Date: 4/10/24 10:40 am From: Sargent, Bob <0000104ebc06b7b8-dmarc-request...> Subject: [GABO-L] Common Ravens nesting at Tallulah Gorge
Dear Birders,
As part of our work with GA DNR, Liz Morata and I have been visiting Tallulah Gorge State Park in recent weeks to look for evidence of peregrine falcon nesting. This is an annual ritual ever since a peregrine nest was first found there in 2015. The last documented peregrine nest in the gorge was observed in 2018. Since then, one or two adult falcons have been seen in the gorge during breeding season most years, but there's been no definitive evidence of nesting. Unfortunately, that trend appears to be continuing this year, though we'll keep looking. When Liz visited the gorge on 22 March, she didn't see any peregrines. Instead, and much to her surprise, she discovered a nest of another species that's rare in Georgia: common raven. I had photographed a recently fledged raven at the gorge on April 20, 2021 but did not observe a nest site. One or two ravens had been seen in the gorge on several occasions in recent years, but the sighting of this juvenile was the first indication that the birds might be nesting at the site. Now Liz's sighting confirmed that they are nesting in the park.
In Georgia the common raven is not common at all. In fact, it is considered to be a rare bird of wildlands and high elevation, nesting (sparsely) above 3,000 feet. During Georgia DNR's Breeding Bird Atlas project (1994-2001), this species was documented as a possible breeder in Lumpkin, Rabun, Union, and Towns counties, but was confirmed breeding only at Brasstown Bald. In 2021 a raven nest was discovered by a falconer on the Nottely Reservoir Dam near Blairsville in Union County. This was unusual not just because a relative handful of raven nests have been found in Georgia, but also because this was the first time in the state that a raven nest had been found on something other than a cliff ledge. A raven pair again nested at the Nottely Dam in 2022 and 2023. See more details in our paper in The Oriole. 2022. Vol. 87 (3-4), pages 88-92.
When Liz and I observed the nest on 3 April, the adult birds appeared to be tending to at least one small but unseen nestling. The nest is located within a recessed, shaded shelf on the cliff face, so it is difficult to see its contents. We observed a few food deliveries, watched two American crows chase one of the ravens, and saw both ravens take a 25-minute break from the nest management activities as the birds flew in circles together over the gorge. DNR's Wildlife Resources Division and State Parks staff will continue to monitor the nest and the behavior of the adult birds, particularly in relation to nearby human activities. If you remember when the peregrines nested in the gorge, you'll recall that you could see the two nest sites they used from 2015-2018 via the vantagepoint of overlook 9. The raven nest is located perhaps 100 feet to the left of the shelf the peregrines used for three of those years. I expect that State Parks will probably provide a notebook at the overlook in which birders can record their visits and observations. You can help these ravens and our work by keeping an eye on them and reporting any problems.
By the way: we are seeing at least one peregrine in the gorge.
Bob Sargent
Wildlife Biologist
GADNR, Forsyth, GA
Monroe County
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