Will you candle the 4th egg or open it to see why it didn't hatch?  Not today, we might open it at a later date.

How long does the banding process take?  About 10 - 15 minutes per bird, so 45 minutes.

What is the main purpose of banding?  To keep track of the birds ~ if they go to another part of the state or another state they can be identified, and if they get injured or die for some reason we know which bird it is.

Do humans feed the babies before they are banded?  No, but these had pretty full crops when taken from the nest so they had eaten recently.

How do Mom and Dad react when the babies are taken out of the nest for banding?  They don't like it.  They are sitting right outside the window and calling.  While the babies are being removed they dive-bomb who ever is getting the babies ... notice the hard hat and plexiglass shield.

Have any parents ever abandoned a nest after the babies have been touched by humans?  No, that is a myth.  They fly off while the babies are being removed and put back, but return to the nest almost immediately after the babies are back in it.  If you ever see a baby bird out in the wild that has fallen out of its nest it is OK to put it back.  In fact, when these 3 start learning to fly they might be picked up off the street or ledges from lower floors several times and returned to the nest.  It has happened before.

What is the material the bands are made of?  They are metal and painted - this year black and green.  Do different states have different colored bands?  No.

Do you make them or buy them?  They are made especially for falcons and ODNR buys them.

How do you secure it to the leg?  They are crimped on with a clamp.

How do you size the band, or do you leave it loose to allow for growth?  The leg usually isn't going to get too much bigger.  It is left a little loose.

Has a falcon ever lost his or her bands?  Don't know ... it is possible.

Can you tell if the bird is male or female by its size?  Yes, the females are larger, we have 2 females and 1 male today.

At what age does the female start getting larger than the male?  Immediately.  They are almost 3 weeks old now and we can tell.

After they fledge will they return to the same nest site?  Sometimes they return to the same area the nest site is in.