UPDATED 03/15/2019:
*There was an error in our original post stating that there had been no successful fledglings at this site since 2007. This was an error. There has been, in fact, 1 successful fledgling at the site in 2016.*
Peregrine Falcons form lifetime bonds and use the same cliff face nest sites year after year. At Devil’s Courthouse at milepost 422 peregrines were able to nest from 2000 through 2007 producing 14 young birds that fledged. Since then only one fledgling... has been produced, in 2016, and in many years falcons have not been able to nest there successfully.
Biologists monitoring the site have noticed increased human activity in the closed area at the top of the cliff and that this intrusion has likely caused the birds to abandon their nests. Help us protect these magnificent birds by staying on the trail and behind the wall at the overlook.
Gary Hartley Photo.