KGHMEK, KGHMKA and Auris - KGHM employees and Internet users chose names for the young falcons from the Głogów Copper Smelter

The two female and male falcons that hatched this year in a nest on the stack of the Głogów Copper Smelter have already been named. KGHM employees and Internet users have decided to give the young falcons the following names: KGHMEK, KGHMKA, and Auris.

The young falcons are currently more than 1.5 months old. The ringed birds are in good health, have changed their plumage to dark brown, and are seen less and less frequently in the nest on the stack of the Głogów Copper Smelter. The birds are becoming independent - they are making their first flights near the nest where they were born. Workers at the smelter have a unique opportunity to observe the falcons in flight, but also to hear them, as the young birds make species-specific noises in the process.

For about two more months, the young falcons will stay near the nest, where their parents Szira and Bohun will feed them. Later, they will begin to hunt and improve hunting techniques on their own. At the end of the summer, the birds will leave the place of their birth and migrate - as peregrine falcons do - in search of their own territories.

“At KGHM, we don’t just focus on the production of metals and other minerals, but also care about environmental protection. In an effort to balance industrial development and nature conservation, we have welcomed falcons into our territory. Now we are proudly watching the next generation of these beautiful birds,” said Sylwia Jurgiel, the spokesperson for KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. 

The company is engaged in a campaign aimed to restore this endangered species. Falcons are some of the rarest birds in Poland. In the Copper Belt, they are cared for by smelter employees, specialists from the Association for Wild Animals, and KGHM volunteers. The company will also carry out the “KGHM for Falcons” program, which later this year will include lessons on environmental issues carried out at schools and kindergartens in the Copper Belt.

The nesting platform for falcons is located on the “Koniczynka” stack at the Głogów Copper Smelter II. They are cared for by smelter employees, specialists from the Association for Wild Animals, and KGHM volunteers.  This year the platform was occupied by a pair of falcons, which had three chicks. A total of 45 chicks have been ringed since the installation of the nesting platform on the stack by the smelter’s workers. This is an excellent result, especially since there are currently only 100 pairs of peregrine falcons in Poland.

Certainly, some of the birds hatched at the Głogów Copper Smelter have significantly strengthened the national population of this extremely rare magnificent bird of prey. Thanks to bird monitoring, it is known that a falcon from Głogów named Giga has chosen to live in Poland’s capital - it has a nest on the Palace of Culture and Science in Warsaw.

In 2008, an unsuccessful peregrine falcon nesting attempt was identified at the Głogów Copper Smelter. At that time, a nesting platform was installed on one of the stacks of that division of KGHM. Just a year later, the first three falcons hatched there.