A Falcon Returns
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A Falcon Returns
Look up! A peregrine falcon in flight -- soaring, swooping, and snapping its
prey in mid-air -- is an exciting spectacle. This long-winged, black-capped
bird of prey is one of the fastest flyers in the world. With a keen eye and
a bit of patience, you're likely to spot these fearless flyers in the skies
and on the ledges and cliffs throughout the Granite State. In fact, there's
a nesting pair of peregrines on the side of an office building in downtown
Manchester!
This wasn't always the case. Twenty years ago, peregrine falcons had nearly disappeared in New Hampshire. In this episode, Wildlife Journal looks at the falcon's amazing comeback story. "Peregrine falcons are rebounding from a tremendously difficult time in the 1970s through the 1980s, when their populations dropped to almost zero in the eastern part of the country," according to Chris Martin, senior biologist with New Hampshire Audubon.
Learn about the intensive efforts to re-establish peregrine falcons in the
east. Then, watch as a "hidden" web cam, positioned in the falcon's
nest in Manchester, records the hatching and feeding of chicks.
Wild
Ways: Rehabilitating Raptors
Follow Wild Ways host Lisa Densmore to the Vermont Institute of Natural Science
(VINS), where she gets up close and personal with some of our favorite raptors.
Watch as a red-tailed hawk wraps its sharp talons around Lisa's fingers and
an American kestrel shows off some high-flying aerial stunts.
Raptors may have features in common, like sharp talons, curved beaks and keen
eyesight, but how do you tell a hawk from a falcon? The folks at the VINS raptor
rehabilitation center share tricks of the trade on identifying raptors, then
talk about what it takes to prepare an injured bird for its release back into
the wild. Hint: A wild bird is like an athlete.
A Tale of Two Salmon
New Hampshire is blessed with healthy numbers of both Atlantic salmon and landlocked
salmon, thanks to 140 years of restoration efforts. But although these two
types of salmon share a common lineage...they have vastly different needs.
Restoring Atlantic salmon began in the 1860s, when the building of dams prevented many fish from returning to the ocean. Restoration programs, including fishways and river re-stocking, continue today. Join Scott Decker of the N.H. Fish and Game Department as he releases salmon fry into the Baker River.
Landlocked salmon have their own problems. Discover how biologists manage
13 lakes in the state to maintain healthy salmon populations. Fish hatcheries
and the release of 20,000 to 24,000 salmon a year are part of the program.
And, it seems to be working!
Wild
Places: Hemenway State Forest
Host Willem Lange joins Heidi Murphy, New Hampshire's first woman Conservation
Officer, at the Hemenway State Forest in Tamworth, NH. This 2,100-acre property
offers a network of trails, fishing and wildlife watching along the Swift
River, and mature woodlands. Hike through a stand of towering white pine
and cedar trees, some 100 feet tall and up to 175 years old, in the shadows
of Mt. Chocorua.
