Peregrine falcons have lived on the bridges crossing the Tappan Zee section of the Hudson River since the mid-1980s.

The Thruway Authority placed the first nest box on the superstructure of the Tappan Zee Bridge in 1985—some 285 feet above the river—in partnership with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), Museum of the Hudson Highlands and the Peregrine Fund.

Three years later, the first three falcon chicks hatched on the bridge; dozens more have been born in the decades since.

Today, the peregrine falcon pair that call the bridge home for much of the year reside in a nest box more than 400 feet above the Hudson in a tower atop the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge. The birds have spectacular views of the New York City skyline from their “penthouse,” a high vantage point to hunt for prey and raise a family. Peregrines primarily hunt other birds, such as pigeons and ducks, and they can exceed 200 miles per hour during their dives.

According to the DEC, every Hudson River bridge from Albany to New York City houses a peregrine nest box. They were established in part to increase peregrine falcon populations that had been decimated by pesticides and other factors. The DEC notes the number of breeding pairs in New York has grown steadily since 1983, when the first peregrines in decades returned to nest on bridges in New York City. The focus has now shifted to monitoring and protecting breeding pairs like those on the bridge.

A camera to showcase the bridge falcons went live in 2014 as construction of the Tappan Zee’s replacement was beginning.

They quickly captured the community’s imagination, and thousands watched eggs hatch, the adults feed their young and the chicks grow before they left home, typically after 40 days.

Soon the Authority invited local elementary and middle school students in the surrounding area to submit names for the falcon chicks, providing an opportunity for teachers to educate students about their speedy neighbors while allowing the public to vote for them online. The contest proved to be a hit and was held several times between 2015 and 2019. During past naming contests, thousands voted online, and the top vote-getters included Zee, Hudson, Talon-ted, Speedy and Bridge-ette.

In 2021, visitors to the bridge’s new shared use path voted on the names in person, and in 2024, the Authority partnered with Veolia, the local water company, and expanded the contest to schools across Westchester and Rockland counties. Elementary school students came up with more than 130 unique names and close to 200,000 votes were cast to pick the winners.

The Authority and DEC team work with a wildlife specialist from the New York City Department of Environmental Protection who visits the chicks each year to check on their health and attach a metal band to their legs. Banding is done when the nestlings are about three weeks old.