Subject: Return of the "Red Witch"
Date: Sep 30 22:25:10 1998
From: Ruth Taylor - rutht at seanet.com


Ellen Blackstone wrote: "I saw a peregrine tucked up under the center span
of the Ship Canal Bridge today, about 2PM. ...the bird..looked a lot like
"Freeway."

Ellen was the first person to report a sighting of the probable "Freeway" to
the Seattle Peregrine Hotline (654-4423) today; several reports from other
people followed. Thanks, Ellen, for checking the bridge almost daily for the
past week or two, and thanks to all of you who called in reports. She's late
this year; we wondered if she was coming back.
In the gloom tonight, at 7:15, I thought I saw the USFWS band on her right
leg when she turned around on top of the south power tower. After observing
her earlier, prior to sunset, I had little doubt that it was Freeway, back
for her 8th winter here. She's a beautiful bird, and quite different in
appearance from the other "regulars." I've been watching her since the
winter of '91-'92.
She was banded and radio-tagged in early 1992, and about thirty people
followed her from dawn to dusk until she headed north in mid-March. She
returns every fall and leaves in March.
For the past few autumns, there have been other peregrines using "her"
territory (usually second year females), snd she's promptly driven them off.
Hence the nickname "Red Witch." Last March, overlapping with Freeway's
departure, a double banded juvenile female showed up at the Ship Canal
Bridge. She remained in that territory, though she's been spending a lot of
time near the Montlake Fill recently. She was, however, seen under the
bridge a little over a week ago. She's now in adult plumage - a very
heavily barred bird with a full helmet of black feathers on her head.
Will there be a major contest over the territory from the Ship Canal Bridge
to the 520 bridge? Will the ""Red Witch" prevail as in the past or will the
youngster take over? *Please* report any observations of interactions to
654-4423. (Any other peregrine observations are great, too, and greatly
appreciated.)

Ruth Taylor
Seattle WA
<rutht at seanet.com>