This week the falcon watch and rescue effort by dozens of volunteers will begin as the peregrine falcons nesting on the Rachel Carson Building in Harrisburg take their first tentative steps toward flight.

In the wild a young falcon may end up in a tree or bush, where it can rest before making another try. But in the city the young birds often end up on the tops of parking garages or even on the street, where they are in danger of colliding with vehicles.

The Watch and Rescue volunteers monitor the young birds with binoculars. When a fledgling takes the plunge, the volunteers try to keep track of it. This often means one volunteer scurrying through downtown streets or to the tops of neighboring buildings and garages, relaying information via radio to a fellow volunteer or Jack Farster, DEP’s Environmental Education Director.

Injured birds are generally handled by Farster, though if he is unavailable, willing volunteers may don heavy gloves to wrap the birds in a blanket and deposit them in a box. The birds are examined by experts and either taken back to the nest or treated professionally.

To volunteer for the falcon watch, contact Sandy Lockerman of Dauphin County Parks’ Wildwood Lake Sanctuary at 717-221-0292 or by email to: slockerman@dauphinc.org .

NewsClip: Falcon Watch and Rescue Begins Next Week

6/12/2005