Two peregrine falcons have made Jones Island their home after hatching this past spring.
Named Bit and Byte, the falcons have been banded by the Peregrine Falcon Society to ensure their safety. The Society is working with Veolia Water Milwaukee to host a live webcam streaming footage of Bit and Byte's nest. See the webcam here.
Peregrine falcons have increasingly used urban areas and man-made structures to nest. These birds of prey mate for life (aww!) and feed on smaller birds, reptiles and insects. They reach speeds of up to 200 mph in a "stoop" or dive towards their prey.
A major threat to this species came about with the widespread use of DDT and its breakdown product, DDE, but significant improvements were made with the ban of that substance and the species was removed from the Federal list of threatened and endangered species in 1999, although they continue to be monitored. There are only about 2,000 breeding pairs of peregrine falcons in North America today.
Colleen Jurkiewicz is a Milwaukee native with a degree in English from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and she loves having a job where she learns something new about the Cream City every day. Her previous incarnations have included stints as a waitress, a barista, a writing tutor, a medical transcriptionist, a freelance journalist, and now this lovely gig at the best online magazine in Milwaukee.
