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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE06-03

January 31, 2006

Contact: Ian Michaels (718) 595-6600

 

DEP to Release Endangered Peregrine Falcon at Flushing Meadows Park Unisphere in Queens

Date: February 1, 2006
Time: 11:00 AM
Location:

Unisphere at Flushing Meadows Park
Queens, NY

DEP Commissioner Emily Lloyd and staff will release an endangered Peregrine falcon that was rescued in Westchester and rehabilitated at a wildlife center in New Jersey. 

Peregrine falcons are listed by the State of New York as an endangered species.  Today, there are numerous territorial pairs of Peregrine falcons that maintain active nest sites within New York City, including at the Verrazano Bridge, the Throgs Neck Bridge, Riverside Church, New York Hospital and the Brooklyn Bridge.

Peregrine falcons are the world’s fastest bird.  They can reach a speed of over 200 miles per hour in a vertical dive and in level flight average about 60 miles per hour.  They are predators that feed on other birds within their territory.  Adults have a wingspan of about 40 inches.

DEP, in cooperation with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, manages the Peregrine Falcon Program in the metropolitan area.  The program ensures that nesting falcons have appropriate nesting boxes to prevent eggs and young from rolling off nests; inspects the birds and their nests to ensure that they are free of disease; bands the birds so that their travels and lifetimes can be traced, maintaining records of the birds; and protects them from human disturbance.

 

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