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ORIGINAL POST BY JUANITA ~ Tue Nov 25, 2008 12:42 pm
How Rita & I got involved with the Columbus falcons started in 1989 when the first falcons were hacked off the Rhodes Tower (Horus, Top Gun, Frightful, B.G. & Freedom).
Watching the hacked fledglings, then Bandit & Aurora's first chicks - that was something. Everyone downtown remarked about what fabulous parents Bandit & Aurora were. When two of their 3 girls first fledged, a green garbage bag flew up into the air! Bandit attacked that garbage bag! Aurora was in the nest box with the other girl who had not fledged. Bandit attacking that garbage bag in defense of his 2 girls elicited oohs and aahs from the crowd of admirers!
The ODNR attempted 3 times to capture Bandit in order to band him and take blood samples. They never caught him, despite their best efforts and very long, patient waiting. He was a light gray falcon with a full helmet (or hood). He was very tolerant of people - he would come and sit on the ledge and watch whenever ODNR personnel were on the nest ledge working on the cam. He would dive-bomb on banding days though!
I thought it was great that Bandit's sons and daughters (Pinta, Roosevelt, Leopold, Buckeye, Wind, Erie, Hunter, Maverick & Alpha) were out there raising families of their own! I emailed the University of Minnesota's Raptor Center about Bandit not being on the list of most productive male falcons - I got a response from Dr. Harrison (Bud) Tordoff who told me Bandit was not included because he was not banded. Dr. Tordoff asked me if I would like him to send me his entire database of the Midwest Peregrine Falcons! I had to get the File Maker Pro software (for like almost $400) so I did. Dr. Tordoff emailed me his database!
I'll never forget the June 2005 day I emailed Dr. Tordoff a cam image of Victory & Orville's first 2 babies: Sonic and Shadow (looking right into the ledge cam!). I also included a family tree of those 2 chicks' ancestors. I told Dr. Tordoff these 2 falcons chicks were the first ones for Columbus since 2001! Dr. Tordoff immediately answered: "Congratulations, Mama!" (which I assumed he meant for Victory). He was very pleased with the family tree and even more pleased I had done it from his database. He was such a great scientist - the driving force behind the reintroduction of the Peregrine Falcons in the Midwest and my emails to him, I simply addressed him as "Bud". I received an email this summer from Dr. Pat Redig (founder of the University of Minnesota's Raptor Center): "Hi, Juanita - I'm writing to inform you, regretfully, that Bud Tordoff passed away on Wednesday, July 23rd." I replied: "Dr. Tordoff's legacy lives in all the Peregrine Falcons now nesting successfully not only in the Midwest, but other parts of the country and Canada." Dr. Redig answered: "Indeed! Nicely said."
Rita and I had retired from the telephone company (Ohio Bell/Ameritech/SBC/AT&T) December 30, 2005 after 32 years of service. We started fledge watching full time. When Victory was injured September 2006, Donna Daniel asked if we would be willing to help the Ohio Wildlife Center rehab her. Of course, we said YES! We've taken Victory several times in the back seat of our Cavalier from the Clinic to the flight cage. Along with Victory was an unbanded juvenile female. I had the ODNR band her (black 89 over green E) and we got to name her Nike (after the Greek Goddess of Victory). We purchased whole quail from the same breeder who supplies quail to Bob Anderson and the Raptor Center! It would come whole and frozen. Rita would warm the quail up in the microwave for Victory and Nike - they loved it!
There were many 'battles' involved in getting Victory and Nike more care. Victory did go to a husband-wife falconers March 2007 and was released Aug. 22, 2008.
Nike also went to a falconer - he abused her and she ended up with her wrists of her wings bloody and open raw down to the bone. She lost so much weight. After 15 weeks with this falconer, Nike was returned to the Ohio Wildlife Center and Rita & I returned to help her. We went every day and purchased quail for her. Her wounds closed up and she put on weight. We were also feeding the 8 red-tailed hawks and 2 great horned owls that were in the same flight cage with Nike. We also feed the Cooper's Hawks housed in a smaller flight cage close by.
Laura Jordan of the Medina Raptor Center took Nike November 10, 2007 and cared for her and continued her rehab as she needed to be in a flight cage by herself. Rita & I were actually 'fired' as volunteers by the Ohio Wildlife Center because we had been in contact with the ODNR about getting Nike moved to a real Raptor Center. I had been in email contact with Laura and she immediately agreed to take her. Many things were involved here, too numerous to write about, but we really fought hard to get Nike to Laura Jordan. Nike was successfully released June 21, 2008. Rita & I consider her 'our baby' because she was a 2006 fledgling when she was found injured so we knew her from when she was still a young age. By the time Laura took Nike, her juvenile plumage was molting to her adult plumage. Our Cavalier's license plate is: NIKE 89E.
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