Brandywine Rooftop Falcons, East View

A Skyscraper Above Downtown Wilmington

The Brandywine Building is an 18-story office tower at 1000 North West Street, raised in 1970 in the heart of downtown Wilmington, Delaware. Its broad, gravel-topped roof sits high above the surrounding blocks, giving this east-facing camera a sweeping outlook toward the Wilmington skyline and the Delaware countryside beyond.

A Nest Box Watched Since 1992

In 1992, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist installed a nest box on an upper floor after peregrine falcons began showing up around the tower. The Delaware Ornithological Society (DOS) has monitored the pair ever since, adding a set of exterior roof cameras — of which this east-facing feed is one — to follow the adults beyond the confines of the box.

What the Camera Watches For

This camera sweeps the open rooftop toward the east, where the falcons regularly land on the antenna mast, vents and roof-edge parapets to rest, preen or scan the skyline for prey — a favored spot for young falcons taking their first steps away from the nest each season.

A Citizen-Science Falcon Watch

The feed anchors DOS's Falcon Watch program, a long-running citizen-science effort that invites birders and residents of Wilmington to follow the resident falcons throughout the nesting season.