public was invited to attend peregrine banding events at the Rachel Carson State Office Building (RCSOB) and at the in .

OBJECTIVES

1. The long-term management goal is to reestablish a self-sustaining peregrine falcon population in Pennsylvania.

2. The recovery levels required to upgrade the peregrine’s state status from endangered to threatened, outlined in the revised Pennsylvania Recovery and Management Plan for the peregrine falcon (Brauning and Hassinger 2001), are a self-sustaining total of 12 pairs (62% of the recovery goal), productivity of at least 1.25 young fledged per pair, and at least half of known pairs nesting successfully.

METHODS

Biologist aide Matt Sharp and several volunteers monitored peregrine falcon 71501 2

nesting activity in the Philadelphia area during the 2003 nesting season. Video cameras linked to live Internet connections, again monitored the nest site at the Rachel Carson State Office Building (RCSOB) in Harrisburg (Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) 2003) and the Gulf Tower and in Pittsburgh (Western Pennsylvania Conservancy (WPC) 2003). The WPC monitored nesting activity in Pittsburgh and a volunteer reported nesting activity on the Cross-Valley Expressway Bridge in Wilkes-Barre and in Pittston, Luzerne County. Satellite telemetry was deployed on 1 additional young, from the Gulf Tower in Pittsburgh, in a cooperative project with the Canadian Peregrine Foundation (CPF). Daily locations were received and mapped on PGC, CPF, and DEP Web pages.

RESULTS

Peregrines successfully nested at 11 sites in Pennsylvania during 2003. A sub-adult pair was observed at another site, for a total of 12 pairs. New sites confirmed in 2003 include the first 2 cliff nest sites observed in Pennsylvania in over 40 years, one of them successfully fledging young and the other occupied by a sub-adult pair. The number of young produced in Pennsylvania, 35, was the highest since the inception of the recovery and management plan, and continued the upward trend set in 2002. The sustained high number of nesting pairs contributed to this outcome and good productivity at bridge nests also contributed. Young were produced on the RCSOB in Harrisburg, the Three Mile Island (TMI) nuclear facility in nearby Middletown, the Gulf Tower and Cathedral of Learning in Pittsburgh, the Girard Point and Walt Whitman Bridges in Philadelphia, the Pennsylvania/New Jersey Turnpike Bridge in Bucks County, a bridge in Wilkes-Barre, a bridge in nearby Pittston, and the newly-discovered cliff site in Montgomery, Lycoming County (Table 1). In addition, a pair on the Betsy Ross Bridge nested successfully on the New Jersey side of the river (Table 1). A summary of nest sites and productivity since 1993 is given in Figure 1 and Table 2.

2003 Nest Site Descriptions

Harrisburg.-–Four young fledged from the nest on the RCSOB. The site continues to be monitored by a live video camera accessible on the Internet (DEP 2003), and public was invited to the banding session on 4 June.

Middletown.--Nesting activity at the TMI nuclear power station was documented by local staff. The nest is behind a concrete structure near a cornice on the #1 reactor containment building, approximately 125 feet from the ground. Three young were produced (2M, 1F). The site was inaccessible for banding, but both males were captured when they fell from the ledge to an enclosed space between buildings. One was banded (Table 3), and both were photographed and released. All 3 fledged successfully and were observed through the summer.

Pittsburgh.--The same pair continued to nest in a tray on the Gulf Tower in . Western Pennsylvania Conservancy (WPC) personnel coordinated with building personnel to monitor this nest, including deploying a video monitoring camera linked to the Internet (WPC 2003). Four young, 1 male, and 3 females, were banded with the assistance of PGC personnel from the southwest region on 1 July (Table 3). One of these birds was fitted with a satellite transmitter. Three of the 4, including the bird fitted for satellite telemetry, were recovered before the end of the year (2 injured, 1 dead; Table 4). This site continues to be the most productive location in the state, having 4 young in each of the last 6 years (Table 1) and 43 young total since nesting began (WPC 2003).

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The pair at the ’s Cathedral of Learning in the section of Pittsburgh nested again in the nest tray placed in 2002 by Charles Bier. This pair was monitored by a crew of local enthusiasts led by Kate St. John. The pair produced 4 young, which were banded on 3 June (Table 3).

Wilkes-Barre.--Bob Wasilewski monitored the pair nesting on Susquehanna River Bridges in the Wilkes-Barre area. The pair continues to move its nest location: originally found nesting at the Cross-Valley Expressway in 1999, the pair moved their nest to the Pierce Street Bridge in 2001, and then to the Market Street Bridge in 2003. Two young were observed in the nest in early June, but only 1 fledged successfully. Young were not banded because the site was determined to be inaccessible.

Pittston.--Last year, Bob Wasilewski confirmed the presence of recently fledged juvenile peregrines in Pittston, about 7 miles north of Wilkes-Barre on the Susquehanna River. Bob found the nest this year on the Route 92 (Fort Jenkins) Bridge and the nest was visited for banding. Three young were banded on 5 June (Table 3) and were observed in the Pittston area through the summer.

Downtown Philadelphia.--No peregrine activity was documented in downtown Philadelphia. The female has not been seen since the end of the 2001 season and is believed to have perished.

Philadelphia-area Bridge Nests.--Nesting was successful at 4 Philadelphia-area bridges: the Pennsylvania/New Jersey Turnpike connector Bridge in Bucks County, the Betsy Ross Bridge (on the New Jersey side), the Walt Whitman Bridge and the Girard Point (I-95) Bridge. A total of 10 nestlings were banded by PGC personnel at 3 of these bridges, and nestlings at the Betsy Ross Bridge were banded by Kathleen Clark of the New Jersey Division of Fish, Game, and Wildlife (Tables 1 and 2). A single bird continues to be seen at the Benjamin Franklin Bridge, where nesting has occurred in previous years; and activity at the Commodore Barry Bridge is uncertain (Table 1).

Montgomery, Lycoming County. –The highlight of the 2003 peregrine falcon season was the discovery of the first successful cliff nest in Pennsylvania in 45 years. A third-hand report of peregrine falcons in the vicinity was followed up by Michael Kuriga, a licensed falconer in Lycoming County, and Daniel Brauning. The nest site was found on a ledge near the top of a 180-foot cliff overlooking the Susquehanna River near Williamsport, where peregrine falcon nesting occurred prior to 1940. A nestling was observed at the nest on 20 May and was banded on 30 May by D. Brauning and other PGC personnel, with local enthusiasts in attendance (Table 3). The adult male proved to be a bird banded by D. Brauning and hacked in Williamsport in 1996. It is likely that nesting had occurred undetected for several years at that site, since 2 juveniles were observed just 2 miles from the site in June 2000.

Delaware Water Gap.--A pair was observed frequenting a cliff in the vicinity of a historic peregrine falcon nesting site at the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. However, 1 of the pair was immature, and nesting activity was not observed.

Recoveries

Eight recoveries of birds banded in Pennsylvania were obtained during the past year. Two were recovered dead, 1 in Michigan and 1 in New York. Two recoveries were of birds nesting successfully: a male raised in captivity by ZooAmerica, banded as a juvenile, and hacked in Williamsport in 1996 was found breeding successfully at a cliff nearby in Montgomery; and a male banded as a 71501 4

nestling in Wilkes-Barre in 2000 was found breeding successfully 7 miles away in Pittston. One bird was recovered for a second time: a female banded at the Gulf Tower in Pittsburgh in 2001 was found trapped behind a hospital sign in Scarborough, Ontario, in the spring of 2002, and released. The same bird was observed again in July of this year and identified by her color band at Niagara Falls, Ontario. A male banded at the nest in 2002 was found injured in September 2003 in Rheems, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, only 20 miles from its banding site in Harrisburg. Three of the 4 birds banded at the Pittsburgh Gulf Tower nest on 1 July were recovered later in the year. Two were injured, and the third, carrying the only satellite transmitter deployed this year, was found dead in Grand Rapids, Michigan in December. Table 4 contains details of these and other band recoveries.

Satellite Telemetry

Telemetry data were received from the 4 birds fitted for satellite telemetry in 2002. The young male fledged in Pittsburgh continued to wander widely with readings coming from New Jersey, Virginia, New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Ontario. The last transmission was received on the north shore of Lake Ontario in Ontario, Canada on 24 August 2003. This followed a period of activity in the Hamilton, Ontario area. There is no evidence to indicate if this reflects transmitter failure or death and subsequent loss of the transmitter. The Pittsburgh female continued her primarily east-west movements with location data coming from New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. The transmitter deployed on this bird was the sole battery-powered unit. The battery failed in August 2003, 4 months beyond its expected life, while the bird was in the vicinity of Philadelphia. All attempts by a local falconer to capture this bird have failed. The last telemetry transmission from the Harrisburg male was received on 30 June at the edge of a small airport near Patterson, New Jersey. The fate of the bird and transmitter is not known. The young female fledged in Harrisburg is the only remaining bird of the 4 originally carrying satellite telemetry for which the transmitter is still providing regular location data. She remained (as of mid- October 2003) in coastal marshes of New Jersey near the J. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge. Data continues to arrive daily.

One transmitter was newly deployed to replace the anticipated loss of data from the Pittsburgh female. A new nestling was fitted with a battery-powered transmitter in July 2003. She dispersed to Cleveland, Ohio in early August and was found dead in Grand Rapids, Michigan in December (Table 4).

A full summary and analysis of the telemetry data has been reported (Brauning et al., 2005).

Outreach

Groups were invited to attend peregrine banding events where logistics make this possible, most notably at the RCSOB (see below), the University of Pittsburgh Cathedral of Learning, and the Gulf Tower in Pittsburgh. These are popular events, drawing capacity crowds. Details of outreach activities are provided as follows.

RCSOB.--The peregrine nest site was again monitored with live video Web streaming at the RCSOB in Harrisburg. The Web cam, supporting information, e-mail account, falcon story submission, and related links continue to be one of the most popular wildlife watching Web sites in the world.

Pittsburgh Nest Sites.--The WPC deployed Web cams at the nest sites at the University of Pittsburgh Cathedral of Learning and the Gulf Tower in Pittsburgh (WPC 2003). These allow the public to watch live video Web streaming of nesting 71501 5 activity at these two sites.

Teacher In-service.--DEP and the PGC again partnered to facilitate a spring endangered species education teacher in-service workshop at the RCSOB. In April, 42 Pennsylvania teachers and environmental educators were instructed on peregrine reintroduction efforts, endangered species curriculum activities, and teaching techniques to address urban habitat.

Banding Events.--The falcon-banding event at the RCSOB, for the fourth season, provided the opportunity to follow up on the teacher in-service and allow some of the students to observe the banding of the eyasses with their teachers. About 140 students and teachers from various schools and environmental education centers attended the event. The WPC partnered with the PGC and local schools to invite fifth graders and their teachers to attend the banding at the University of Pittsburgh Cathedral of Learning and the Gulf Tower in Pittsburgh.

RECOMMENDATIONS

1. Nest trays should be placed on any building or bridge where summering adult peregrines are present. Eyasses in bridge girders should be transferred to a suitable nest tray to increase prospects of successful fledging.

2. With satellite telemetry, monitor dispersal patterns of juvenile peregrines from Pennsylvania nest sites.

3. Maintenance and construction on bridges supporting nesting peregrines should be coordinated with wildlife biologists in the Environmental Review Division to assure minimum disturbance of nesting birds.

4. Young should be banded at hack sites and, where feasible, at nest sites.

5. Inspections of historic cliff and potential urban nest sites should be completed at regular intervals, in accordance with federal monitoring protocols.

LITERATURE CITED

Brauning, D. W., and J. D. Hassinger. 2001. Peregrine falcon management and recovery plan. Pennsylvania Game Commission. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, USA.

Brauning, D., M. Nash, and C. Urik. 2005. Monitoring the dispersal and migration of juvenile peregrine falcons using satellite telemetry, final report. Pennsylvania Game Commission, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. 2003. Peregrine Web page. http://www.dep.state.pa.us/dep/falcon/default.htm

Western Pennsylvania Conservancy. 2003. Western Pennsylvania Conservancy Web site. http://www.wpconline.org/peregrine/ 71501 6 Table 1. Number of young peregrine falcons produced in Pennsylvania by nest site, 1993-2003. Number produced per yeara Locations 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003

Ben Franklin Bridge 20S SES 0S Betsy Ross Bridge (NJ) 22+234 b e Commodore Barry Bridge P0 1 P SS?1?? Cross-Valley reloc., Wilkes-Barre SP33142 Delaware Water Gap SP c c c Girard Point Bridge 2 0 0 41 242243 Harrisburg, RCSOB SP PP4444 Montgomery Cliff 1 c c PA/NJ Turnpike Bridge 0 12 P 1 2P223 Philadelphia, City Hall PSPP0 211 SS Phila., Bell Atlantic 1 Pittsburgh, Gulf Tower 22431 444444 Pittsburgh, Oakland 1 S P44 Pittston Bridge 43 TMI, Middletown 13 c c c Walt Whitman Bridge 0 0 0 14 432334

Hacking summary 10 11 23 13 10 1 Number of pairs 65668 81010101212 Young producedd 43897 122018+183335 Fledglings known lost 31541 114421 Post-fledging mortality 2321 13 aWhere no young were produced, “E” indicates eggs were documented, "S" represents a single adult bird observed through the breeding season, "SP" is a sub-adult pair present, "P" is a pair present, but no nesting attempt documented, and a “?” reflects uncertainty of activity. bA young falcon was fostered into the Girard Point Bridge nest. cEggs were pulled for hacking. dIncluding all Pennsylvania and Delaware River nests. eOne of 2 fledglings was transferred to the Williamsport hack site.

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Table 2. Number of young peregrine falcons produced in Pennsylvania by nest site, 1993-2003. Year ‘93 ‘94 ‘95 ‘96 ‘97 ‘98 ‘99 ‘00 ‘01 ‘02 ‘03 Bridge/building pairs 6566881010 10 1210 Cliff pairs 2

Hacking summary 10 11 23 13 10 1 Total number of pairs 6566881010 10 1212 Young produced 43897122018+ 18 33 35

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Table 3. Listing of peregrine falcon band numbers used in Pennsylvania, 2003. Banding Color County Location Date Sex USFWS Band Bandab Color Allegheny Gulf Tower 1 July M 2206-70227 3/E Bl/Gr F 1807-44192 *2/*P Gr/Bl [upside down] F 1807-44193 *P/*3 Gr/Bl F 1807-44194 *P/*4 Gr/Bl T

Allegheny U. Pitt. Cathedral 3 June M 2206-24698 *4/*W Bl/Gr M 2206-24699 *4/*X Bl/Gr F 1807-44184 *H/*4 Bl/Gr F 1807-44185 *H/*5 Bl/Gr

Bucks PA/NJ Turnpike 14 May F 1807-44177 *Y/*5 Bl/Rd F 1807-44178 *Y/*7 Bl/Rd F 1807-44179 *Y/*8c Bl/Rd

Dauphin RCSOB 4 June M 2206-24694 *4/*V Bl/Gr M 2206-24695 *4/*U Bl/Gr F 1807-44188 *Y/*6 Bl/Rd F 1807-44189 *8/*X Bl/Gr

Dauphin TMI Middletown 12 June M 2206-24696 3/B Bl/Gr

Luzerne Pittston bridge 5 June M 2206-70225 3/A Bl/Gr F 1807-44190 *8/*Y Bl/Gr F 1807-44191 *P/*1 Bl/Gr

Lycoming Montgomery cliff 30 May F 1807-44187 *8/*W Bl/Gr

Philadelphia Girard Point Bridge 19 May M 2206-24692 *4/*R Bl/Gr M 2206-24693 *4/*S Bl/Gr F 1807-44183 *H/*3 Bl/Gr

Philadelphia Walt Whitman Bridge 19 May M 2206-24690 *W/*V Bl/Rd M 2206-24691 *4/*K Bl/Gr F 1807-44181 *Y/*9 Bl/Rd F 1807-44182 *H/*2 Bl/Gr

New Jersey Betsy Ross Bridge 15 May M 2206-20271 *8/*C Bl/Rd M 2206-20272 *8/*D Bl/Rd F 1807-37490 *K/*T Bl/Rd F 1807-37491 *K/*U Bl/Rd aNumbers marked with an “*” are in a horizontal position, top to left. bSatellite telemetry was deployed on birds indicated with a “T”. cThis bird had a deformed bill.

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Table 4. Peregrine falcon recoveries during 2003. Banding Recovery Banding Site Year Band Numbers Sex Date Recovery Site Status Williamsport, PA 1996 2206-25639 *G/5 M 17 April Montgomery, Nesting (hack site) 2003 PA successfully

PA/NJ Turnpike 1999 1807-44151 *7/9 F 17 May Roosevelt Dead Bridge 2003 Island, NYC

Cross Valley 2000 2206-24773 X/*L M 23 June Pittston, PA Nesting Expressway, Wilkes- 2003 successfully Barre, PA

Pittsburgh, PA, Gulf 2001 1807-44164 X/*P F 5 July Niagara Alive (sight Tower 2003 Falls, ON record)

Harrisburg, PA, 2002 2206-24685 *W/U M 18 Sept Rheems, PA In rehab RCSOB 2003

Pittsburgh, PA, Gulf 2003 1807-44192 *2/*P F Sept Cleveland, OH Hit building, Tower 2003 in rehab

Pittsburgh, PA, Gulf 2003 1807-44193 *P/*3 F 24 Sept Cincinnati, Injured at Tower 2003 OH airport

Pittsburgh, PA, Gulf 2003 1807-44194 *P/*4 F Dec 2003 Grand Rapids, Deada Tower MI aThis bird was carrying a satellite transmitter.

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Figure 1. Locations of peregrine falcon pairs in Pennsylvania, 2003.