Baby falcon that recently hatched rescued from Fox River in Aurora Illinois [View all]

One of the baby falcons that recently hatched outside Aurora City Hall was rescued from the Fox River and reunited with its mother last week, according to the city. Ed Bernal was visiting downtown Aurora for a haircut last Thursday, according to the city, when he noticed a number of people looking down at the Fox River as he rode his bike on the Downer Place bridge.
Stopping, Bernal joined the crowd and saw one of the baby falcons that had recently hatched outside City Hall, Hope, stuck in the river and being pushed by the current toward a wall, the city said in a news release.

A bystander had a bucket and a towel, and Bernal climbed down the wall to rescue Hope, per the city. He used the towel to take hold of her and place her, unharmed, into the bucket, and then waded downstream to a set of stairs to climb out of the river. Afterwards, a group of community members drove the falcon to the DuPage Wildlife Conservation Center for a medical evaluation, the city news release said, and she was then taken back to Aurora.

The baby falcon stayed perched on the south side of City Hall for hours, according to the city, as passersby attempted to guide her back to the nest and her mother. Eventually, Quentin Johnson, an animal control officer with the city, was able to lure Hope off her perch, capture her and then transport her back to her mother and nest on the opposite side of City Hall.

https://archive.ph/2026.06.21-115903/https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/06/18/baby-falcon-aurora-rescued/#selection-1943.0-1973.369