Pitt's First-Ever Peregrine Banding
June 11, 2002

Sorry, your browser doesn't support Java(tm). The peregrine falcon chicks born on Mother's Day 2002 at the University of Pittsburgh's Cathedral of Learning were banded by a representative of the Pennsylvania Game Commission at 11 a.m. Tuesday, June 11.

A pair of peregrine falcons-an endangered species in Pennsylvania-nested in the Cathedral of Learning this spring after Western Pennsylvania Conservancy staff and volunteers built a shelter for the couple. A check of the nest on Mother's Day, May 12, revealed an hours-old chick and three eggs that were probably about to hatch. In addition to being banded, the chicks were examined by a veterinarian, weighed, and "sexed" to determine their gender (three males, one female).

On hand for the banding, which was done to be able to identify the birds, was::

· Beth A. Fife, wildlife conservation officer from the Pennsylvania Game Commission;
· Charles Bier, director, natural heritage program of the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy; and
· Robert Wagner, clinical associate professor of veterinary medicine at the University of Pittsburgh's Department of Lab Animal Resources, who will serve as the attending veterinarian.

Much credit for the safety and development of the Pitt Peregrines goes to WPC Volunteer Kate St. John, who has kept an ongoing vigil on her way to and from work each day.