San Jose City Hall’s celebrity falcons Clara and Esteban Colbert celebrated the dropping of their second egg around 8:30am Wednesday morning.
Clara started her sixth nesting season Saturday with the dropping of her first egg. Glenn Stewart, biologist and coordinator of UC Santa Cruz’s Predatory Bird Research Group, expects each egg to drop in 56-hour intervals until Clara and Esteban have a nest of three or four.
Clara has had a series of lovers since she first built her nest on the 18th level of City Hall in 2007. She and her current mate, Esteban Colbert, have stuck it out for four years. The pair has successfully hatched and raised nine falcon babies, or eyasses, during their time together.
Stewart says that Clara lays her eggs a little earlier each year since her first nesting season five years ago, maybe due to the good weather this year. Clara will guard her nest while the eggs incubate for 33 days, and “Falconatics” can expect to see the peregrine babies take flight in mid-May.
The FalconCam, a live streaming video of the falcons’ nest, was set up in 2007 and is monitored by the UC Santa Cruz Predatory Bird Research Group.
Does 2 falcons make a union, if so Chuck will kick them off the ledge to the curb!
Hope he doesn’t stomp on the eggs like he is doing to the backs of loyal city employees.
Well let’s see.
We can’t fire them for poor performance.
We give them free vet care for life.
They sit around and squawk all day.
Sounds like a union outfit to me!
Falcon Hunting Season begins Monday March 5th