Zion to temporarily close 13 cliffs to rock climbing to protect peregrine falcons


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ZION NATIONAL PARK — Zion National Park officials are once again temporarily closing several cliffs in the park to rock climbing to help protect peregrine falcons.

The closure is being implemented beginning March 1 until roughly July due to the falcons’ sensitivity to disturbances during their nesting season, Zion National Park officials said in an emailed statement. The area is a popular nesting site for the formerly endangered species, and if disturbed, the nesting pair may abandon their nest site and not nest again until the following year.

The following 13 cliffs in the park will be closed to all rock climbing:

  • Angels Landing
  • Cable Mountain
  • The Great White Throne (beyond single and double-pitched climbs)
  • Isaac (in Court of the Patriarchs)
  • The Sentinel
  • Mountain of the Sun
  • North Twin Brother
  • Tunnel Wall
  • The East Temple
  • Mount Spry
  • The Streaked Wall
  • Mount Kinesava
  • The Middle Fork of Taylor Creek
Hiking trails in the area will remain open.

Park wildlife biologists will monitor the nesting activity of the falcons throughout the breeding season, and cliffs that have been closed but are not being used for nest sites this year will be reopened when nest locations have been determined, officials said. The nesting sites are typically determined by late April or early May. The cliffs that are being used for nest sites this year will be monitored until the chicks fledge, usually in late July, and then will be reopened to climbing.

The date for the closure was selected based on when the peregrines arrive at the nesting cliffs, Zion National Park officials said. The data was collected from 2001-2017.

Peregrine falcons were listed as an endangered species in 1970 under the Endangered Species Act, park officials said. Their decline was primarily due to the effects of DDT, an insecticide which caused the birds to produce thin-shelled eggs that were easily broken, killing the developing embryo inside. After the U.S. banned DDT in 1972 and began successful captive breeding programs, the bird population has recovered and the species was removed from the endangered species list in 1999.

“Zion National Park has been and continues to be an important sanctuary for peregrines and many other wildlife species,” the emailed statement read.

For up-to-date information on the status of the climbing closures, visit the Zion National Park website.

For additional ideas of things to do in Zion National Park, visit Utah.com.

Editor's note: The content of this article was taken from a press release sent out by Zion National Park. This is not information gathered by KSL.com reporters.

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