Family of falcons nest at Wayne State University

DETROIT (FOX 2) - A family of Falcons are the latest addition to the campus of Wayne State University.

Hovering above Old Main are two peregrine falcons. A mom and a dad - named Isabella and Freedom.  The couple moved into the Wayne state campus in 2016. 
  
Look closely and you'll see the three new additions that were born on the balcony.  Before the early nineties, peregrine falcons were endangered.  
 
"They've been taken off the endangered species list because the re-introduction into the eastern United States has been so successful," said Michelle Serreyn, WSU Dept. of Biological Sciences. "Part of that started with people introducing them into urban environments."  

And now Wayne State is setting up a webcam for viewers to track the trio of chicks as they grow up. Falcons, being raised in the home of the Wayne State Warriors.  
 
They make look delicate now, but mom and dad weigh in at two and three pounds. They are birds of prey that can be fierce.  

"They are the fastest animal on earth," she said. "So what they do, is they hover in the air about birds because they are bird eaters. And they fold their wings and go into what's called a stoop, so they are diving. When they do that, they have been clocked at 200 miles per hour."

The fact that Isabella and Freedom chose Detroit as home, means something for the region.  

"It says a lot about the revitalization of the Detroit area," she said. "So here we are fixing up the campers, we are creating habitat for people but we are also creating habitat for wildlife at the same time. And they are recognizing that this is a safe place to be, it is a good environment for them. So just as people are moving back into the city, so are these animals moving back into the city."  

Click here to watch the falcon cam, which launches June 6.