Nesting peregrine falcons on Squawstruck.

There is a pair of nesting peregrine falcons near the top of p13. They were pretty upset with us and harassed my partner as he led the pitch and then continued to buzz us at the belay.

Shh!

Is there a closure on Squawstruck? I heard from the SLCA that it was closed.

From the SLCA-    "Local climbers have reported a pair of peregrine falcons nesting high on the Squawstruck route on Squaw Peak in Rock Canyon. The climbing party reported the birds on pitch 13 behaving aggressively towards them, and decided to bail in order to avoid causing any further disturbance. Please consider avoiding the route for the time being, or climbing only the lower 8 pitches to give these birds the space they need for their nesting attempt. Stay tuned for updates on the status of this nest."

Sounds like a recommendation to avoid the route, rather than a strict closure.

Sam Cannon wrote:

There is a pair of nesting peregrine falcons near the top of p13. They were pretty upset with us and harassed my partner as he led the pitch and then continued to buzz us at the belay.

So Sam, when you disturbed the nesting falcons you basically you ignored common sense as well the law by continuing to climb the pitch. Possibly causing the falcons the abandon the nest. Nice. You should know that such similar actions can and have lead to federal charges.

May I suggest that you read the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (https://www.fws.gov/migratorybirds/pdf/policies-and-regulations/MBTAListofBirdsFinalRule.pdf) and understand that as climbers one of the on going issues we face is that of closures. If as climbers we show some respect and common sense then permanent seasonal closures can often be avoided. Step up not down.

Here is the notice that came out after Sam was there: - http://www.saltlakeclimbers.org/attention-climbers-squawstruck

That said, not knowing how old the chicks are avoid the area for another 6-10 weeks. 

Funny how rock climbers would replace the eggs of endangered falcons and somehow they wouldn't abandon the nest. Birds must have been made of tougher stuff in the 90s

Allen Sanderson wrote:

So Sam, when you disturbed the nesting falcons you basically you ignored common sense as well the law by continuing to climb the pitch. Possibly causing the falcons the abandon the nest. Nice. You should know that such similar actions can and have lead to federal charges.

May I suggest that you read the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (https://www.fws.gov/migratorybirds/pdf/policies-and-regulations/MBTAListofBirdsFinalRule.pdf) and understand that as climbers one of the on going issues we face is that of closures. If as climbers we show some respect and common sense then permanent seasonal closures can often be avoided. Step up not down.

Here is the notice that came out after Sam was there: - http://www.saltlakeclimbers.org/attention-climbers-squawstruck

That said, not knowing how old the chicks are avoid the area for another 6-10 weeks. 

Hey man appreciate your concern for the birds. I wasn't aware of my partner's predicament (getting attacked by birds) until I seconded the pitch that he led, and we did not continue up. At that point we decided to bail. We climbed no further. When I said "as he led the pitch," this didn't start until he was already up midway on p13. The situation wasn't that we saw the brids and decided to climb until they started swooping us. We abseiled from the pitch-anchors closest to where we had disturbed them. We had no idea they were there until then. To reiterate, I was unaware this was happening until I had seconded the pitch and I spoke to my partner at the belay and saw the birds continuing to swoop us. We rappelled to the cave and walked off to the west, I went home, immediately put up a post on MP, was contacted by an individual and told to contact a specific person in the USFS which I promptly did. I am not sure why you are attacking me for notifying the community about the location of the birds.Our concerns seem to be in line. 

Sam, thanks for the additional details. Your initial post really did not explain the the situation and what actually happened. Thus my comments. 

Hopefully the birds don't have good lawyers.