New England Bird of the Day

Here’s a new feature for you! Each day — unless I forget or am otherwise preoccupied — I’ll post a photo and quick facts about a different New England bird. Check in daily!

Be sure to check out Bird Calls every Saturday from 3 to 4 p.m. on WSTC/WNLK AM1400/1350 (in S. CT and nearby NY) or www.wstcwnlk.com from anywhere in the world (where there’s Internet access, that is.) Thanks for checking in.

Let’s start with the peregrine falcon. I enjoyed very much watching a falcon pair raise two youngsters near my place of work in southern Connecticut. The youngsters grew fast and they have all left the area already. They return for short visits, though, which is nice.

Above is a parent feeding a chick. The chick was a week or two away from being on its own. The adults were banded, but I haven’t been able to make out the color code yet.

Peregrine falcons are large and powerful, yet were almost wiped out because of DDT use. In fact, the Connecticut population has been reintroduced from elsewhere. As far as I’m concerned, they were here before, so why not bring them back?