From left to right: Leonardo and I check each other out
on the roof of the Delaware Building in downtown Muncie, IN; Jeremy Whitted
and Cheryl Fisher, a graduate student at Ball State University, get
Scorpio and Rose ready to be placed in their hack box (hack
box is pictured on far right); Al Parker, a wildlife biologist for
the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, makes some last minute preparations
to the release site. The falcons were covered with towels to keep them calm
as they were prepared for release. The hack box was used as a shelter and
feeding area for the birds (they were fed frozen quail) during their first
few weeks of learning to fly and hunt.
Doug "Schlitz" Hohman, Ashley Walls, Dr. Tom Morrell
(faculty advisor of the Ball State University Chapter of TheWildlife Society),
and Janey Fink (from left to right) pose with Manitoa and
Pleadies shortly before the release.
Doug "Pabst" Hohman (holding Manitoa) and Janey Fink
(holding Pleadies) show off their favorite raptors.
Cheryl Fisher and I with Leonardo (green paint) and Rose
(red paint). This photo shows the different colored paint that was used
to mark each bird. Each falcon's forewing was painted a unique color to facilitate
identification of different individuals during their first few months of flight
in Muncie, IN.
Pleadies takes flight from the Delaware Building in downtown Muncie,
IN.
Scorpio warms up in the sun while watching unsuspecting pigeons
in the distance…
Scorpio flaps his wings in an attempt to gain enough lift to take
his first flight!
Rose, the first of our released falcons to master flight, touches
down on the Delaware Building (Muncie, IN) in patriotic fashion on the 4th
of July.
Dakota thrills the crowd of people below with a speedy "fly-by."
When diving for prey, Peregrine Falcons can reach speeds in excess of 200
miles (>320 km) per hour!