Falcons lay eggs in nest. Eagles lose one. And what happened to Flash and Elaine?

SOUTH BEND — The peregrine falcon nest atop the downtown County-City Building bears 2 brownish eggs that could hatch successful the adjacent month. As viewers tin spot done a unrecorded in-nest camera, they are being nursed by astatine slightest 1 newcomer to this woody box.

That comes with some immoderate bittersweet and hopeful quality for 2 of the nest’s anterior occupants.

Meanwhile, the bald eagles nest astatine St. Patrick’s County Park has suffered 1 loss.

Here’s what we know.

What’s up with the eagles nest?

The eagles nest astatine St. Patrick’s has gone from 3 eggs, laid successful precocious February, to conscionable 2 now. One of the eggs from the nest broke connected Friday, March 21, and it appeared to beryllium unviable (not ever going to hatch), according to Brett Peters, who monitors the unrecorded in-nest camera for the University of Notre Dame.

The 2 different eggs astatine St. Patrick’s inactive person a accidental to hatch successful precocious March oregon aboriginal April.

Whatever happened to Flash?

As for the falcons, Tribune fans volition beryllium bittersweet to perceive that Flash, the antheral who fathered chicks successful 2023 and 2024, was recovered dormant connected a roadworthy successful northwest Indiana successful August 2024. He seemingly was brought to an carnal infirmary successful Porter County, Ind.

We learned this from Mary Koher, a unpaid with Soarin’ Hawk Raptor Rehabilitation Center northbound of Fort Wayne. She said the halfway has been tracking Flash’s whereabouts since helium was calved from falcon parents successful downtown Fort Wayne’s nest.

She confirmed Flash’s destiny with a biologist with the U.S. Geological Survey.

Flash archetypal appeared successful the South Bend nest successful 2022, showing up successful a benignant of mating (or love?) triangle. Peace, the antheral for the anterior 4 years, didn’t amusement up that spring arsenic Flash took over. And the returning female, Maltese, recovered an intruder pistillate who was trying to instrumentality implicit aft Maltese had laid her eggs.

None of the eggs successful 2022 hatched. But 2 chicks hatched successful some 2023 and 2024, each 4 of them the offspring of Flash.

Whatever happened to Elaine?

Elaine, who was Flash’s girl and 1 of the falcon chicks that hatched successful 2023, has been trying to transportation connected his bequest connected 2 fronts.

Elaine has been recovered arsenic an big visiting 2 antithetic nest boxes successful 2024 and presently this year. One of those nests is connected Great Spirit Bluff overlooking the Mississippi River adjacent La Crescent, Minnesota, and the different is crossed the stream and a fewer miles distant connected the U.S. Bank gathering successful La Crosse, Wisconsin. Bird camera watchers astatine the Bird Cams Around the World person been tracking Elaine’s appearances astatine some nests.

Who’s successful the South Bend nest now?

Bird camera watchers astatine BCAW study that the antheral successful the South Bend nest is banded (C/78) but unnamed. He was banded successful 2022 astatine a nest astatine Grand Valley State University successful Grand Rapids, wherever helium seemingly hatched. That makes him a newcomer.

The pistillate successful the nest is unbanded and likewise is unnamed, conscionable arsenic past year’s pistillate was.

When volition the eggs hatch?

Experts person said that it typically takes 28 to 32 days for eggs to incubate earlier they hatch. In South Bend’s case, that depends connected precisely erstwhile these eggs were laid.

For comparison, past year’s eggs were laid betwixt March 21 and 25, past hatched connected April 27 and 28.

How bash they place these falcons?

The quality astir some Flash (banded arsenic M/52) and Elaine (U/09) were confirmed due to the fact that of the banding that regularly was done connected South Bend’s falcon chicks. Their numbers spell into a database that alert vertebrate watchers tin way arsenic the raptors look elsewhere.

See communicative and photograph gallery: Two South Bend falcon chicks banded and named. Welcome, Skip and Elaine.

But the astir yearly banding successful South Bend stopped successful 2024 due to the fact that the authorities started to propulsion backmost connected backing for it, apt due to the fact that of caller priorities since falcons had improved connected Indiana’s database from “endangered” to “special concern” successful 2013, according to Brad Bumgardner, enforcement manager of the Indiana Audubon Society.

Find columnist Joseph Dits connected Facebook at SBTOutdoorAdventures or 574-235-6158 or [email protected].

This nonfiction primitively appeared connected South Bend Tribune: Falcons laic eggs successful South Bend nest eagles suffer 1 successful Notre Dame camera