Cathedral of Learning upset: New peregrine falcon ousts male, takes up with female; now they have 4 eggs

Atop the University of Pittsburgh’s Cathedral of Learning, where the Laurel Highlands can be seen on a clear day, is prime real estate for peregrine falcons, with expansive views and lots of prey available. Two new falcons have driven out the former residents and are incubating four eggs.

Peregrine falcons compete fiercely to call the Cathedral of Learning home and have been nesting there for 20 years. Classified by the state as a threatened species, they are the fastest animals on earth with dives exceeding 200 mph.

The National Aviary operates a live nestcam at the Cathedral, accessible on its website.

A female peregrine falcon known as Morela showed up regularly at the Cathedral in the fall of 2019 and drove off the smaller female, Hope. A new male, Ecco, is believed to have thwarted nesting attempts last year by Morela and the resident male, Terzo, said Kate St. John of Oakland, the Pennsylvania Game Commission’s lead volunteer monitor for the peregrine falcon in the region. She also maintains a blog, Outside My Window, about birds and nature.

“If Ecco showed up and Terzo wasn’t around, he would court Morela a lot, they would bow to each other, a typical peregrine courting behavior,” she said.

Then in February of this year, Ecco ousted Terzo as the resident male. Terzo hasn’t been seen again. Ecco took up relations with Morela, and both birds are taking turns incubating their four eggs, St. John said.

“They are a new couple that has known each other for a year,” she said. Based on the birds’ plumage, Morela is about 3 years old and Ecco is about 2. The couple will be first-time parents if all goes well with their eggs later this month.

Ecco has a morning routine that St. John has been documenting before the couple started tending to their eggs: “He gets up really early and catches something to eat. He will bring food to the nest and will eat half of it. When Morela shows up, she will eat the rest.

“Now, Ecco gets up around 5:30 a.m. and relieves Morela from incubation duty while it is still dark and she goes out. He incubates the eggs a lot and is very present,” she said.

St. John is expecting a productive year for the Pitt couple. “But peregrines can be surprising,” she said. “They are behaving in ways that seem very promising.”

Other peregrines nesting in the region include: Tarentum Bridge; a building along Third Avenue in downtown Pittsburgh; Westinghouse Bridge in East Pittsburgh; Graff Bridge in Manor Township; Ambridge-Aliquippa Bridge and Monaca railroad bridge in Beaver County; and a new location — the Speers railroad bridge in Washington County.