Peregrines released

Hey,

Sorry for the late post! The Peregrine Falcons, Ted and Zenith, were released early Monday morning, August 2nd. The door to the release box was opened before dawn to allow the birds a stress free departure. Zenith left first at around 6:30 a.m. He made a circular flight over the area and landed in a tree behind Lover's Leap. He stayed there for most of the day. Ted was a little more cautious and ventured first onto the release door/platform and eventually hopped down to the rock cliff just below the box. He played around for a while and finally made his first flight at 10:30. He also made a cautious circular flight and landed in a tree not too far from the release site. He moved a little throughout the day, but stayed within a half mile of the box. They were fitted with leg bands and radio transmitters before release and we have been able to keep track of their movements. Both birds are still in the area. Ted is still near the hack site, perhaps on a very Peregrine-looking set of cliffs within a 1/4 from the box. Zenith has been spending much of his time on the Lookout Valley side of Lookout Mountain near Covenant College. We have been leaving food at the hack box in case they are not successful in the hunt. We hope they will both spend more time in the area before leaving and will survive to set up nesting territories in the area in a few years. We wish them well and thank Rock City for their support in this project.

Dale and John