S.J. City Hall falcons have four eggs in nest
It’s a big weekend for fans of San Jose’s resident peregrine falcons, who’ll be watching to see if any of the four eggs in the nest box high up on City Hall begin to hatch.
Clara and Fernando El Cohete, her mate since 2012, have been taking turns watching over the clutch of eggs since their arrival over the past few weeks. Observers on the falcons’ Facebook page — of course they have a Facebook page — anticipate the eggs could begin hatching as soon as Friday.
Watching the falcons on the city’s FalconCam has been a daytime obses- sion for countless people since Clara first arrived on the scene in 2007. Should any of this year’s eggs hatch, this will be the 11th year that Clara has produced young. Last year, three eggs hatched and two chicks survived.
For falcon fans, the show is really just starting. Once any chicks arrive, Clara and Fernando will begin feeding them — never good news for any downtown pigeons who might wind up as baby food — and then the wait begins for them to “fledge,” or take their first, often tricky and dangerous, flights. The gender of the chicks won’t be known until they are banded by researchers with the Santa Cruz Predatory Bird Research Group, which monitors the population of peregrine falcons in the area and provides educational programs to schools about the birds.
SWEET DISPLAY: Artist Charlotte Kruk — who makes wearable art from an amazing array of recycled items — has put her talents to use decorating the storefront window of Deb Rohzen’s Simply Smashing! boutique in downtown Campbell.
The whimsical display, titled “Circo, Cirque, Circus; Super Chocolate Circus,” features human-animal hybrid circus performers created out of papier-mache and candy wrappers, as well as showcasing two acrobat costumes — they look like ballet tutus— made using “Mother’s Circus Animal” bags.
If you want to get a close-up look at the display and meet the artist, she’ll be at the “Art and Fashion Affair” reception Rohzen is having Saturday from 2 to 5 p.m. to celebrate the revamped boutique at 241 E. Campbell Ave.
NO FOOLIN’: Contestants for the sixth annual South Bay Teen Idol finals are getting ready for their big showdown 7 p.m. Satur- day at the Addison-Penzak Jewish Community Center in Los Gatos. And it should be a pretty fun show: With the competition falling on April Fools’ Day this year, the songs are based on the theme of pranks and surprises.
They’re not kidding around about the top prize, though, which is $2,500, plus $500 for the music department of the winner’s school. The 10 young women who made the finals are from around the Bay Area: Abby Waterman (Los Gatos High), Ally Boles (Westmont High), Catherine Wellwood (Herman Intermediate School), Julia Owens (Pinewood High), Kristen Champlin (Leland High), Lyla Rose Neely (Oakland School of the Arts), Nicole Baranchuk (Westmont High), Sabrina Kazemipour (Sacred Heart Prep), Sierra McKenna (Christopher High) and Sophie Huang (Dublin High).
The judges include two people who know a lot about both music and being funny — Mix 106.5 morning hosts Jeff Pope and Marla Davies— as well as Robert Hayes of local talent management firm Sound Management. Get more information and buy tickets at www.apjcc.org.