Love is in the Air for the Pittsburgh Peregrines
- The Heights of Courtship

Mid-winter begins the breeding season for some of our raptors (hawks, eagles, falcons, owls), and early February is the time for city dwellers in Philadelphia, Harrisburg and Pittsburgh to watch for the courtship ritual of the endangered peregrine falcon. The breeding cycle for the peregrine begins in February and ends in late June. Although peregrines generally pair for life, each year the male and female synchronize their breeding calendars by participating in courtship. Peregrine falcon courtship involves both aerial acrobatics and rituals at the nesting site. Wide circling flights are made by male and are often punctuated by steep dives of high velocity. Vocalizations are often made with both adults cackling at each other. Courtship feeding is also a pair-bonding event, which involves the male capturing a prey item (a bird) and presenting it to the female. Cooperative hunting appears to also increase at this time. Meanwhile, the female peregrine has become more intensely focused on the selection of a nesting site and increasingly frequents that location. She also explores potential spots for egg-laying and creates a bowl-shaped depression, or "scrape" in the loose material of the anticipated nest. The pair often meet at the proposed nesting site, especially as the courtship period progresses. These meetings include much chirping and squeals, along with a head-down bowing ritual, with one or both falcons pointing with bill at the nest scrape. Finally, mating takes place on numerous occasions, often at or nearby the nest.

In Pittsburgh, Western Pennsylvania Conservancy has formed partnerships to provide and protect two city aeries through partnerships with building owners at the Gulf Tower in the downtown section and the University of Pittsburgh's Cathedral of Learning in Oakland. The Conservancy-enhanced ledges high on these buildings are dedicated to a pair of peregrine falcons at each location, and much of the courtship activities take place on, or adjacent to, the tops of these skyscrapers. Passer-bys are encouraged to look and listen upward at these sites over the next month.

An exciting new contest is underway
Guess when the peregrines at Gulf Tower and Pitt will lay and hatch their eggs and win an as yet to be determined exciting prize.

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