SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. and Ontario – A pair of nesting peregrine falcons is back this spring to raise a family at the Sault Ste. Marie International Bridge. They’ve apparently decided to maintain dual residency, feathering their nest on the U.S. side of the span after nesting on the Canadian side last year.
Karl Hansen, bridge engineer for the International Bridge Administration (IBA), reports that a pair of peregrines has laid three eggs in the U.S. side nest box. It’s not currently known if it is the same pair that has nested on the bridge between the U.S. and Canada for years.
Nest boxes for the peregrines have been installed on the bridge since 2010, placed at locations that had evidence of past nesting activity. Last year, the resident pair of peregrine falcons hatched four chicks. Over the years, the site has been a great success, hatching 39 falcon chicks since IBA staff started counting the birds, Hansen said.
“Since both nest boxes were installed, until last year the birds had never nested in the Canadian box, as far as we’re aware,” Hansen said. “This year, they’re back in the U.S.A.”
Several years ago, the IBA added a video camera trained on the U.S. side nest box, the “FalCam.” The live video stream, which has become very popular, is viewable at www.saultbridge.com/falcam.
