Marooned Falcon Chicks Reunited With Parents At SFO Hangar

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — After a harrowing few weeks, two peregrine falcon chicks are flapping their wings a little more joyfully.

And their parents — empty-nesters no more — can finally breathe a little easier now that their baby birds who’d gone missing are back at home, thanks the Peninsula Humane Society.

The PHS facilitated this family reunion at the nest the parents built for their burgeoning family inside a United Airlines hangar at San Francisco International Airport.

The chicks were estimated to be about a month old when they were found marooned and unable to fly on the ground of a United Airlines hangar in May, PHS Communications Manager Buffy Martin Tarbox said.

“Their parents had built a nest high up in the hangar, and the pre-fledging chicks became stranded on the ground,” Tarbox said.

“United Airlines and airport staff became very concerned about the safety of the chicks, so they were brought to our Burlingame wildlife center for evaluation and treatment.”

One of the baby birds was treated by PHS wildlife staff for a soft tissue injury. Once the chicks had fully recovered, the PHS worked with the United Airlines and airport staff to develop a plan to reunite the babies with their parents at the hangar.

“We needed to get the chicks as close to the nest and their parents as possible without causing too much stress to the birds,” Tarbox said.

“The nest was located high up in the hangar, so with the babies safely secure in a kennel, we advanced closer to the nest by climbing up onto the hangar’s catwalk. The falcon parents must have known we had their chicks since they were following our staff and screaming at them the entire time.

“Once we were in a safe area on the catwalk, we opened the kennel door and the chicks walked towards their parents. It was a very happy reunion!”

Peregrine falcons are native to the San Francisco Bay Area, and it isn’t uncommon for them to build nests in areas such as airport hangars. Breeding pairs usually have 2-3 chicks a year.

“Thanks to the vigilance and concern from United Airlines and airport staff and our skilled wildlife rehabilitation team, these two Peregrine Falcon chicks are back where they belong: with their parents,” Tarbox said.