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McKeever and Judson, the pair of nesting falcons at the Sheraton Hotel in downtown Hamilton, have three new chicks.
According to Hamilton Falconwatch, the volunteer group that has monitored and protected falcons at that nest since 1995, the first chick hatched on April 30 around 7:30 p.m.
Two more hatched overnight, with mother McKeever bringing her little ones their first meal around 6:30 a.m. Friday.
As of Friday afternoon, it appeared one remaining egg had yet to hatch.
Formally called the Hamilton Community Peregrine Project, Falconwatch uses a webcam to monitor the birds of prey.
Once they fledge and begin to practice flying, volunteers roam the streets downtown in shifts to help the chicks if they get stuck somewhere or fall down.
In March, Falconwatch senior monitor Pat Baker told CBC Hamilton the watch has successfully helped fledge more than 75 chicks.
The group usually works to band chicks in late May. That’s a process in which the young birds are brought inside the hotel and experts attach identifying markers to their legs for conservation purposes. The birds usually start to fly in June, which is when Falconwatch is most active.
McKeever and Judson have nested on the 18th floor of the hotel since 2022. In that time, they have fledged 14 chicks, most recently Charlton, Lawfield, Simcoe and Winona.
McKeever was born in Windsor, Ont., on the Ambassador Bridge in 2019. Judson fledged in Buffalo, N.Y., in 2018. He is the grandson of Madame X and Surge, who nested on the Sheraton for 13 and nine years, respectively.
Peregrine falcons, the world’s fastest animal, were once endangered in Ontario, largely because of the pesticide DDT. The bird of prey is now considered a species of special concern, meaning they could still be at risk but are not endangered.
Ontario’s recovery strategy for the species includes promoting community monitoring by groups such as Hamilton’s or one in Windsor. In 2024, the head of the Toronto-based Canadian Peregrine Foundation said such groups contributed to urban peregrines out-producing their rural counterparts.
