WABASHA — Three peregrine falcon chicks were successfully banded Wednesday on the Michael Duane Clickner Memorial Bridge on Highway 60 in Wabasha.

The chicks — two females and one male ­— were the first born in a nesting box placed by the Minnesota Department of Transportation on the bridge in 2009. On Wednesday, MnDOT aided the Midwest Peregrine Society in reaching the box, so the chicks could be banded. Blood samples were also taken from the birds.  The work was done in less than half an hour and the birds appeared healthy and well-fed, according to Jackie Fallon of the Midwest Peregrine Society.

Fuller said the chicks were approximately 15-16 days old. The eggs hatch after about 35 days and the chicks fledge about six weeks after hatching.

Both parents are banded. The mother is named Skeeter, who was born a year ago in John Latsch State Park north of Winona. The male is named Hedweg, a 2011 fledge from WPS Weston Power Plant Rothschild, Wisconsin.

The Midwest Peregrine Society asked MnDOT to name the chicks. The male was named Wally and the females were named Daytona and Kora Rose.

The falcons will continued to be monitored by volunteers of the peregrine society, as well as spotters from the nearby National Eagle Center in Wabasha.