Another trip out to the sea cliffs to photograph a family of Peregrine Falcons. On this trip I observed a wide range of interesting behaviour, and it was great to see the three chicks flying together. But one chick, probably the one that had gone missing (it had been found on an early balcony to long after fledging and taken to Taronga Animal Hospital and released back to the cliffs after a week of care), received extra lessons from its mother. Scroll down to see.
When I arrived, I spotted one of the chicks perched on a ledge.
Then some nice flying.
When one chick takes to the air, it often encourages other chicks to join it.
And then a nice mock fight.
One of the chicks ventures out to where some Nankeen Kestrels often hunt. It dived at one of the Kestrels.
When a second Nankeen Kestrel appeared, the young Peregrine Falcon flew back.
Then back to some more mock fights with its siblings.
Now all three chicks are flying –
Time for this one to have a rest.
Then the bird’s mother arrived. She dived at one of her chicks.
The chick flies upside down in a defensive position.
The mother dives again –
And another dive –
And again –
I think the mother had singled out the chick for special attention. It was probably the one that had been missing for a week, so had missed out on some important lessons. The mother was teaching it how to defend itself.
More lessons from mum –
The mother did a fast flyby.
And then back to school –
Time for a well deserved rest.
