Last week in a note on Ohio-birds I expressed my uneasy reaction to human
introductions of Peregrine Falcons into new areas.  I made specific
reference to n.w. Ohio, where Peregrines nesting in downtown Toledo
regularly make the rounds of all the good shorebird habitat in the region.
Although I didn't specifically say this, the implication was that humans had
introduced Peregrines into Toledo.  However, the fact is that Peregrines
began nesting in Toledo on their own.  Humans provided the nesting sites, in
the form of tall buildings, but the falcons arrived under their own power to
set up housekeeping there; they started nesting on the Commodore Perry Hotel
in 1988 and have nested in downtown Toledo ever since.

I received some good information from Donna Daniel, a biologist with the
Ohio DNR - Division of Wildlife, who has done great work with Peregrines and
a variety of other species statewide.  Donna commented in part:  "Peregrines
as a species have adapted to nesting in urban areas on their own.  With or
without agency releases these birds would be increasing in numbers in our
metropolitan areas simply because the habitat exists for them:  tall
buildings, bridges and other human made structures mimic rock cliffs."

My correspondence with Donna led me to refer again to Roger Tory Peterson's
classic book Birds Over America, published in 1948, which includes a whole
chapter on Peregrine Falcons.  Peterson wrote:  "In both Europe and Asia,
Peregrines nest on cathedrals, temples and old castles. It is appropriate
that they still nest on the tower of Castel del Monte and other castles of
Frederick II of Hohenstaufen ...  It was obviously only a matter of time
before Peregrines would take up residence in New World cities.  In winter,
pairs frequent the towers of such cities as Boston, Albany, Philadelphia,
and Washington, while New York's canyons harbor a dozen or more."  Peterson
also reported that the species had been nesting on the Sun-Life building in
downtown Montreal since 1940, and that by 1948 they were also nesting on
buildings in New York, Philadelphia, Harrisburg, Baltimore, and probably
Jersey City.

Remember, this was more than 60 years ago, and the Peregrines were well on
their way to becoming standard urban birds all over the east.  What happened
next was that the whole eastern population disappeared, undoubtedly as a
result of the effects of DDT and other persistent pesticides, during the
1950s and 1960s.  If not for that episode, it's very likely that the falcons
would have started nesting in Ohio's cities on their own, decades ago, and
this would be a moot discussion.

As it stands, we have some urban Peregrines that introduced themselves, and
some that were placed there as part of the Midwest Falcon Recovery Program.
But relatively few of the latter.  Captive-raised young falcons were
released in only three Ohio cities, and only from 1989 (after the wild pair
had established their presence in Toledo) through 1993.  The Division of
Wildlife continues to monitor the population closely, and there is excellent
information on their website at http://ohiodnr.com/wildlife/dow/falcons/  ,
including a map showing all the nesting sites in the state (there were 28
territorial pairs under observation in 2009, and they fledged 63 young!).

The Peregrines on the 41st floor of the Rhodes State Office Tower in
Columbus represent a special case.  Thanks to a nestcam and ledgecam
installed by the Division of Wildlife and linked to their website, these
birds are now watched by people from all over the world.  I have no doubt
that these falcons have captured the imagination of many urban Columbus
residents who would otherwise have little interest in nature.  Donna Daniel
writes a regular blog about the activities of this falcon nest site, and
it's well worth reading:   http://ohioperegrinefalcons.blogspot.com/

Finally, some posts on the listserve have noted the Peregrines' proclivity
for dining on birds like cuckoos and woodcocks, which to me seems
interesting but not alarming.  Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Black-billed Cuckoo,
and American Woodcock may be hard to see but they are certainly not rare
birds, and there are undoubtedly more killed every year by cars or window
collisions than by our handful of urban Peregrine Falcons.

Kenn Kaufman
Oak Harbor, Ohio

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