Science and Technology for Canadians

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Summary

In the early 1970s, the Anatum Peregrine Falcon had disappeared from much of North America. After two decades of use, the pesticide DDT had devastated the peregrine population. Environment Canada biologists dreamt of establishing a captive breeding program here in Canada. While many said it couldn't be done, the recovery of the Peregrine Falcon is a true wildlife success story.

Transcript of Video

Jay Ingram
The Peregrine Falcon is one of the fiercest predators in the skies, but when it recently needed a little help, a small group of Canadian scientists was only too eager to oblige.

Gillian Deacon
In the early 1970's the Anatum Peregrine Falcon was on the brink of extinction. After two decades of use, the pesticide DDT had devastated the peregrine population. There were no peregrines left in southern Canada, and only a few dozen pair in the MacKenzie Valley and Yukon. Scientists and falcon lovers alike were extremely concerned. Something had to be done.

Phil Trefry
A biologist by the name of Richard Fyfe knew that there were efforts in other countries – in the United States and some European countries – to breed peregrine falcons in captivity. So I met Richard Fyfe and he talked about his dreams for setting up a breeding program here in Canada and producing young falcons for release... and I became part of that dream.

Gillian Deacon
The dream was to breed peregrine falcons in captivity and reintroduce them to the wild. In 1972 a dedicated group of experts came together at the Wainwright Captive Breeding Facility in Alberta, determined to bring the peregrine falcon back.

Dr. Geoff Holroyd
Phil was a pioneer in the captive breeding of peregrines. He and Harry Armbruster and Helen Trefry tested and proved many new techniques. This was all new science. It was very much a gut reaction and learning as they went to determine how to optimize their productivity.

Phil Trefry
I don't think anybody expected it to be easy. In fact many people said that we weren't going to be able to reproduce falcons in captivity... There was a learning curve, you know... It took a number of years to get familiar with the birds and to recognize what was normal behavior with the birds in captivity and what would give you the best results - what would give you, you know, the maximum number of young from each pair - it's what we were after.

Gillian Deacon
Producing the maximum number of healthy peregrines for release was the goal. The trick was getting the females to lay as many eggs as possible. If eggs were removed as they were laid, nesting females would lay more - up to a dozen eggs. The group developed the best methods for incubating the eggs and rearing the young. They discovered how to handle the young peregrines so that they became calm, reliable breeders. While natural mating was preferred, artificial insemination was sometimes necessary, and techniques were developed for that too. The pioneering methods developed at Wainwright not only saved the peregrine from extinction, but also advanced the science of captive breeding. By 1996, over 1500 peregrines from the program had been released. Not all of the birds survived, but the ones that have are re-establishing the peregrine population in the wild.

Dr. Geoff Holroyd
Well, the peregrine has recovered. In 1995 there were 85 pairs across southern Canada. In the year 2000 there should be well over 100 pairs, and in the north, in the MacKenzie Valley and the Yukon, we believe there's going to be over 400 pairs there.

Gillian Deacon
The success of the captive breeding program is responsible for the peregrine falcon being down-listed from Endangered to Threatened in 1999. DDT-related toxins still persist in the environment, but not at levels lethal to peregrines.

Phil Trefry
They're real survivors. You know, they've survived this tremendous chemical impact that we subjected them to. It's a wildlife success story. I mean, we've been able to pull them back from the brink of extinction - we've been able to correct a terrible mistake that human beings are responsible for.

Gillian Deacon
After 25 years, having accomplished its goal of bringing the peregrine back, the captive breeding program at Wainwright was closed in 1996.

Geoff Holroyd
The future for peregrines looks very positive. We don't see any major threats to their current existence, whether it's chemical or environmental. I think the biggest challenge now is maintaining habitat. So that's our real challenge for the future - maintaining a healthy environment that is healthy both for the peregrines and for humans.

Earth Tones is produced in co-operation with Environment Canada.