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SALT LAKE CITY -- While the Joseph Smith Memorial Building celebrates its 100th anniversary, an unusual couple is celebrating their 25th, of sorts, outside the building.
They are peregrine falcons, and four nestlings hatched about two weeks ago.
"They're great birds, and every once in a while, like this year, we get lucky," says Bob Walters, the Watchable Wildlife Coordinator with the Utah Department of Wildlife Resources.
The adult falcons returned to their nesting box, complete with a webcam, at the top of the Joseph Smith Memorial Building on the northeast corner this spring.
Tune in to the nestcam, and you can watch and hear the sound of four fluffy white peregrine falcon eyases, or chicks, crying for food.
They love the mother cliff. They love the old Hotel Utah, now the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. It really is the Holy Grail.
–Bob Walters
Last year, the box was closed for work at the building. But, apparently for the peregrines, this is the place.
We spent an hour out on Temple Square with Walters, gazing through our binoculars at the ledges of the surrounding buildings. After about 30 minutes, the mother falcon appeared, checked on the chicks, stretched her wings then flew off.
"They love the mother cliff," says Walters. "They love the old Hotel Utah, now the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. It really is the Holy Grail."
Bob Walters, started to closely watch the raptors when they first nested here in 1986. They have returned about 14 of the years since, with a break in the late 90's and early 2000's.
"The latest leg of this journey, or this saga, began in 2004, and they've been back every year since then giving their all," says Walters
In 2008, sadly all three nestling died from a bacteria, but, this year:
"Looking good, everybody seems to be getting fed," Walters said.
This little piece of Eden, if you will, north of North Temple, is a good place for a peregrine to make a living.
–Bob Walters
In about a month, the nestlings will be nudged to the opening. They'll stumble and tumble out into the sky for flight training. After all, peregrines are the fastest birds in the world, and there's no time to waste learning to fly.
When that starts, Walters and his crack team of volunteers try to save the babies when they bounce off the hard surfaces in and around Temple Square. When they need to, they take the birds to a rehabilitator and then try to get them back into the nest.
"It's a rag-tag, motley looking group with a towel in one hand an a pair of binoculars in the other," says Walters.
Over the last 25 years, 21 out of 27 birds that made it to the flight stage survived to move on from the nest.
If you do go down to Temple Square for some falcon watching, don't forget to bring your binoculars. You also might like to pull up the nestcam on a smart phone or a tablet like an iPad to watch from the ground and online simultaneously.
As strange as it may seem, the peregrine falcons love their urban perch.
"This little piece of Eden, if you will, north of North Temple, is a good place for a peregrine to make a living."
While they are the fastest birds, you have to be patient to catch a glimpse, unless of course you have a bird's eye view on the webcam.
On June 28, Walters is conducting a field trip and orientation for people interested in volunteering to help during the flight training for the bird.
If you're interested in attending the field trip, or volunteering to serve as part of the team, call Walters at 801-209-5326.
