UMass Amherst Libraries Host FalConference: A Virtual Peregrine Falcon Conference

The UMass Amherst Libraries are pleased to announce FalConference: a one-day virtual conference where the community is invited to join the Du Bois Falcon team and their collaborators on- and off-campus as they discuss all things Peregrine. The event will take place on Zoom on Friday, May 21, 2021, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and is free and open to the public.

Peregrine falcons have successfully nested on the roof of the Du Bois Library at UMass Amherst since 2003. A live web camera was installed atop the Library in 2012, made possible by the UMass Amherst Facilities Planning Division, UMass Amherst Information Technology (IT), the Libraries’ Systems and Web Management Department, the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (MassWildlife), and the generous donors to the Du Bois Falcons Fund. Viewers can stream the webcam from the Library website at library.umass.edu/falcons and follow the falcons on Twitter at @DuBoisFalcons.

The conference consists of several panels, including “The History of the Falcon Reintroduction Program in Massachusetts and at UMass,” “The Art and Science of Banding Wild Falcons,” and a special “Birds of Prey” program with Tom Ricardi, raptor rehabilitator. The full schedule can be viewed on the FalConference website.

Additionally, the FalConference team is excited to collaborate with The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art and collect images of falcon-themed artwork from the community to be displayed in the FalConference online gallery.