The third of five young peregrine falcons that hatched this spring from the nest on the Rachel Carson State Office Building in Harrisburg has been found dead at Dulles International Airport near Washington, DC. The apparent cause of death was contact with an aircraft.

Peregrines are usually welcome visitors at airports because they tend to clear the airways of other birds, reducing the occurrence of dangerous collisions. Sometimes, however, they find themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time and become victims as well.

"Clearly, peregrines live a high-risk existence and surviving their first year of life is their greatest challenge," DEP Director of Environmental Education Jack Farster said. "Mortality now stands at 60 percent for the 2006 Rachel Carson Building juveniles. This is not an unusual outcome. If the surviving female- “Yellow” and male- “Green” make it through their first year, they will likely establish their own breeding territories adding to the recovery of this still endangered (state-listed) bird of prey."

In mid-August, the red-banded juvenile female was found injured near Safe Harbor, along the Susquehanna River in Lancaster County. Despite the best efforts of wildlife rehabilitators, her injuries were too severe and she was put down.

In July, the silver-banded male, the smallest at the time of banding, was found dead along a nearby railway in Harrisburg, apparent l victim of electrocution.

There are two surviving young falcons from this year's clutch -- the green-banded male and the yellow-banded female.

10/20/2006