Greetings, Tweets --

On the afternoon of 18 April 2004, I was at Nisqually Delta (Pierce
County, Wash.) with 3 other observers to monitor the timing of the
arrival of waterbirds and shorebirds as the tide waters covered the
Nisqually Tribe's tideflat habitat restoration site. At ~1700, when
the restoration tide flats were well inundated, and ~400 Green-winged
Teal had arrived to dabble along the water's edge, a Peregrine Falcon
also arrived. Preoccupied with counting the waterfowl, we did not see
the falcon until it had stooped on the waterfowl flock, hit a teal,
and swiftly climbed back up above tree-top height. I did not see the
strike, but by amazing good luck Daniel Hull, who was meticulously
counting the raft with a spotting scope, had his scope trained exactly
on the birds where the falcon struck, and clearly saw the Peregrine
hit and take a teal. At this time all I was sure of was that a raptor
had taken one of the ducks.

Again aloft, the falcon was soaring and circling over the Nisqually
River and riparian stands when I got on it with my spotting scope, and
clearly saw it as a Peregrine carrying a small duck. During the next
few minutes the falcon proceeded to pluck the teal 3 or 4 times while
in flight: the Peregrine would pause, set its wings to glide, drop its
head, lift its legs with the prey, pluck out a mouth-full of feathers,
straighten out, resume flight, turn its head aside, and toss the
feathers into the breeze where they slowly fell apart.

When I lost sight of the Peregrine behind a row of riparian
cottonwoods and alders I ran along the river-bank dike to a clearing
but did not again sight the bird.

The weather at the time was 15oC under 70% cloud cover with a Gentle
Breeze to Moderate Breeze from the south.

About 15 minutes later while we were walking south on the Nisqually
River dike we saw a Peregrine perched in a riparian cottonwood but
were uncertain if it was the same bird or another.

I know of no other reports of a Peregrine plucking its prey while in
flight, and am interested to know how common (or uncommon) this is.


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Douglas Canning
Olympia, Washington, USA
dcanning at nisquallyestuary.org
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