26th Nov '23
Peregrine hunting along OMR - eBird Trip Report
What an interesting morning with Ramraj, Anitha and Sagarika.
Pictures here.
Three Peregrines,
on three towers,
up high
in very urban locations.
We craned our necks,
Peered through our binoculars
and yes there they were!
Ferrari Falcons
sitting motionless
on nondescript ledges. Noiseless
Pigeons and parakeets
which one would it be today,
at the end of that famous dive
would breakfast be green or grey?
*****
An Osprey and a Black Shouldered Kite
We saw them too.
And those fabulous Blue Tailed Bee Eaters
Shimmering in the sun.
Green marsh. Sky so blue.
The waders (Ruffs most likely) - a large flypast
Probably even more skittery
because of the soaring Osprey.
*******
27th Oct '23
An odd looking shadow on the Leela Business Towers had me scurrying for the binoculars at MRC Nagar.
Even through those dimmed, old lenses I could see that it was no crow, no pigeon, but a falcon.
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| It sat motionless in that pose, from 130 in the afternoon, until 6 in the evening. I wondered why this peculiar and precarious position at the edge? She preened, cleaned her talons and feathers, but did not move an inch. |
.
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| Sanjeev hurried down and took this picture - yes Peregrines get that kind of attention. |
At 605pm Vismaya (as she has been named) , took off, circled the building and flew off south.
 |
| Oct 31st - seen again by Sekar, while I was away at Bangalore. Same perch, same position. |
And then the rains came and Deepavali came...and we have not seen it on this side of the building since.
The peregrine is a cosmopolitan hunter — even found nesting on skyscraper ledges in New York City and other metropolises, from which vantage point it picks up pigeons. The shaheen has been observed doing the same in Mumbai. Having selected a victim, the peregrine, with its fastback wings gives swift chase, with the pigeon twisting and turning to avoid being caught. If the falcon fails to capture its prey, it will rise to its “pitch” (the highest point) and then fold its wings to its side and whistle down like a missile straight at its victim in a “stoop” or high-speed dive. The fastest stoop has been clocked at 390 kmph, faster than most Formula 1 racing cars, which peak at around 320 kmph. A special membrane protects its eyes from the rush of air, and the bird will often dive beneath its victim and then rise up and grasp it in its talons. Or it simply attacks from behind, the force of the impact often killing the bird mid-air. Watching a peregrine stoop is a never-to-be-forgotten experience. This guided missile of a bird was once in serious trouble in the West when the rampant use of DDT and other organochlorine pesticides caused their numbers to plummet. Thanks to conservation efforts, the birds seem safe for now.
MRC Nagar unknowingly plays host to both - the Shaheen and the Peregrine!
Next goal is to somehow catch it at its hunt
