Richard Swanston Delta , B. C. Canada. Dec. 11 , 1998. Peregrine
Falcon Activity
at Night Time
In the winter of 1996 while walking back from birdying the dike along
Boundary Bay.
I stopped to admire the nighttime flight of Hundreds of Waterfowl
crossing over the Houwelling Greenhouse Nursery's at the end of 64th
Street and the Boundary Bay Dike.
At 287,232 square meters one of the largest in Canada with lights that
on a clear night can be seen 20 miles away . I saw a Peregrine Falcon
soaring high in the lights it was seen to stoop on several ducks
bouncing off them , after a time it chased something into the darkness .
I' ve returned there several times on near calm clear nights in the
Winter of 1997 [ Jan. , Nov. Dec. ] and have observed the Falcon stoop
and capture Shorebirds
Dunlin and or sanderling on several occasions ripping them apart in mid
air consuming them in flight clearly seen in the lights . On Nov. 18,
1998. I returned at 17:38 with Sunset
at 16:27 And again saw the Falcon this time with some company. Although
neither bird was seen to have a successful hunt one did drive off the
other. In early Dec. I returned again and they were back soaring well up
high and difficult to see no successful hunts were seen and they seemed
to be spending more time fighting off each other then hunting although
there was a few attempts . Previous hunts centered on shorebirds that
cross the lights to feed in the fields around the Bay in the evenings .
They tend to fly in small groups of 5 to 12 birds at night and seem
disoriented as they cross the lights further separating thus making
themselves vulnerable to attack . One kill was a house finch that with a
group of 18 or so birds crossed the lights and was quickly dispatched.
With the amount of Green Houses increasing around the
Cascadia Area
I thought it important to post this information . Green houses have an
impact beyond there
destruction of Open Farm field Habitat . So important to Wintering
Waterfowl , Raptors ,
Heron's , Owls , Songbirds . And as research into the nighttime use of
fields by Dunlin
Plover's et. By the Simon Fraser University Ecology Chair using Radio
and Night vision equipment is showing us that Farm Field's are critical
for there Winter survival . Thank You Richard Just think if we don't
think habitat Everything will be a rare bird alert !!!