Cliffs in eight places around Vermont have been closed to protect nesting peregrine falcons.
The Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department says the cliffs and some trails leading to them will be closed until August 1st.
They’ll be reopened earlier if a falcon pair doesn’t nest or if their nest isn’t successful.
Peregrines were virtually wiped out in Vermont by the mid-1900s because of pesticide use.
But they have been restored and now are beginning to multiply. The Fish and Wildlife Department encourages people to report sightings and to stay away from pairs that are nesting.
The cliff areas that are closed for now are:
Nichols Ledge in Woodbury.
The Fairlee Palisades
Deer Leap in Bristol.
Bolton Notch
Rattlesnake Point in Salisbury.
Mount Horrid in Goshen and Rochester.
Snake Mountain in Addison.
Smuggler’s Notch in Cambridge.