TN-BIRDLIST, I am forwarding this report from Keith Watson. He wanted me to reiterate to anyone interested in trying to locate the Peregrines' nest on Greenbrier how difficult the terrain is. However, the Peregrines can be observed fairly consistently from the overlook above the old hack site ( 9 mile hike). Please contact Keith with any observations. Dear All, The following is a summary of the observations and assumptions made regarding the potential of a newly identified pair of nesting American Peregrine Falcons (Falco peregrinus) in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, on the cliff faces of the Greenbriar Pinnacle. Following those sections are a few recommendations regarding the nest confirmation and subsequent monitoring. If this nest can be confirmed, this will be a very significant addition to recovery of the Peregrine Falcon in the Smokies,Tennessee, and the Southern Appalachians. Status of the American Peregrine Falcon Although this species has been delisted by the US Fish and Wildlife Service, that is, removed from the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Species, the American Peregrine Falcon remains: on the Tennessee List of Endangered Species maintained by the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA). on the Tennessee Natural Heritage Program's List of Tracked Species. on the US Fish and Wildlife Service's Birds of Conservation Concern list for each Bird Conservation Region in North America, including the Appalachian BCR (BCR 28). on the US Fish and Wildlife Service's Birds of Conservation Concern for each US Fish and Wildlife Service Region on the US Fish and Wildlife Service's Birds of Conservation Concern for the Nation. History of the Activity on Greenbriar Pinnacle 1984-1986 13 American Peregrine Falcons were "hacked" from the cliffs on Greenbriar Pinnacle 2000-2002 Kris Johnson and Susan Hoyle began observing falcon activity in 2000. Single falcons were observed in February and June of 2001 by Susan Hoyle. From Susan's notes in 2002, "On Sunday, March 10, 2002 Kristine Johnson and I watched a pair of Peregrine Falcons soaring and diving around the cliffs on Greenbrier Pinnacle. They were very close to the old hacking site, but seemed to be interested in a place to the south and east of there, but not visible from the ledge on which we stood." From Susan's notes on May 25, 2002, a pair of birds were observed, one smaller with adult plumage, the other a tawny brown color but with a bright yellow cere and worn feathers. My interpretation of this information suggests the presence of an adult male and perhaps a sub-adult female. From Susan's notes, "I suspect they have nested somewhere up there for two previous seasons (2001-2002)." 2003 March 21, 2003: David and Carol Morris visited the Pinnacle on Friday March 21st via the Cat Stairs approach. He and Carol got close enough to determine that there was one large "whitewash" near the center of the bluffs. Because of time constraints, they could only observe for about 30 minutes and did not see any Peregrine activity. March 23, 2003: Kris Johnson, Susan Hoyle, Martha Rudolf, Pam Munson, and Keith Watson hiked up one of the old manways to just under the PInnacle on Sunday and just past the old Barnes homestead, climbing the slopes to the cliffs (which the group couldn't see well or often because of trees, steep slopes, rhododendron). While at the homestead site area, an extensive whitewash area was observed on one crevice of the rock faces on the more easterly portions of the Pinnacle (this may be the whitewash area that David observed, see attached photo). As the group climbed to the general area, we all heard Peregrine(s)(?) calling, in the vicinity where the whitewash was thought to be. At least one falcon was observed, and it was presumably an adult male that was stooping on a Red-tailed Hawk, actively defending a territory of the eyrie(?). Keith got a good look at it from beneath and believed it to be an adult male trying aggressively to drive the hawk away. It stooped out of sight. Better views of the rock faces were attempted, but the area is rough, steep, and often with thick rhododendron, and a good way to get there was not found. The group heard the calls at least three more times while in the area over a period of about 2.5 hours. These calls were again from a single bird, presumably the male, but cannot be confirmed. Pam saw one bird in the general area but we all didn't get to see it. We did not make it to the rock faces. On our way down, we met with David Morris, the volunteer who has been watching the pair at Duck Hawk Ridge near Alum Cave. We talked awhile and he tried to get to the rock faces opposite the direction we took. He did have a spotting scope with him. He did not make it to the rock faces either, but here is his report. I've taken the liberty of condensing the information. From David: Because the "whitewash" was such a strong indication of peregrine presence, I returned on March 23rd. I was able to get closer for a better look at the bluffs. I ran into Kris Johnson and friends there who were also looking for the falcons. As a matter of fact they had observed an adult peregrine chase a Red tail Hawk from the bluff area, clearly territorial behavior. After Kris and friends left, I proceeded further up to try and get a better view of the bluffs. I heard , what was probably a male Peregrine, giving the creaking call and flying into the bluff area. I lost him in the tree line and didn't see where he landed. During the next hour and a half I moved around several times trying to get a better view of the bluffs. I was unable to confirm a nest site, but realized there are many possibilities there. I did see another "whitewash" behind a small pine tree very near the other "whitewash". After that hour and a half I heard a Peregrine return from my right moving toward the bluffs giving the creaking call and a return call from the bluffs, probably the female. This behavior is consistent with a nesting pair; the territorial protection and the calls that are used when a male brings food to a nesting female. Given these sightings and behavior, I think there is a very good possibility that there is a second nesting pair of Peregrines in the Smokies. We have confirmed that the pair at Little Duck Hawk Ridge are incubating eggs now, and the likelihood of either of those birds being is this area , exhibiting these behaviors is extremely slim. I will continue to try to confirm a nest site, but this may be impossible given the terrain. If we can observe young birds in this area in June, this may help confirm a second pair of nesting Peregrines. I will update you on any new developments. End of Reports to date, 2003 Based on the information obtained by both groups, an apparent American Peregrine Falcon nest does appear to be "active" at the Greenbriar Pinnacle. If this nest is active and producing young, this will be only the third nest in all of Tennessee, the other two being at Little Duck Hawk Ridge in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and on a railroad bridge in Chattanooga. However, this probable nest at Greenbriar Pinnacle does need to be confirmed!! Historically, approximately 25 eyries have occurred in Tennessee and 4 have been suggested for the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (Alsop 1979). As falcons continue to breed in the mountain eyries, the likelihood of surviving young to repopulate once occupied eyries or establish new eyries is increased. I believe the presence of a nest at the Greenbriar Pinnacle is a result of successful breeding and survival of mountain produced young, perhaps from the Little Duck Hawk Ridge eyrie.. This is extremely important to the complete recovery of the American Peregrine Falcon in the east, as the falcon population in the mountain zone was the only zone not to have met recovery criteria during the delisting process. So each new nest, subsequent monitoring and protection are vitally important to the full recovery of the American Peregrine Falcon first, in the Appalachians , and second, for the eastern United States. Recommendations It is important to confirm this nest and any reproduction that has or will take place. Assuming that to be the case, the issue of regular monitoring may be the more challenging task, especially at the Greenbriar Pinnacle. David Morris continues to monitor nesting progress at Duck Hawk Ridge and should be supported in any way by Park staff or other partners to continue this effort and additional efforts needed at Greenbriar Pinnacle. For the meantime, I propose the following: Nest Confirmation: Confirmation of this nest presents some unusual challenges in that the probable location of the eyrie cannot be easily observed from any close viewing area or platform and there are not trails to the area from which observations can be made to the probable eyrie . Confirmation will have to occur through either off trail hiking to the cliff area and conducting searches or by waiting until young are expected to fledge and observing flights of the young in the area, perhaps mid-May and later, if the pair are currently incubating eggs. Kris Johnson, David Morris, and Keith Watson plan to attempt accessing the cliff area via the Cat Stairs route and then determine if the cliffs and eyrie location can be safely located by traversing either the upper or lower portions of the cliff faces. Keith plans to attempt this on Thursday, April 3, 2003 if a hiking partner(s) can be found. Subsequent attempts to the site will be determined following this reconnaissance. Beyond that, no firm plans have been made. Another possibility is to hike the Pinnacle Trail to the summit then descend to the upper portions of the cliff. Suggestions are welcomed from the Smokies staff if there are other alternatives to confirm this nest. Nest Monitoring: Staff in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park are encouraged to establish regular monitoring of this site following confirmation of the actual nest, and at the Little Duck Hawk Ridge eyrie. These two nests (if confirmed) represent 2/3 of nesting American Peregrine Falcons in Tennessee! Recognizing that the staff and budget limitations in the Smokies will make monitoring these eyries a challenge, other options do exist and may offer the park opportunities to use outside assistance from interested parties. The park is encouraged to open communication with bird conservation partners in the area such as the Tennessee Ornithological Society, Tennessee Partners in Flight, and USFWS to explore potential avenues for establishing regular monitoring of these areas. Other locals partners such as the Smoky Mountain Natural History Association and Friends of the Smokies are invited to participate in this effort and may be able to provide some funding to support the monitoring and protection needs at these sites. Keith Watson is willing to facilitate some of this dialogue and perform occasional monitoring duties. Additionally, David Morris has been a strong supporter of the monitoring program and will continue to support these efforts. However, a regular and coordinated approach to monitoring these sites is needed to obtain information on various aspects of the reproductive cycle of these sites in the park. For those of you outside the National Park Service on this mailing list, if you have some positive ideas or suggestions on how to assist the park with regular monitoring of these eyries, please feel free to contact me and let me know of your suggestions. I will compile and summarize them and forward to appropriate personnel in the Smokies and FWS. Attached are two digital photos taken on March 23, 2003 by Keith Watson that show the whitewash area from the Greenbriar entrance road and from the Barnes Homestead site. (See attached file: DSC01410.JPG)(See attached file: whitewash.jpg) ******************************************* J. Keith Watson Migratory Bird Biologist Division of Migratory Birds U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 160 Zillicoa Street, Suite D Asheville, NC 28801 828-350-8228 OFFICE 828-258-5330 FAX Keith_Watson@xxxxxxx http://southeast.fws.gov/birds/npsbirds.htm ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Susan Hoyle Knoxville, TN =================NOTES TO SUBSCRIBER===================== The TN-Bird Net requires you to sign your messages with first and last name, city (town) and state abbreviation. ----------------------------------------------------- To post to this mailing list, simply send email to: tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx ----------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, send email to: tn-bird-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Topographical Maps located at http://topozone.com/find.asp * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Visit the Tennessee Ornithological Society web site at http://www.tnbirds.org * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * TN-Bird Net Owner: Wallace Coffey, Bristol, TN jwcoffey@xxxxxxxxxx (423) 764-3958 =========================================================