No updates at this time as to the fate of the juvenile male. At this point in their development, they are starting to wander far from the nest site and spend much more time on their own. By the fourth week after fledging, many birds red-taisl are nearly entirely self sufficient. People are reporting seeing red-tailed hawks downtown near the nest site, but I am unable to tell from their descriptions whether it is the young male from this nest site. Young red-tails are dispersing alll over the city so even if people do identify a hatch year bird, their is no guarantee that it is the bird that we have been watching. There is not reason to assume bad things have befallen him...this is just the way it is with birds.

It has been a very big week however in the bird world:

In Wyoming, PacificCorp (an Oregon based company) was fined more than $10 million for electrocuting birds of prey on their power lines. This is an unprecedented fine and reflects both the number of birds killed on these lines and the fact that utilities have known for decades that they needed to upgrade their lines to protect birds. More than 232 eagles have dies on their lines in Wyoming since January 2007.

The Obama Administration vacated (eliminated) two Bush Administration decision that would have dramatically rolled back protections for Spotted Owls and our ancient forests.Secretary of the Interior Salazar described the Bush Administration decisions as "legally indefensible."

For the fourth time in the last month or so, somebody drove up and down our beaches running over flocks of birds. Seems like this had become a new sport in Oregon and Washington. I will be traveling to Washington DC this week to continue to work on Audubon's legislation that would upgrade this type of activity from a Class B Misdemeanor to a Felony. DC in August...yuck...but it is worth the trip.

Hope you all are enjoying the summer!

Bob

Obviously not the ending anyone was hoping for. I know that it is tough after you all have been tracking these birds for so long...since they were eggs. I do still get regular reports about red tails being sighted flying in the vicinity of the nest, although it is not entirely clear whether it is the parents or the sibling. I'll try to get don there this week to see if I can spot him. The first year of life is very challenging for most birds including birds of prey and the post fledging period is the most hazardous part of the process. To a large degree this is true regardless of whether they are located in the city or on more rural landscapes. I know that doesn't necessarily help...It is just to say that we have tried to let raptor cam be an unedited look into the lives of a pair of local red-tails. Sad endings are sometimes part of the story. I appreciate all the folks who have been tracking this bird and who sent kind thoughts over raptor cam.

Bob

There were some questions about birds and fireworks--specifically whether fireworks disturb nesting birds. The answer really varies from case to case and species to species. Most birds find a spot to roost at night and then stay put regardless of what is happening around them. Birds are at a huge disadvantage to nocturnal predators such as coyotes and great horned owls. If they start moving or flying about they make themselves all the more visible. Generally they roost in places that reduce their silhouette such as up against a structure or the trunk of a tree. They may be a little stressed by the explosions, but generally they are just going to hang tight and wait it out. It is hard to say how differently a bird might perceive fireworks from say thunder and lightening. We do occasionally see nestlings jump prematurely during firework displays. This my be a "startle effect." I don't tend to worry too much about fireworks on urban landscapes ---primarily I worry when the fireworks are either very close to a designated natural area or in close proximity to imperiled species. Several years ago I got to monitor the peregrines that nest in the Interstate Bridge to determine whether they were disturbed by the massive Vancouver fireworks display. The birds showed no discernable response but we did get to watch a good show.

For those looking for a relatively cool place to be in the city today, Forest Park is beautiful. The temperatures are probably 20 degrees lower than the urban grid. The Audubon Sanctuary on Cornell Road is open all weekend with miles of trails.

One of the questions raised was whether her brother was likely to also be infected. We don't know. I saw him flying a week or two back and he looked great, but then so did she. There is no reason to think that just because one sibling came down with a serious infection, the other one did as well. They are moving about on their own right now and probably are not sharing food. However, even if they did share the same infected pigeon, the fact is that they have almost certainly been exposed to trichinosis dozens of time already since they hatched. More often than not, they are going to show either no symptoms or very minor symptoms. Just because one gets a raging infection does not mean that the other will as well, even of they shared the same infected meal.

This is our busiest time of the year at the Audubon Care Center and she is on of more than 60 animals currently being treated. We are particularly heavy on raptors---some of our other patients right now include a bald eagle, peregrine falcon, harrier, and several barn owls, great horned owls, kestrels, and red-tails.

The picture is a bit awful...

She is in very poor condition...a far cry from when we had her last. She is suffering from a protozoan infection known as trichomoniasis. This is a disease that is very common in pigeons and it is not uncommon for hawks, especially young hawks, to pick it up when they prey on pigeons. Many hawks fight off the infection and are fine, but in some cases, the infection can become quite severe. Trichomoniasis manifests itself as a white cheesy plaque in the mouth and throat. In severe cases it can eat away at the surrounding tissue, fill the crop and digestive track and inhibit breathing and swallowing. This is a very nasty infection and the bird has lost a couple of hundred grams since we saw her last, probably about 1/4 of her body weight. The infection goes up into the roof of her mouth and appears to extend all the way up into her right eye which is very swollen. Her exam this afternoon was very limited---we focused on getting fluids into her and stabilizing her. Tonight she was standing and we started adding some calories to her diet. She will spend the night in an intensive care unit. Tomorrow our vets will give her a full work-up and see what can be done.

The men have not yet been charged, but if past enforcement of bird related crimes is any indication, these men will escape with little more than a slap on the wrist. In theory they could be charged with fines of up to $15,000 per bird and six months in jail under the Federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act, but prosecutors and courts have been very hesitant to provide severe penalties even for the most egregious bird related crimes. One of the reasons for this is that under federal law even the most egregious bird related crimes are a class b misdemeanors---by definition "minor infractions." We have watched time and time again while crimes like this one--deliberate, sadistic killing of protected birds--drew extensive press coverage and community outrage, only to have prosecutors and courts settle for a scolding, a bit of community service and perhaps a little fine.

This is why Portland Audubon is working with Congressman DeFazio to update the nearly century old Migratory Bird Treaty Act to treat the most egregious crimes as felonies. The bill is currently moving through congress and is headed for mark-up. Passage of the bill is no guarantee that prosecutors and courts will step-up and treat these crimes with the severity that they deserve. However, it would send a very strong message that congress wants these types of crimes taken more seriously and it would give prosecutors a powerful new tool to use when appropriate. Oregon took a big step in this direction last week, increasing fines associated with raptor related crimes and making second offenses felonies under state law. However, the crimes described above occurred in Washington and did not involve raptors ---we need to improve the federal protections as well so that all species of native birds receive adequate protection regardless of where they occur.

In the meantime, keep an eye on this case. Hopefully I will be proven wrong.

This week the Oregon House and Senate came to agreement on House Bill 3089 which will increase penalties for wildlife crimes. The bill was a joint effort of Audubon, the Oregon Hunters Association, Oregon Trappers Association, Oregon Anglers, Trout Unlimited and the Native Fish Society. Special thanks to Senator Jackie Dingfelder and Representative Brian Clem. The bill increases penalties for a variety of wildlife related crimes including illegal taking of wildlife and illegal introductions of non-native wildlife. With regards to birds of prey, civil penalties for illegal taking of birds of prey have been increased from a pathetic $50/ per bird to $2000-$5000 depending on the species. Also repeat offenders who commit a second crime involving illegal take of birds of prey can now be charged with a felony. This is a good bill that brought together a wide array of groups to support increased protections for wildlife. It was a top priority of Audubon during this session. We are working with Congressman DeFazio that would also increase penalties for illegal take of protected bird species at the federal level.

Both the PBDE bill and the Wildlife Penalty bill are expected to be signed by the Governor in the next couple of weeks.

Deca-PBDE is a chemical used in many materials as a flame retardant. The problem with PBDEs are that when materials break down they are released into the environment and have been linked to detrimental neurological effects, thyroid effects, hormone effects, developmental effects reproductive effects and possible carcinogenic effects. PBDEs are showing up in women's breast milk and in wildlife populations worldwide. Of particular concern was the increasing amounts of PBDE showing-up in species such as peregrine falcons and osprey which have only recently recovered from the impacts of another persistent environmental toxin, DDT.

Oregon joins several other states and several European countries in banning this chemical. There are safer and cost effective alternatives already available. Many companies have already begun phasing PBDEs out and there was no significant opposition to this bill from manufacturers. In fact the only real opposition was organized by the chemical industry itself. Supporters of the bill included a wide array of conservation organizations but also Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, Washington Department of Ecology, Oregon Department of Public Health and most notably, the Oregon Firefighter's Council.

The Bill was championed in the House by Representative Haas and in the Senate by Senator Dingfelder. This is a big win for people and for wildlife!

The harassment can be quite dramatic with sometimes dozens of crows flying around, cawing and dive bombing the birds of prey. They will follow the hawk for perch to perch until it departs altogether. It can be quite a ruckus. It is often east to find hawks by listening for squawking crows. Crows are not alone in this type of behavior. Many bird species, even very small ones will try to drive predators from the area by harassment and mobbing behavior.

I always tell people who come out to watch us release rehabilitated birds of prey that the bird is likely to get harassed by crows as soon as we set it free, Crows have a knack for finding birds of prey that are discombobulated such as a hawk that has just been released back to the wild.It can be completely silent when you first let them go...and then a few seconds later you hear the first "caw"...and within minutes there are dozens of crows flying in from all directions to join into the fray.

There is no need to worry about the hawks however. This mobbing behavior is really just an annoyance. The crows usually keep their distance and are satisfied when the hawk leaves.

A friend of mine once told me a story of watching a lone crow harassing a red-tail off a fence post. The crow flew up beside it and began "cawing" from a few feet away. This went on for quite some tome until the hawk lazily lifted off and began circling up in to the sky. The crow followed and the two climbing birds eventually grew to be dots in the sky and the crow calls became fainter and fainter. Finally he lost sight of them altogether. A few minutes later the crow drifted back dwon alone and landed on the same fence post. My friend watched wondering what had become of the hawk when suddenly the red-tail cam hurtling down out of the sky and ripped the crow of the fence post. The hawk took his tormentor to a nearby perch and proceeded to pluck and eat his capture. Turnabout is fair play!

If all goes well, this is the way it should be for several weeks. You will see the hawks individually and in groups. The young will be seen flying together and dogfighting to practice their skills. The young will increasingly try to hunt for themselves--they do this instinctively--but the adults will also continue to provide them with food. You may see the adults forcing the young to chase them for a bit before giving over food---biologists believe that this helps the young develop skills that they will need to effectively hunt on their own. You may also see begging behavior known as "flutter gliding" where the young where they drop and spread their tail and bend and lower their wings below horizontal. Biologists believe that this may be a behavior that has developed to differentiate begging youngsters from aggressive competitors. As time goes on the young will venture further and further from the nest area and spend more time on their own. By late summer they will be fending entirely for themselves.

For folks interested in getting out in the field and watching hawks, an osprrey nest in South Waterfront offers great viewing opportunities. Osprey (once known as fish hawks) often nest on man made structures including channel markers and utility poles. In 2007 a pair of osprey took up residence and raised young on a utility pole along the South Waterfront Greenway. The nest was removed and the pole was capped after the nesting season due to hazards created by the proximity of the nest to the electrical equipment. Osprey have strong fidelity to their nest sites and return year after year and sure enough they did return to find their nest site no long accessible. Over the past year we have worked with PacifiCorp, South Waterfront Residents and Zidell Marine to offer the osprey a new nesting location. In early spring Zidell constructed a new pole and platform and within a couple of weeks the osprey returned from their wintering grounds in Mexico and took-up residence. They are currently raising at least one young in the nest. Go down to the South Waterfront Development (the big glass skyscrapers at the south end of Portland, walk to the river and look north. The nest is at the end of the greenway. Should be great viewing opportunities for weeks to come as the parents hunt and bring in fish to their nest.

The fledglings by the way are a boy and a girl. They are actually pretty close in size making it hard to tell gender over the camera, but their weight and foot size are diagnostic..so we have one of each.

We watched from the ground for awhile after the release. Mom remained in the area but did not enter the nest. It may take her a little while given the strange events that transpired this afternoon. However, she will eventually resume feeding.

The following are pictures of the second fledgling during examination and banding this afternoon:

I know folks are starting to tune our as there is less and less to see on Raptor Cam. I just want to say that I have really enjoyed writing this blog and working on this project. It has been a huge pleasure to tune in everyday and read the thoughtful positive comments that have been posted. I appreciate all the kind words that have been written.

I also want to express my thanks to Frank Mungeum and KGW. They have done a great job managing the technical end of this project. Page Beardsley who owns the building on which the hawks nest has been fantastic to work with---she gives us access whenever we need it and actually works with us year round to make sure that building activities are schedules in a way so as to not disrupt the birds. The building tenants have also been great to work with--ViaLanguage which leased the offices next to the nest has moved, so we will be working with a new tenant next year. Finally I want to express my appreciation to an anonymous donor who paid for the upgraded camera last year---If you are tracking Raptor Cam, your contribution is much appreciated.

As for next steps, I am working with Frank to extend Raptor Cam year round. Our hope is to move it from site to site and highlight a variety of different wildlife events. Right now we are working on putting a camera on a pair of osprey that are nesting at South Waterfront. We have also talked about putting a camera in the fall on the Chapman School Swifts. We have also talked about putting a camera in one of our wildlife center flight cages so that folks could watch critters as they recover and move toward release back to the wild. Finally we are looking for ways to upgrade raptor cam next year--perhaps adding sound or other features. Please reply and let us know if those types of things would interest you or if you have other ideas.

I will keep posting for at least the nest couple of weeks as we follow the hawks through the fledging process. I will let you know this weekend how the release of the injured fledgling goes.

Again thank you all--it was very cool to see the virtual community that formed around raptor cam and I really enjoyed reading your thoughts and questions. I end with a big thanks to the birds for letting us peer into their lives for the third year in a row!

Best,

Bob Sallinger
Conservation Director
Audubon Society of Portland