Jackson’s Peregrine Falcon Nest Only Has One Remaining Chick

Nests of peregrine falcon chicks have been born on top of the Jackson County Tower Building since 2010. It's always been one of those small joys to follow their journey between the public voting on the chicks' names and the live cams you could be lucky enough to see them hatch.

However, this year, only one chick remains without it's brothers and sisters. How does that happen?

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About Peregrine Falcons

According to Audubon's Field Guide To North American Birds, peregrine falcons lay between two-to-five eggs at a time and, on rare occasions, six!

However, not every egg that is laid hatches which is what happened in Jackson. MLive says this year's nest had five eggs in it, but only two hatched.

As they grow up, Audubon says Peregrine Falcons are actually one of the "world's fastest birds" and are "Regarded by falconers and biologists alike as one of the noblest and most spectacular of all birds of prey."

Here's a video of a baby Peregrine making it's first flight:

They feed mostly on other, smaller birds and mammals but another fascinating thing about them is they mate for life!

Once they find their mate and are ready to have their little babies, they actually usually return to the same elevated place for many years to lay their eggs, like the Jackson County Tower Building.

Jackson's Peregrines

Out of the two chick eggs that hatched this year, only one of the chicks still survives.

According to MLive, this chick was brought into the world by parents, Big Red and Chayton who have nested at the building every year since 2010.

As far as a name for this little one goes, we don't know that yet, though an administrative assistant for facilities in Jackson County told MLive the Michigan DNR came on Wednesday, June 2 to band the chick for tracking.

How To Check In On The Peregrines

Since they have been coming back the past 11 years, they definitely become local celebrities and people love to know how they are doing over time.

If you want to see how this year's chick is doing, there is a live feed of the nest you can tune in on Jackson County's website when you CLICK HERE.