Acadia National Park in Maine will temporarily close several areas in the park — including the Precipice Trail, Jordan Cliffs Trail, and Valley Cove Trail — beginning March 1 to protect peregrine falcons.
The closures happen annually in Acadia. They’re done to provide peregrine falcons with adequate space for nesting and protect them from inadvertent human disturbance or harassment during the nesting period.
Park officials said research has shown that nesting peregrine falcons are particularly vulnerable to human activities, which can disturb the adults and make them less attentive to the eggs or chicks.
Human activities near a nesting area can lead to temporary or permanent abandonment of the nest by the adults leaving chicks susceptible to hypothermia, starvation, and predation.
Signs at trail heads and trail junctions around the closed areas indicate where public entry is prohibited. Public entry into a closed area is a violation of federal regulations, which is punishable by a fine, imprisonment, or both.
Officials said the closure area will be actively monitored, and violations will be strictly enforced.
The National Park Service will reopen the closed areas once park resource managers determine it is safe to do so.
In past years, it has been well into summer before the falcons fledged and trails were reopened.
In 2024, three breeding pairs of peregrine falcons made their homes on Acadia’s cliffs: one near Valley Cove Trail, one near Jordan Cliffs Trail, and one near Precipice Trail. Two chicks from nests near Precipice Trail and one chick from a nest near Jordan Cliffs Trail survived until they could fly.