UPDATE: As falcons fledge, all-clear for cliff hiking, climbing
August 15, 2023 | By Waterbury RoundaboutEditor’s note: This post from May has been updated. Scroll down for the original story below.
Hikers and rock climbers can return to Vermont cliffs now that peregrine falcon nesting season has ended. The Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department last week confirmed that all the young falcons that were being monitored have learned to fly and should not be disturbed by human presence on cliffs.
Young peregrines have reached maturity this season and should not be disturbed by recreationists. VT F&W photo by C.P. Merrill
“The young peregrines have fledged, and nesting data suggest many of Vermont’s falcons had a successful year,” said state nongame bird biologist Jillian Kilborn. “The falcons’ nesting success is due to a combination of factors, including good weather early in the nesting season and cooperation from hikers and rock climbers who observe a respectful distance from nesting falcons during this critical period. Peregrine nesting success would not be possible without more than 50 volunteers who monitor the nest sites statewide from March to the end of July.”
According to Vermont Audubon biologist Margaret Fowle who coordinates the monitoring effort on behalf of the Fish & Wildlife Department, biologists and volunteers monitored peregrine pairs on at least 50 cliffs around the state this spring and summer. “We greatly appreciate the time and effort volunteers put into monitoring the population this year, and we thank landowners and recreationists for their cooperation in protecting nesting peregrines from human disturbance,” Fowle said.
Vermont Fish & Wildlife and Audubon Vermont partner to monitor and protect peregrine nesting sites. Peregrine falcons were removed from the state’s Threatened and Endangered Species List in 2005. Ongoing cooperation from recreationists and continued monitoring efforts by biologists are meant to help ensure the peregrine’s recovery in future years.
Original post below
Climbers beware: Cliffs closed for peregrine falcon nesting
May 11, 2023 | By Kira Corasanti | Community News Service Vermont Fish & Wildlife photo by Tom Rogers
As part of an ongoing recovery project, wildlife officials have announced the annual closings of cliffs where peregrine falcons nest across Vermont. The closures will run until Aug. 1 to protect the birds from human interference during breeding season.
“These nesting closures are critical,” said biologist Margaret Fowle of Audubon Vermont. “We want to maintain the population.”
Peregrine falcons, known for their remarkable speed and hunting skills, have made an extraordinary comeback from near extinction in the past century. In the mid-1900s, peregrines became both federal and state endangered species after suffering significant declines due to the harmful pesticide DDT.
“They were one of the species that was telling a story of what DDT was doing to the environment,” Fowle said. Reintroduction efforts began in the mid-1970s, and in 2005, peregrines were taken off Vermont’s endangered list.
But their nesting sites remain vulnerable to human activities, such as rock climbing and hiking, which can scare young birds or keep falcons away from their young. “They are still considered a sensitive species and one of conservation need,” Fowle said.
Audubon Vermont coordinates peregrine falcon monitoring and management efforts in partnership with the Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife, the Green Mountain Club and Climbing Resource Access Group, or CRAG, a rock climbing and conservation organization. Volunteers and officials find and document nests, determine incubation, hatching and fledging dates and count the number of young fledged at each site.
The closures have been happening since the 1980s. “They are pretty consistent with where they breed — they come back to the same cliff year after year,” said Fowle. There are 12 cliffs closed for nesting season this summer.
Peregrine falcon chicks. Vermont Fish & Wildlife photo by Steven Faccio
Keeping climbers away from nests is especially important since their presence can lead to falcons deaths.
“There is a critical window with the chicks in particular where they aren’t ready to fly yet,” said Travis Peckham, a volunteer with CRAG. “If climbers get too close, the chicks would jump prematurely … It’s a risk to the chicks and a risk to the climbers — of course you don’t want to be climbing on a rock when a bird smacks into you.”
Every year, volunteers put up new signs and postings on climbs or trails.
Yet some people ignore these warnings. “We know people have been seen going on the top despite the closures or the signage,” Fowle said. Rested on an overlook, the nesting site on Prospect Rock in Johnson is a problem area frequented by many hikers.
“In 2020, the nest on Prospect didn’t survive because of people,” Peckham said. The birds had not returned the past several years but just last week they were spotted again, putting Prospect Rock back on the closed list. The Green Mountain Club plans to reroute the trail there to avoid the overlook.
Posting signs can be tricky, too, because people might be tempted to try to see the birds if they know they’re around. “You want there to be awareness, but sometimes you don’t want there to be attention,” said Rosalind Renfrew, who manages the Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Wildlife Diversity Program and teaches at the University of Vermont.
At the same time, monitoring from volunteers and recreationists is an important part of the ongoing efforts.“If people are climbing or hiking and find peregrines, they help spread the word,” Fowle noted.
The extra eyes can also dissuade would-be intruders. “It would be pretty embarrassing if you were to disturb them and someone found out,” Renfrew said.
Since their comeback, peregrines have established more than 40 nesting sites in Vermont. “It’s exciting for me as a climber to see a peregrine falcon,” said Peckham. “That was not the case 20 years ago.”
Why are peregrine falcons important? “They nest on these cliff sites, and they take small birds as prey. They occupy a niche that no other species does around here,” Renfrew said. “And frankly, they are amazing for people. They are a spectacle.”
The birds can also tell scientists how the rest of the ecosystem is doing. “If they aren’t doing well, it’s a sign that other things aren’t doing well,” Fowle said.
The closure sites are:
Bolton Notch (Bolton) — UUW cliff’s cliff access and climbing closed
Bone Mt. (Bolton) — portions closed to climbing
Deer Leap (Bristol) — cliff-top and climbing closed
Eagle Ledge (Vershire) — closed to hiking and climbing
Fairlee Palisades (Fairlee) — clifftop closed
Marshfield Mt. (Marshfield) — portions closed to climbing
Mt. Horrid (Rochester) — Great Cliff overlook closed
Nichols Ledge (Woodbury) — cliff-top and climbing closed
Prospect Rock (Johnson) — cliff-top and climbing closed
Red Rocks Park (South Burlington) — southern cliff access closed
Rattlesnake Point (Salisbury) — southern overlook closed
Snake Mt. (Addison) — entire western trail closed
According to the Fish & Wildlife website, these sites will remain closed through Aug. 1 or until the department determines the risk to nesting falcons has passed. If nesting falcons choose new sites, additional locations may be added to the closed list that’s posted online.
Wildlife officials remind Vermonters of how to help Vermont peregrines: Respect cliff closures, and retreat from any cliff where you see peregrines; report any disturbance of nesting peregrines to your local state game warden; report any sightings to Margaret Fowle at margaret.fowle@audubon.org.
Community News Service is a collaboration with the University of Vermont’s Reporting & Documentary Storytelling program.