Date: Sun, 1 Mar 2009 01:51:19 -0500
Reply-To: Ken Blankenship <kenhblankenship@COMCAST.NET>
Sender: Georgia Birders Online <GABO-L@LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
From: Ken Blankenship <kenhblankenship@COMCAST.NET>
Subject: In Awe of a Peregrine Falcon, Downtown Atlanta, 2/28/09
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I love NHL hockey! Last night was Hockey Night, and I was walking down
Centennial Olympic Park Dr towards Philips Arena. I didn't get a half-
season ticket package (unlike many years previous) so tonight I took
advantage of a discount to take out my family and friends for what turned
out to be a come-from-behind, thrilling Atlanta Thrashers victory! So how
is this a birding post?
As I approached Marietta Street, where I slowed down to stop with other
fans for a red light, I caught a flash in the sky in my peripheral vision.
Being a birder, I looked up to see a life-or-death dog fight in progess.
Twisting, diving at extreme angles, and merely inches from one another
were a ROCK PIGEON and an adult PEREGRINE FALCON! Two gray shapes were
hurtling towards the concrete at a heart-stopping pace... and then,
literally 30 feet over the street, with throngs of hockey fans lining the
streets on both sides, IMPACT! No, it wasn't a surprise attack. No
explosion of feathers, just a little puff. But the jig was up. Yet, as
this amazing falcon must have been sinking in its talons and trying to
lift off with its dinner, physics interfered. I watched in awe as both
birds struggled in mid-air, the sheer weight of the pigeon pulling its
attacker down, down... landing squarely in the center of the street
between the parking decks and the main entrance to the CNN Center. On the
ground it got ugly. Wings flapping, more feathers flying, and then... the
pigeon escaped!
All of the action described above took place in a matter of seconds. As
the pigeon limped into the air, the PEREGRINE FALCON stood for a moment in
the middle of the street. The light turned green, the crowd surged
forward, and the traffic began accelerating. I said to myself, "Oh please,
NO. No, no, no... don't let this happen..." As the cars approached, this
magnificent bird lifted up with, strong, fast, powerful, unmistakably
Falcon wing beats. Clearing the approaching traffic head-on by merely
feet, the bird strongly swooped up to a street light, lit on top, and got
comfortable by shaking out its tail as if to say, "What? You didn't see
anything."
Incredulous and awe-struck, I turned to a couple fans walking with me as
we now crossed the street towards the bird and said "Holy... did you SEE
that?!" One guy said, "What?" I answered "You see that bird up there? On
that light post? That is a Peregrine Falcon. Have you heard of
them?" "Really? No way. You kidding?," he replied. I said, "Didn't you see
it grab that pigeon?" "Nope," he said, “But that's cool, man. Thanks." I
couldn’t believe the entire incident could go unnoticed by anyone. But
then I thought, it may well have been missed by almost everyone! So odd...
and yet so wonderful to have this scene unfold in front of a birder.
I got to within feet of the base of the light pole where the adult
PEREGRINE FALCON was still perched. I looked up, obviously with no binos,
at this amazing bird. It looked right, then left, and then... for only a
split second it turned its gaze to the sidewalk below. It looked at me.
For literally a tiny glance, a fraction of a second, it looked down to the
sidewalk where I stood staring back at this amazing animal. And then... it
flew. The bird lifted off, the same strong, quick wingbeats as before, and
headed right for the glass walls of the Schmick and McCormick’s seafood
joint. I should have known better than to be concerned. It cut the corner
of the building tight and strong, and headed off into a layer of mist over
Centennial Olympic Park.
Truly Awesome.
Ken Blankenship
Marietta, GA (Cobb County)
http://www.wingsoverga.com
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