Peregrine Falcons
Background
Scientists find three Peregrine Falcon chicks in a nest during the 2007 survery and place markers on them.
Peregrine Falcons are among the many bird species that were impacted by high DDTs contamination in the southern California marine environment. This project was developed to monitor the natural recovery of the peregrine falcon on the Channel Islands. This program monitors the distribution, number of pairs, reproductive success, recruitment, foraging behavior, and dispersal of Peregrine Falcons on the Channel Islands. An essential part of this program also includes contaminant analysis of eggs that didn’t hatch and eggshell measurements. The Montrose Setttlements Restoration Program (MSRP) funded a Peregrine Falcon survey on Catalina Island in 2004 as part of the restoration planning process. In 2007, the first comprehensive Peregrine Falcon monitoring effort across the Channel Islands was completed and another monitoring effort is planned for 2012.
Peregrine Falcon Project Updates
During surveys in 2007 on all eight Channel Islands, biologists visited 35 Peregrine Falcon territories. Twenty-five territories were active with resident breeding pairs, including 7 pairs on San Miguel Island, 8 pairs on Santa Rosa Island, 7 pairs on Santa Cruz Island, 2 pairs on Anacapa Island, and 1 pair on Santa Barbara Island. Also in 2007, a total of 16 pairs successfully hatched eggs, producing 35 young. As part of the effort, eggshell thickness was analyzed for any eggshell fragments and four fail-to-hatch eggs were also analyzed for DDT contaminant levels. During future monitoring efforts, biologists will continue to collect eggshell fragments and fail-to-hatch eggs to look at trends in contamination over time. MSRP is planning to conduct a second monitoring survey in 2012.
