Two newly hatched peregrine falcons living high above downtown Mount Clemens, on an 11th floor ledge of the old County Building, were officially named Wayne and Oakland on Wednesday by Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel.
The birds were temporarily removed from their nest and banded by state Department of Natural Resources personnel so their migratory patterns can be tracked. Hackel said the chicks, both males, who were hatched on May 1, were named in recognition of the need to promote the region of Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties.
“To brand the region, we must band together,” Hackel said. “This is a symbol of Macomb’s commitment toward regional branding.”
Peregrine falcons, an endangered species that was once nearly extinct east of the Mississippi River, have nested on the County Building ledges since 2005, producing a combined 17 chicks.
Pesticides that prevailed in the 1960s nearly eliminated the nation’s peregrines, said Tim Payne, the DNR’s supervisor of Southeast Michigan wildlife. But a comeback ensued due to a concerted state-federal effort. Since 1987, 232 peregrine falcon chicks have been recorded in the Detroit area, with many using tall buildings as a nesting place, similar to the cliffs that their ancestors relied upon.
“The program has been successful beyond belief, thanks to places like this,” Payne said, referring to the County Building. “You … may have 4 or 5 percent of the (peregrine) young in all of Michigan right here. You’re looking at it.”
After they were brought in from their nest, two bands were placed on each of the 21-day-old chick’s legs, bands that are universally recognized as a means of detecting the peregrine’s movements. One spawn of the County Building, Rosie, who hatched in 2011, was recently spotted in Canada, in Brantford, Ontario. Payne said that, with the help of a long-range scope, the bands can be spotted and read from a mile away.
As news photographers snapped dozens of photos, Payne added this: “If this bird, months from now, is seen on a ledge in, let’s say, Columbus, Ohio, someone with a scope will read, ‘Mount Clemens, Michigan,’ and they will say, ‘A-ha, Mount Clemens — Mount Clemens helped make a difference.’”
The DNR initially detected three chicks on the County Building, which remains closed due to an April electrical fire. But officials found on Wednesday that only two had survived. Hackel had hoped to name the third baby bird St. Clair, in keeping with the regional cooperation theme.