New ‘lofty’ names for trio of peregrine falcon chicks at Nebraska Capitol

Three baby peregrine falcons hatched in mid-May 2024, the first in eight years since the last successful clutch of eggs. They received the names Cirrus, Stratus and Cumulus through a naming contest. June 12, 2024. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)

LINCOLN — The Nebraska State Capitol’s newest generation of peregrine falcon chicks have “lofty” new names: Cirrus, Stratus and Cumulus.

The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission this week announced the names for the trio of peregrine falcon chicks , two females and one male, that hatched in mid-May 2024. The commission also confirmed the names of the chicks’ father and mother: Jet and Atlas.

Joel Jorgensen, nongame bird program manager for the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission said each falcon has a black/blue auxiliary marker with an identification code. Jet is male 39/V, and Atlas is female U/57.

The chicks are:

• Cirrus, female M/93.
• Stratus, female M/91.
• Cumulus, male X/35.

Shawn Meyer of Beatrice offered the names for the chicks, which received the most public online votes in an online naming contest. Six finalists were chosen from approximately 400 name combinations, and Meyer’s submission secured 25% of the 1,015 votes cast.

For winning the contest, Meyer received a year’s subscription to Nebraskaland Magazine.

Cirrus, Stratus and Cumulus are the first peregrine falcon chicks to hatch atop the Nebraska Capitol in eight years. The previous pair of falcons, Ally and 19/K, raised 23 of their young between 2005 and 2020. The pair’s last successful clutch of eggs hatched in 2016.

Peregrine falcons are the fastest animal in the world thanks to top diving speeds of more than 200 miles per hour. The species had been listed as endangered between 1970 and 1999, but steady conservation work helped repopulate the species.

Game and Parks offers live streams of the falcons above the capital city and inside their nesting box . Those livestreams can be accessed at outdoornebraska.gov/learn/nebraska-wildlife/nebraska-animals/birds/peregrine-falcons/ .

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