Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Peregrine Falcon Webcam Returns for 2014



Anyone who pays even slight attention to the bird life in Amherst is sure to have seen our resident pair of peregrine falcons at some time in the last twelve years, as they nest every spring atop the W.E.B. Du Bois Library at UMass Amherst. I've been spotting them over the past few weeks swooping over the traffic on Route 116 between Amherst and Hadley. But now, even if you never travel through our town, you too can watch this nesting pair courtesy of the live "falcon webcam" made possible by the UMass Amherst Facilities Planning Division, the Office of Information Technology, the Libraries' Systems and Web Management Department, MassWildlife, and the Friends of the Libraries. I have to admit it's thrilling to see them "up close and personal," although there's nothing quite like seeing them in flight, diving (they can dive from great heights at up to 200 miles per hour) and swooping for prey over the nearby farmland.

UPDATE (As of April 16): Four eggs in the nest, parents sharing incubation duties. Blustery, snowy morning.

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