The only peregrine falcon chick to hatch this spring in the 40th floor nest on the University of Pittsburgh’s Cathedral of Learning has died.
The chick, named “Silver,” was the 43rd hatched by Dorothy, the record-setting female peregrine that has nested high on the gothic Oakland landmark each year since 2001. The other three eggs Dorothy laid in early May did not hatch, a sign her fertility is on the wane.
The death was first reported in the WQED bird blog “Outside my Window” by Kate St. John on Monday and confirmed by Robert Mulvihill, an ornithologist with the National Aviary.
The chick, which had shown signs of developmental problems during a veterinary exam at the end of May, was being cared for at the Animal Rescue League Wildlife Center in Homewood when its weight dropped and it developed respiratory problems Saturday, according to the blog report.
The chick was rushed to an emergency veterinary clinic in Cleveland, where it was examined by noted avian specialist Jamie Lindstrom, who diagnosed him with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Peregrines remain an endangered species in Pennsylvania because their population has not recovered sufficiently at their natural cliff nest sites. There are seven other nesting pairs in the Pittsburgh region, all of them residing on man-made structures, according to the National Aviary.
The death of the peregrine chick is another negative event in a bad year for the area’s nesting birds of prey. In late March, the nesting bald eagles in Hays lost both of their eggs, and another pair of eagles in Harmar abandoned their nest.
Don Hopey: dhopey@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1983. Twitter: @donhopey
First Published: July 21, 2015, 5:12 p.m.
Updated: July 22, 2015, 3:42 a.m.