By Julie Shapiro
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
FINANCIAL DISTRICT — The young falcons born on a Financial District skyscraper this spring tested their wings for the first time last week.
One at a time, they left their nest on the 14th-story ledge of 55 Water St., which they have called home since they hatched in April.
Photographer Francois Portmann staked out the nest to capture the falcons' first moments of flight, called fledging.
"It's pretty exciting," said Portmann, 50, a Lower East Side resident who has been photographing falcons for four years. "It was just one of those moments. To me, it was the best show in town. It's free — you just have to be there at 5:30 a.m."
Portmann said the parent falcons don't push the young out of the nest, but rather they entice them to leave by flying off and encouraging the young to follow.
Some baby falcons find that it's easier to start flying than it is to stop.
"They get into a little bit of trouble," Portmann said. "They can fly pretty well, but the problem is to land — they have to learn."
Portmann said he saw one of the young falcons try to land on a narrow 1-inch ledge, only to lose its balance and plummet five stories. The falcon caught itself and swooped back up unharmed, Portmann said.
Portmann said he saw one of the baby falcons fledge last Wednesday, a second on Thursday and a third on Friday.
Once the baby falcons leave the nest, they find their own perch nearby — in this case, on the roof of 55 Water St., Portmann said. The young falcons will stay close to their parents this summer, as they learn how to hunt and survive on their own.
As of Wednesday morning, the fourth and smallest falcon had not yet left the nest, Portmann said.
Three of the baby falcons were named Shattuck, Jordan and Austin, for members of the armed forces who have been wounded or killed overseas. The fourth was named Hope, in memory of two first responders killed on 9/11.
The falcons' parents, Rocky and Jubilee, have been nesting at 55 Water St. for several years.
