Welcome back, feathered friends!
A pair of peregrine falcons is nesting again in the CTV Kitchener microwave tower and wasted no time in laying their eggs.
By May 8, all three had hatched, revealing three fuzzy-looking chicks. Twenty days later, the chicks were brought down from the tower to be named, banded, tagged and weighed.
They've been named Kawhi, Jupiter and Hemera.
On June 12, volunteers with Fledge Watch started keeping an eye on the birds as they prepared to test their wings with their first flights.
You can watch everything they’re up to live, 24/7 on the Falcon Cam.
Disclaimer: This camera features live activities of animals in their natural habitat. Viewer discretion is advised.
Last year, Lucifer and Mystery became parents to three chicks, but their nesting season wasn’t without its tribulations.
Lucifer, the male, suffered a fractured wing part way through the summer, leaving Mystery to feed and protect the chicks herself.
He had surgery to repair the fracture and was released back into the wild after months of rehabbing. Less than a week later, he was found dead in west Kitchener.
The fledglings also took some time finding their wings.
Mercury, one of the new additions to the family, was first to fly but had to execute an emergency landing on nearby Pine Street. It took him some time to regain his confidence, but he was eventually successful.
One of his siblings also 'went missing,' but was eventually found hidden in their nest by a group of volunteer falcon watchers.
A spokesperson for the Canadian Peregrine Foundation says he thinks that the female falcon is Mystery, who has chosen to nest here because she knows it. They aren't sure who the male is.
