Young Falcons Have Left the Nest

09/01/2016

This year’s two female chicks, nicknamed “Sam” and “Ashley,” have left the nest site for good and are now spending their times exploring their surroundings. Both are flying very well and are able to hunt on their own. Eventually, they will leave the Lowell area to find a suitable place to settle down and start their own families. (Last year, one of Merri and Lance’s offspring was spotted in Cape May, New Jersey.)

Sadly, this year’s lone male chick, called “Tiny,” has been missing since July 1. He was last seen on the roof of Fox Hall. Two days earlier, volunteers Imelda Joson and Edwin Aguirre rescued Tiny from the parking lot of a condominium complex along the Merrimack River, and he was brought up to the nest box by Anne Gagnon of the Mass. Division of Fisheries and Wildlife. But when Tiny became lethargic, Joson, Aguirre and Gagnon went back to the roof of Fox Hall to try and take him in for evaluation by a vet. That was the time they discovered he was missing. They looked everywhere, but there was no sign of Tiny. Gina Lague, one of Merri and Chris’s Twitter followers, volunteered to help out, but the search was unsuccessful.

Meanwhile, Merri and Chris continue to hang around the campus.

You can get news updates about them anytime on Twitter @UMLHawkwatch and @Edwelda. Stay tuned for more updates and keep watching!